Guinea talk.

[guinealeghorn]

I also have some sad news. I just lost 5 of my guineas. They just wandered off, and I couldn't find them looking around. I checked everywhere in the area and didn't find them. I am now down to 4. Two hen and cock pairs. The leghorns were spooked and flew into trees. One of my guinea hens was previously injured, and confined to a brooder cage I use to integrate new birds into the flock. Her mate is in with her, cause he is so gentle and caring for her, and she was so lonely, that I had to let him in. My hen is crouched on the ground, pulling herself along with her wings and neck. When I pick her up, she can move her loegs just fine. I'm hoping she just got a cramp or something and will recover soon.

 

[R2elk]

I also have some sad news. I just lost 5 of my guineas. They just wandered off, and I couldn't find them looking around. I checked everywhere in the area and didn't find them. I am now down to 4. Two hen and cock pairs. The leghorns were spooked and flew into trees. One of my guinea hens was previously injured, and confined to a brooder cage I use to integrate new birds into the flock. Her mate is in with her, cause he is so gentle and caring for her, and she was so lonely, that I had to let him in. My hen is crouched on the ground, pulling herself along with her wings and neck. When I pick her up, she can move her loegs just fine. I'm hoping she just got a cramp or something and will recover soon.

Laying hens can lose muscle control if they have insufficient calcium. You may want to get a liquid or soluble calcium supplement to put in her water. You would not want that water shared with the male since too high of calcium levels can cause kidney problems in males.

 

[GlennLee]

@MartinsPoultry Oh dear, you thought that was a strong possibility. You certainly have tried to get her assimilated and when you get to the point where you know it's not going to work, you have to take it to the next level for the sake of the flock. Same thing with the others.... that's the down side of farming. Difficult decisions to make at times.....

 

[GlennLee]

@guinealeghorn very sorry to hear about the loss of your 5. It's hard to recoup after that and the flock goes into a tizzy for about a month while they readjust or just cease to be a flock because of the few numbers left. I hope the four you have left pair with one another. I've had problems with small numbers and one male taking all 3 females, leaving two males with none - plus a lot of aggressive behavior. Good luck as you regroup from this. The moral of the story is you can never have too many guineas. It can change in a heartbeat.

 

[guinealeghorn]

Guess what? The five guineas reappeared today! We have lots of pine trees around, and I think they may have hidden in the branches. I'm surprised they didn't get eaten. Also found a small chunk of fur on the driveway near the coop. I think something came to attack the chickens and the guineas teamed up on it. They probably got chased, and flew up in the trees. This would give the leghorns enough time to get onto the trees.

 

[guinealeghorn]

@guinealeghorn very sorry to hear about the loss of your 5. It's hard to recoup after that and the flock goes into a tizzy for about a month while they readjust or just cease to be a flock because of the few numbers left. I hope the four you have left pair with one another. I've had problems with small numbers and one male taking all 3 females, leaving two males with none - plus a lot of aggressive behavior. Good luck as you regroup from this. The moral of the story is you can never have too many guineas. It can change in a heartbeat.

They were already messed up, in groups of two, three, or five. When I lost the first three, it messed them up a lot, and then one got hit by a car. After this, they split into pairs. I'm glad they came back!

 

[GlennLee]

Phew! Good to hear... Great news that the 5 returned. I like stories that end this way - guineas win, predators left with a chunk of fur taken out of them!

 

[guinealeghorn]

Lol! Me too!

 

[GldnValleyHens]

I have two guinea keets; a Lavender and Coral Blue that are about three weeks old. They both have been rambunctious and active until a couple of days ago one of them began acting weird. It is sitting still under the light with its eye closed, and moves around slowly, as of now still interested in food though not as much as normal. It does have a crusty cloaca, with white and reddish poo stuck around it. I have been treating with collodial silver orally, but is this a disease that may spread? I turned the light off until a few days ago and the keet really liked it, and would huddle underneath.

 

[R2elk]

I have two guinea keets; a Lavender and Coral Blue that are about three weeks old. They both have been rambunctious and active until a couple of days ago one of them began acting weird. It is sitting still under the light with its eye closed, and moves around slowly, as of now still interested in food though not as much as normal. It does have a crusty cloaca, with white and reddish poo stuck around it. I have been treating with collodial silver orally, but is this a disease that may spread? I turned the light off until a few days ago and the keet really liked it, and would huddle underneath.

It sounds like it has coccidiosis which you should be treating with Corid. I would not treat anything with colloidal silver. I did some research on that a while back. While some people swear by it, all of the studies that I came across have proven that it is not effective.