Guineas fighting with chickens

[Smileybans]

My Guinea free range. My chickens don’t. My chickens are penned up in different runs depending on their breeds. The guineas lately have been going to certain runs and standing at the fence to yell at the chickens on the other side. When the roosters come over they fight with each other. The guineas were added just this year. They have their own coop where their food is. So they have food and water. Is this a dominace thing or something else?

 

[Wyorp Rock]

Put up some blocking so they can't see each other.

 

[R2elk]

My Guinea free range. My chickens don’t. My chickens are penned up in different runs depending on their breeds. The guineas lately have been going to certain runs and standing at the fence to yell at the chickens on the other side. When the roosters come over they fight with each other. The guineas were added just this year. They have their own coop where their food is. So they have food and water. Is this a dominance thing or something else?

This is a guinea thing.

You did not say whether or not your guineas were brooded with chicks.

My guineas would follow cats walking down their fence line while screaming at them.

 

[SmiYa0126]

Guineas

 

[SamLockwood]

If they're younger, they're reaching the stage where they start claiming territory. Mine decided the neighbor's dog had to go so they'd march up to the fence every day and scream at it. Then they decided to claim the cul-de-sac at the end of the driveway. I figured sooner or later they'd either get run over or actually try to get in the yard with the rottie.

I ended up adding fencing to keep them off other people's property (two sides of the area were already fenced, so I fenced in the other two sides and added a gate). I had a few incidents where they or the chickens would get out and have to be retrieved. Then they decided the fence was OK but started persecuting ANYTHING that came into the area: squirrels, small song birds, my mom's cat. One time I heard them rasing cain and then they suddenly got quiet. I see that six of them have surrounded this overgrown root-hollow that's next to the front yard. I walk up to see if they're bullying the cat and as I walk up the nearest guinea moves out of my way. At that point this rabbit leaps out of the brush and tears across they yard, with the screaming guineas in hot pursuit.

A couple months later they calmed down quite a bit, although they still "bark" back at the neighbor's dog and they chase off deer that get too close to the fence.

 

[Smileybans]

Put up some blocking so they can't see each other.

There is wind protection on the runs right now and they look through the little space there is by the door. I can’t block that off because we need to be able to access the door.

 

[Smileybans]

This is a guinea thing.

You did not say whether or not your guineas were brooded with chicks.

My guineas would follow cats walking down their fence line while screaming at them.

They were brood with three bantam chicks that also free range. These three chickens, a rooster and two hens, roost with the guineas on nice nights and eat out of their coop. The guineas will not roost in the coop and instead roost on the runs. I gave up trying to get them to roost in the coop. They do what they want really.

 

[Smileybans]

If they're younger, they're reaching the stage where they start claiming territory. Mine decided the neighbor's dog had to go so they'd march up to the fence every day and scream at it. Then they decided to claim the cul-de-sac at the end of the driveway. I figured sooner or later they'd either get run over or actually try to get in the yard with the rottie.

I ended up adding fencing to keep them off other people's property (two sides of the area were already fenced, so I fenced in the other two sides and added a gate). I had a few incidents where they or the chickens would get out and have to be retrieved. Then they decided the fence was OK but started persecuting ANYTHING that came into the area: squirrels, small song birds, my mom's cat. One time I heard them rasing cain and then they suddenly got quiet. I see that six of them have surrounded this overgrown root-hollow that's next to the front yard. I walk up to see if they're bullying the cat and as I walk up the nearest guinea moves out of my way. At that point this rabbit leaps out of the brush and tears across they yard, with the screaming guineas in hot pursuit.

A couple months later they calmed down quite a bit, although they still "bark" back at the neighbor's dog and they chase off deer that get too close to the fence.

They are still young. I purchased them as keets over the summer. I absolutely adore them but they are so different than my chickens. I had noticed they were starting to fight among each other and just thought it was puberty or something. I don’t know why they have singled out only a few of my chickens.

 

[R2elk]

They were brood with three bantam chicks that also free range. These three chickens, a rooster and two hens, roost with the guineas on nice nights and eat out of their coop. The guineas will not roost in the coop and instead roost on the runs. I gave up trying to get them to roost in the coop. They do what they want really.

This is most likely the cause of your problems. Brooding keets with chicks causes them to imprint. The imprinting causes them to lose the ability to undetstand that chickens are not guineas.

 

[Wyorp Rock]

There is wind protection on the runs right now and they look through the little space there is by the door. I can’t block that off because we need to be able to access the door.

You should be able to find something to set in front of that space to help block their view but still be able to easily move to access the door.
A bucket, tote, piece of scrap plywood, cardboard...lots of things can be used if you get creative.