Guinea talk.

[BiophiliaDJT]

I have had guineas for 4 years now and have never had any run off or head for the hills. The first ones you get need to be confined for about 4 weeks to learn where home is, but after that, it's pretty easy. Mine free range all day and go in the coop at night. My guineas love white millet, so all I have to do is call "chick, chick, chick!" a shake the millet bag and they will come running from wherever they are at. I let my guineas hatch their own eggs and raise their own keets and have been very pleased with the results. Although not all guineas owners agree with doing this I have found that it works well for me.
As for getting stressed, if they had plenty of room to roam, perches to roost on, and protection from the weather and predators, I would think they would do ok.

Thank you for the advice!

 

[boucher814]

I'd say you missed about 70 pages and a lot of new peeps!  I'm sure you'll get up to speed with this thread in time.  So glad you started this thread, Clay.... 

As far as getting some guineas, I did a mapquest and it looks like we are 4 hours apart with Elmira being about the halfway point.  I have friends in Elmira Heights, so if you are able to make that drive, it might be doable for me to get some guineas to you. 

I guess the next question is how soon.. and were you looking for adults or keets?  I'm hoping to have keets this spring. 

I'm not planning to give up any of my adults at this point, but may be interested if I have an overflow of keets.  Too early to tell.... so this may be an option for you to consider at some point.  BTW - 4 of my birds are regular pearls (add ons to my original flock) and the remaining 8 are French Jumbo pearls.  I'm not sure if it matters to you.  The Jumbos are bigger, seem to be a bit calmer and hop rather than fly. 

That would be wonderful. No it really doesn't matter to me what type of guinea I get as long as I have two or three because I just like to look at them. And they are nice to have around. We could meet up in the spring that would be wonderful. How much would u sell them for????

 

[GlennLee]

That would be wonderful. No it really doesn't matter to me what type of guinea I get as long as I have two or three because I just like to look at them. And they are nice to have around. We could meet up in the spring that would be wonderful. How much would u sell them for????

Consider it a gift for starting this thread. The support I have received her on this thread with my guineas has been invaluable. Thank you!

We'll discuss the particulars once I'm into the breeding season. You can let me know if you are interested in keets or adults. If you want adults, I would probably give up the four sub flock of regular guineas. There's one male and 3 females.

They have been tolerated by the French Guineas, but the original flock is not enamored of them. I couldn't separate them though, you would have to take all 4. They are a very curious bunch and have come a long way in the time I've had them. I got them when they were about 3 months old and they still had their chipmunk stripes. They acted like they had never had a feeder to eat from or a perch to roost on... perhaps they didn't. Here's a pic of them. They are the puppies of my flock - the rest act like old salty dogs. Or if you'd prefer keets, I'm hoping I'll have some to share with you. They will just require more attention for the first couple of months and some training as well.



They are the puppies of my flock - the rest act like salty old dogs. If you'd prefer keets, I'm hoping I'll have some to share with you. They would just be a straight run since they can't be sexed and would require more care and attention for the first couple of months and some training as well.

And here they are at the head of the pack or flock - it seems to be their place - their curiosity takes the flock to places they would probably never go - like one of the neighbor's bird feeders!

 

[GlennLee]

Ive heard lots of reports of even well socialized and well acclimated guineas deciding to head for the hills one day and getting killed off by predators. If you had a largish garden area and put fencing around it and hung netting over it, would these guys be able to forage and do pest control safely, or would the confinement stress them even in such a large space?

When I first got my keets, a friend also dropped off an adult male. The keets weren't ready for the outdoor coop / run area, so Henry had the rule of the roost. I kept him in that area for a month. During that time, I trained him to associate food with ringing a bell and was able to lure him back to the coop using the bell, followed by his food. I did have issues with him taking off and heading for the hills, but only when he was alone. After the keets got old enough to be in the coop area, he was put out to free range and wouldn't go anywhere! He just kept pacing back and forth in close proximity to the rest of the flock. I did have to eventually get rid of him because he never assimilated with them - he was overly aggressive and kept breaking up the flock and trying to pull off the females in his own harem.

I have never had a problem with the flock I raised from keets wanting to head for the hills, but I worked with them a lot to train them and get them to connect their coop with food and roosting. Again using the bell, getting them in at least 30 minutes before the sunsets, and making sure they have treats when they enter. I have since added 4 guineas - about a month younger than the flock - they get along okay, but really move more like a subgroup within the flock, but I had seen that even before the 4 new ones were added. There's the flock and they move together as one cohesive group, and then there are 2-3 sub grouping within the flock. The 4 new ones have never headed for the hills, they stay with the established flock.

So picking up on what Rhea said - I agree - they need a good month being held in the area where they will be living. They also may need some experience going in and out of the building. Perceptually, it's a different building looking out from the inside versus looking in from the outside. Some of mine had an issue navigating around the fence and getting in the door. Once they saw the other guineas, they thought they could go through the fence - super guineas!

On to your question about confinement. My flock of 12 range on about 10 acres. They are VERY happy - I can tell by their chirps and relative "quietness" compared to what I've heard from others. They LOVE making tunnels in the tall grass we have on most of the property and make themselves at home in the yards of our three neighbors - who enjoy having them there - we are lucky!

Could you keep them in a largish garden area with netting? Probably... I don't know how much it would stress them. It would depend on the how large the area was. Rather than netting the top, you could clip their wings. I would only recommend doing that if you are not going to free range them and you don't have to worry about predators in the garden area. Pattyhen on this thread has her two guineas wings clipped and they do very well in a fenced in yard with her chickens and ducks - in the middle of the city! So confinement isn't a bad thing - it would just depend on the space you can give them, how many guineas you have and if it works for you. So much of what we do with our guineas is dependent on what we observe and the adjustments we make based on our observations.

Hopefully, others will post their ideas as well. One thing you'll find on this thread, we're all willing to share ideas and we know there isn't any ONE right way to do things. Much of what we do is dependent on the kind of "farms" we have, but we sure do love our guineas and appreciate the support and ideas of others. Good luck and keep us posted on your progress....

 

[boucher814]

Consider it a gift for starting this thread. The support I have received her on this thread with my guineas has been invaluable. Thank you! We'll discuss the particulars once I'm into the breeding season. You can let me know if you are interested in keets or adults. If you want adults, I would probably give up the four sub flock of regular guineas. There's one male and 3 females. They have been tolerated by the French Guineas, but the original flock is not enamored of them. I couldn't separate them though, you would have to take all 4. They are a very curious bunch and have come a long way in the time I've had them. I got them when they were about 3 months old and they still had their chipmunk stripes. They acted like they had never had a feeder to eat from or a perch to roost on... perhaps they didn't. Here's a pic of them. They are the puppies of my flock - the rest act like old salty dogs. Or if you'd prefer keets, I'm hoping I'll have some to share with you. They will just require more attention for the first couple of months and some training as well. They are the puppies of my flock - the rest act like salty old dogs. If you'd prefer keets, I'm hoping I'll have some to share with you. They would just be a straight run since they can't be sexed and would require more care and attention for the first couple of months and some training as well. And here they are at the head of the pack or flock - it seems to be their place - their curiosity takes the flock to places they would probably never go - like one of the neighbor's bird feeders!

Thank you so much and I am glad u enjoy this thread. I would like the 4 if u are willing to give them up. I think u said that u will. Also are they friendly. Are they scared of people. Or do they come running up to people. And that would be great.

 

[boucher814]

When I first got my keets, a friend also dropped off an adult male.  The keets weren't ready for the outdoor coop / run area, so Henry had the rule of the roost.  I kept him in that area for a month.  During that time, I trained him to associate food with ringing a bell and was able to lure him back to the coop using the bell, followed by his food.  I did have issues with him taking off and heading for the hills, but only when he was alone.  After the keets got old enough to be in the coop area, he was put out to free range and wouldn't go anywhere!  He just kept pacing back and forth in close proximity to the rest of the flock.  I did have to eventually get rid of him because he never assimilated with them - he was overly aggressive and kept breaking up the flock and trying to pull off the females in his own harem. 

I have never had a problem with the flock I raised from keets wanting to head for the hills, but I worked with them a lot to train them and get them to connect their coop with food and roosting.  Again using the bell, getting them in at least 30 minutes before the sunsets, and making sure they have treats when they enter.  I have since added 4 guineas - about a month younger than the flock - they get along okay, but really move more like a subgroup within the flock, but I had seen that even before the 4 new ones were added.  There's the flock and they move together as one cohesive group, and then there are 2-3 sub grouping within the flock.  The 4 new ones have never headed for the hills, they stay with the established flock.

So picking up on what Rhea said - I agree - they need a good month being held in the area where they will be living.  They also may need some experience going in and out of the building.  Perceptually, it's a different building looking out from the inside versus looking in from the outside.  Some of mine had an issue navigating around the fence and getting in the door.  Once they saw the other guineas, they thought they could go through the fence - super guineas!

On to your question about confinement.  My flock of 12 range on about 10 acres.  They are VERY happy - I can tell by their chirps and relative "quietness" compared to what I've heard from others.  They LOVE making tunnels in the tall grass we have on most of the property and make themselves at home in the yards of our three neighbors - who enjoy having them there - we are lucky! 

Could you keep them in a largish garden area with netting?  Probably... I don't know how much it would stress them.  It would depend on the how large the area was.  Rather than netting the top, you could clip their wings.  I would only recommend doing that if you are not going to free range them and you don't have to worry about predators in the garden area.  Pattyhen on this thread has her two guineas wings clipped and they do very well in a fenced in yard with her chickens and ducks - in the middle of the city!  So confinement isn't a bad thing - it would just depend on the space you can give them, how many guineas you have and if it works for you.  So much of what we do with our guineas is dependent on what we observe and the adjustments we make based on our observations. 

Hopefully, others will post their ideas as well.  One thing you'll find on this thread, we're all willing to share ideas and we know there isn't any ONE right way to do things.  Much of what we do is dependent on the kind of "farms" we have, but we sure do love our guineas and appreciate the support and ideas of others.  Good luck and keep us posted on your progress....

I have trained my ducks and chickens to. Come to me when I call them. So now whenever I call them they come running. I had a guniea that did the same but somehow she passed away. I am hoping to get more here soon.

 

[GlennLee]

Thank you so much and I am glad u enjoy this thread. I would like the 4 if u are willing to give them up. I think u said that u will. Also are they friendly. Are they scared of people. Or do they come running up to people. And that would be great.

I will let you decide for yourself. They are the loud ones in my flock as you can tell in the video! They are also very inquisitive and will be the first ones to come and check things out. They run up, but do not make contact. When I first got them, they were quarantined for 30 days before I merged them with the rest of the flock. Every time I entered their enclosure, they would run and slam themselves up against the fence to try to get away. I've spent a lot of time just sitting with them to get them used to me. They tend to hang back a bit and when I put out feed and stand next to them, the French Jumbos will come closer to me than the four regular pearls. I'm not sure if it's because of the French vs. regular or because I raised the French since they were keets and got the regulars when they were a couple of months old. I do love them and will miss them, but if I am going to have keets this spring, there is no way I can keep them all and I'd rather stick with all French in my flock at this point.

 

[GlennLee]

Here is another video of them admiring themselves in the mirror.

 

[GlennLee]

As you all can tell, I've been busy today getting caught up on BYC and taking some videos and photos of my real live peeps! It was the perfect day to send them out to free range and they made all of their usual stops visiting the neighborhood. They love to go up the road and munch on the bird seed that's scattered under our neighbor's feeders. She's fine with that since the wild birds don't seem to eat it and with the guineas cleaning up the spillage, it keeps the rodents away. She also told me they are welcome any time - they found (or scratched up) a ring that she had lost last winter! She said they are better at finding things than St. Anthony. I asked if she was thinking of adopting her as her animal totem!

Here they are back in the barn after a long day at work in the fields. Last night they went on vacation. I had the old summer coop and run opened up to air out and they decided to roost in there. I closed them in and let them out early this morning. That's a good thing! If my gals decide to lay in the straw bale caves in the barn, I can move the rest of the flock to the other coop / run area. This may work out after all! Time will tell.

 

[boucher814]

Ok I would like the 4. You can just pm me with the details on where u want to meet. I can't begin to express my gratitude to you for helping me out with getting more guineas.