Guineas flipping out

[chevygoat]

This is my first time owning guineas which I've had since they hatched. They're around 6 months old and a few days ago they decided they dont want to go in their coop at night and flip out whenever they see me. Usually when they see me with the feedthey run into the coop but now i have to catch them to get them in. Is this normal?

 

[pattyhen]

With the days being shorter that may have confused them. Do you have a light you can put in the coop? My guineas will not go in the coop unless I turn the light on. I hope they settle down I think it just maybe the shorter days and they are used to staying out longer. I wouldn't let them stay out all night tho it's a bad habit to break. Good luck with them.

 

[chevygoat]

I dont have a light but it happend a day after one group of my chickens did the same thing. The chickens that are usually with the guineas havent acted strange. I did have fox come by the might before this all started and get three chickens. Could this be the reason?

 

[tmelber]

Our guineas started acting more scared of us after a predation incident. They still want to go in the pen at night (usually, but there were a few days when dinner was not enticing), but they do yell at us more often. We've been herding them- we just walk behind them or out to the side- to get them to walk toward the pen we've set up. Something I'm trying is to add a few treats (like meal worms) to the feed they get in the evening in hopes this will increase their motivation to shift back into their pen in the evening.

Also, we kept ours penned for 8 weeks straight before letting them roam at all. They may need to re-learn where "home" is. Now, even if they aren't interested in the dinner we offer, they'll still wander back in and we can close them up for the night.

Good luck!

 

[chevygoat]

Thanks, i guess ill keep them on house arrest for a bit and see if they calm down. Theres just one or two that wont go into the coop and in the process of getting those ones the rest run out.