Guineas and hawks

[Sydney65]

I remember Mudpie...and yes, even though I look at the calendar and see we're heading into November (!!!!) it doesn't seem that long ago. I don't know if I'd feel better knowing what happened that day but it's frustrating trying to figure out what took out so many all at once with no clues left behind.
I am NOT ready for cold dreary days yet. Haven't figured out exactly how I'm going to do this, but no babies will be going out in the cold. Meh, eventually Himself will want them out and THEN he'll remember that promise for bigger coop. Lol
Btw- thank you so much- box arrived and mounted, electrical cords fit perfectly and staying dry!

Your losses have all been free ranging, right? Just curious bc of all the articles I've read pushing for hot wiring.something abt making sure you plant hardcloth so wide, and hardcloth up so high..I'l, have to find that particular article, bc it was stressing that the hot wire needed to be placed so that it would have the most contact, ie if they're climbing a fence.
But for free ranging? The only solution I could think of for free ranging is have a mobile flight pen- kind of like the covered kennel I use only way bigger.
Mine do have the coop, the kennel, and an old apple tree they use for cover. I've not pruned that particular tree, so it's more of a bush, and the trunk is caved so the keets all crowded into it this summer. It was funny to watch. The older ones burrowed under the yucca leaves.
I was experimenting w/the hatchlings last time - I made a tunnel out of an oat container. It didn't take them long to get over fear of it, then they preferred to go through rather than around it. My thinking was to teach them to seek coverage. Easy enough to find or create some sort of tunnel to have in yard for them. Not as easy to teach them to avoid the killing fields.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

Your losses have all been free ranging, right? Just curious bc of all the articles I've read pushing for hot wiring.something abt making sure you plant hardcloth so wide, and hardcloth up so high..I'l, have to find that particular article, bc it was stressing that the hot wire needed to be placed so that it would have the most contact, ie if they're climbing a fence.
But for free ranging? The only solution I could think of for free ranging is have a mobile flight pen- kind of like the covered kennel I use only way bigger.
Mine do have the coop, the kennel, and an old apple tree they use for cover. I've not pruned that particular tree, so it's more of a bush, and the trunk is caved so the keets all crowded into it this summer. It was funny to watch. The older ones burrowed under the yucca leaves.
I was experimenting w/the hatchlings last time - I made a tunnel out of an oat container. It didn't take them long to get over fear of it, then they preferred to go through rather than around it. My thinking was to teach them to seek coverage. Easy enough to find or create some sort of tunnel to have in yard for them. Not as easy to teach them to avoid the killing fields.

Yes, I don’t know if @R2elk employs any hawk control measures in his large fenced area? My guineas don’t even have a fence, so those kind of measures aren’t as useful for my situation. Mostly, I’m relying on the guineas themselves to learn and adapt. That’s another reason I’ve wanted to introduce new keets via broody, so they can learn from the older birds. There are stories of guinea flocks that were “too stupid” to fly away from predators (like dogs) that kill most of a flock at one time. I am guessing that predator avoidance is both instinctual and learned in guinea fowl, and that those birds didn’t learn fast enough to fly away…

As for your corn fields - you’re giving me the heavier jeebies there! I always thought big Iowa corn fields were more boring than creepy! As a horror fan, you’re making me think I should go read Children of the Corn again…

 

[Sydney65]

Yes, I don’t know if @R2elk employs any hawk control measures in his large fenced area? My guineas don’t even have a fence, so those kind of measures aren’t as useful for my situation. Mostly, I’m relying on the guineas themselves to learn and adapt. That’s another reason I’ve wanted to introduce new keets via broody, so they can learn from the older birds. There are stories of guinea flocks that were “too stupid” to fly away from predators (like dogs) that kill most of a flock at one time. I am guessing that predator avoidance is both instinctual and learned in guinea fowl, and that those birds didn’t learn fast enough to fly away…

As for your corn fields - you’re giving me the heavier jeebies there! I always thought big Iowa corn fields were more boring than creepy! As a horror fan, you’re making me think I should go read Children of the Corn again…

Thank goodness they're all down now..I think. Atleast we have a chance at seeing what's out there.
@R2elk - I promised to wait until after Halloween, but did bust open a pumpkin for them today. They like it.

 

[R2elk]

Thank goodness they're all down now..I think. Atleast we have a chance at seeing what's out there.
@R2elk - I promised to wait until after Halloween, but did bust open a pumpkin for them today. They like it.

I don't do anything about hawks, owls or eagles other than to take their pictures. I don't often have hawks in here but when they do show up they are usually after the collared doves that have moved in. They are welcome to all the collared doves they can catch.

My guineas will do the what is it dance as they circle a pumpkin. They will not eat pumpkin at all. The chickens and turkeys won't wait for the pumpkins to get ripe before they start eating them.

All of the poultry will clean up the Russian Olives I knock onto the ground.

 

[Sydney65]

I don't do anything about hawks, owls or eagles other than to take their pictures. I don't often have hawks in here but when they do show up they are usually after the collared doves that have moved in. They are welcome to all the collared doves they can catch.

My guineas will do the what is it dance as they circle a pumpkin. They will not eat pumpkin at all. The chickens and turkeys won't wait for the pumpkins to get ripe before they start eating them.

All of the poultry will clean up the Russian Olives I knock onto the ground.

The Happy Dance? Lol. Rosie thought it was predator and wldnt let the other 2 near it, so at lockdown I put a portion in the run and the young ones snuck back out to eat.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

The Happy Dance? Lol. Rosie thought it was predator and wldnt let the other 2 near it, so at lockdown I put a portion in the run and the young ones snuck back out to eat.

I know I’m in the minority, but I don’t give pumpkins to our poultry. I actually give the guineas almost no produce, as I didn’t want to teach them to raid our gardens. The guineas will steal blueberries off the bushes, but eat almost no other of our fruits and veggies. Lest you think they are deprived, we planted a small field of winter wheat and turnips that they love, plus plenty of clover (see pic). They are enthusiastic grazers.

As for the chickens, I keep thinking of our nearby pumpkin farm that I took our kids to years ago. I told the farm owner that I wanted to buy her pumpkins to make a pie, and she stated that they use so many pesticides on their ornamental pumpkins that she wasn’t comfortable selling it to me to eat. That mirrored my own experience trying to grow pumpkins, because we can make them look great for awhile, but squash pests always show up eventually and give them a disease that rapidly kills the vines. Pumpkins are slow growing, so it would take a lot of pesticide (or row covers, I want to try that!) to keep it going long enough to get big pumpkins in our area. Anyway, while we give lots of leftover produce to our chickens, I don’t give them pumpkins due to presumed heavy pesticide use of the typical pumpkins left over from Halloween.

 

[R2elk]

I know I’m in the minority, but I don’t give pumpkins to our poultry. I actually give the guineas almost no produce, as I didn’t want to teach them to raid our gardens. The guineas will steal blueberries off the bushes, but eat almost no other of our fruits and veggies. Lest you think they are deprived, we planted a small field of winter wheat and turnips that they love, plus plenty of clover (see pic). They are enthusiastic grazers.

As for the chickens, I keep thinking of our nearby pumpkin farm that I took our kids to years ago. I told the farm owner that I wanted to buy her pumpkins to make a pie, and she stated that they use so many pesticides on their ornamental pumpkins that she wasn’t comfortable selling it to me to eat. That mirrored my own experience trying to grow pumpkins, because we can make them look great for awhile, but squash pests always show up eventually and give them a disease that rapidly kills the vines. Pumpkins are slow growing, so it would take a lot of pesticide (or row covers, I want to try that!) to keep it going long enough to get big pumpkins in our area. Anyway, while we give lots of leftover produce to our chickens, I don’t give them pumpkins due to presumed heavy pesticide use of the typical pumpkins left over from Halloween.

I grow lots of pumpkins and do not use any pesticides on them. I do use praying mantises.

Just a few of my pumpkins.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

I grow lots of pumpkins and do not use any pesticides on them. I do use praying mantises.

Just a few of my pumpkins.
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WOW!!! Those are just gorgeous! The massive one in the wheelbarrow is just UNreal!!!

do you have the wilting virus spread by squash beetles there? How do you use the mantises?

 

[R2elk]

WOW!!! Those are just gorgeous! The massive one in the wheelbarrow is just UNreal!!!

do you have the wilting virus spread by squash beetles there? How do you use the mantises?

No wilting disease here. I buy mantis egg cases in the spring and place them in the garden and various trees around the place.

The big pumpkiins are Big Moose. They are a short season pumpkin that is said to be able to get to 120 lbs. My biggest one this year was 123 3/4 lbs.

 

[Mixed flock enthusiast]

No wilting disease here. I buy mantis egg cases in the spring and place them in the garden and various trees around the place.

The big pumpkiins are Big Moose. They are a short season pumpkin that is said to be able to get to 120 lbs. My biggest one this year was 123 3/4 lbs.

Well Big Moose is something else! Very impressive pumpkin!!!