Guinea talk.

[pattyhen]

Spiderman and mary jane.

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[guineapeeps]

Oh my!  Welcome to Gary!  Good luck with the eggs and keets.  We'll all have stories to share as the spring progresses.  I'm hoping for one big communal nest in the barn, but knowing my luck, they'll all go broody in the tall grass and I won't be able to find them.  We have another predator to add to our list - an Adirondack Fisher.  They are like a big weasel and we've seen tracks on our property.  Any of them overnight on a nest, won't stand a chance of survival.  Guess you'd better stock up on some mosquito spray for when you're out searching for them.  They get pretty sneaky!

We don't have fishers where I live, but we do have weasels and mink. I gave some guineas to a friend a few years ago and the first night she had them, a weasel got into the pen and ripped the guineas apart. It didn't eat them, it just destroyed all of them. Only one was left alive and it had one wing completely ripped off. It still makes me feel horrible to think about it! I don't mention it to worry you, only to say if they are anything like weasels or minks, they are the worst predator to have around, as they just seem to kill many at one time just for the fun of it, not for a meal. You probably know all of this, but thought I'd mention it in case others aren't aware of the damage these critters can do!
Luckily, my friend was able to trap and kill the weasel.....I gave her more guineas after that, and they are doing fine. Fortunately, I don't seem to have of these around my house as they seem to live mostly around areas with rivers, ponds, or other large water source.

 

[guineapeeps]

Spiderman and mary jane.

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They look like they're saying, "Come on Mom.....Let us in!"

 

[Dmontgomery]

My computer wouldn't let me link to my post , so I just cut and pasted it. Sorry it is so long.
Anyway, here it is:

I have had some luck moving Guineas on their nest...I would say I have had a 50-75% success rate, which is better than their chances if I let them try and hatch them outside the coop. you might try this method and see if it works for you....the worst that will happen is that they'll abandon their nest then you'll have to decide if you want to incubate the eggs or stick them under a broody hen. I've actually done it a few ways but the premise is the same. First, I get a large Rubbermaid bin with a llid and cut a hole in one end. I fill it with straw and then add some grass or material that is similar to what they have their nest laid in. Now from here, I've transferred the bird a few different ways. The first time, I waited until after dark and snuck up on the nest and grabbed the bird and all her eggs and stuck her in the bin. (You have to be very quick about it or she will get away and run off.) Then, I cover the hole with a blanket and take her back to a completely dark coop. You may want to block off part of the opening so she can't get out but can still get air. She will be forced to stay in all night and hopefully decide this is her new nest. The other times I've done it, I have found the nest before the hen went broody and has not yet started laying on the eggs. I've found this to be much more successful, but you need to find the nest earlier in the laying/nesting process. After the hen has finished laying her egg for the day and has left, I get the same Rubbermaid bin filled with straw and grass and transfer the eggs to it and place it directly over where the nest was. I try to cover it with surrounding material to hide it as much as possible. Usually, the hen will go back into the bin the next day and continue to lay her eggs. I willl not move the bin until she has gone broody and starts laying on the eggs. Then, again, after dark, I cover the hole in the bin and move her to the coop. Now there is a catch to this! Each time I've done this, I end up having to carry the bin out to the old nesting spot during the day and move them back into the coop at night because when I open the coop, I find that the hen runs to her old nesting spot. So, every morning I carry the bin to the nesting spot and the hens jump right in. Every night, after dark, I go get the hen bin (I call it the PNU...portable nesting unit) and carry it back in. I have locked the hen and the bin in a smaller area and keep her confined the whole time and that works ok but sometimes the hen is not satisfied until she can return to the old nest during the day. I know people will ask why I spend so much time and effort instead of just incubating the eggs. I do this because the 25-28 days I spend moving the hen is much less time than I'd spend raising the keets, plus I find the hens do a better job than I do at raising free range Guineas and they seem to be much more savvy to predators!

Option #1 would be much easier if I was lucky enough that she would continue to brood the eggs. But I haven't been "quick" in several years. I guess the worst that would happen would be that she abandons the eggs and I ended up collecting them anyway. I'll just hope and pray that one of the chicken girls goes broody at the right time. Thanks for the advice.

 

[pattyhen]

 

[pattyhen]

 

[GreatBreeder]

Guineas and chickens?

 

[pattyhen]

First pic is spiderman and mary jane and second one is spider

 

[MartinsPoultry]

Patty, are Spider and Mary French or standard Guineas? They look huge.

 

[MartinsPoultry]

I think yours are definitely weirdos....but then all guineas are weird...that's why I love them so much! I'm really just joking with you....I'm sure yours aren't weirdos!
I have a few that are quieter than the others. My females tend to be louder when they free range and my males are louder when there is perceived danger. I have noticed with mine, when they sound the "danger" alarm, the males seem to do more of the short machine gun sound and the females sound more like a longer, drawn out one syllable sound. It's hard to describe, so hopefully that makes sense.
I would say if your males are mounting these quiet guineas, then they are almost certainly female. I have never seen any of my males mount the other males in the 4 years that I've had them. Keep us posted what you find out!

Mine are a little on the weird side, they love corncobs, suet, pretzels and anything pretty much but yell at bugs. Except for the newer three we got earlier this year, Foxy, Zelda and Juliette.
Blue, Charlie, Echo and Delta yell at bugs.