Help with Guinea New owner

[kayc]

I just started this spring with 14 chickens and 5 Guinea. They were raised together.. As the Guineas get older they are fighting with my chickens. In the coop they will not let them on the roost at night so the chickens stay on the floor.. I have enough room for them all plus more. When I let them out the Guinea chase the chickens out . it is getting cold in Maine with a dusting off snow the Guinea will not let the chicken in the coop to lay eggs. I found them yesterday out side in the wood pile.

HOW can I stop the guinea? I have 3 male and 2 female

Not sure what to do...

 

[speckledhen]

Well, you have hit on the problem no one likes to tell you about. Guineas can be merciless to chickens. Raised together makes no difference. They know they are not chickens and act like the undomesticated animal that they truly are.

I had to rehome my four very tame guineas. You may have to house them separately. They need enough to form their own society away from the chickens. You cannot change a guinea-they are not anything like chickens. They attack as a group from all sides, they hound roosters, especially, and have been known to kill them on occasion.

I will have them again, BUT, I will have a larger number and house them separately so they form a separate society from the chickens, so they don't feel the need to bully quite so much. Once it starts, there isn't much you can do. When they approach laying age, guineas start up with this crud with the chickens. Mine attacked only the red chickens, but they had them hiding all day long from them. Not a good situation.

 

[Hotcookie]

Speckledhen is correct - you need more guineas. Rule of thumb says you should always have a minimum of 10 guineas for them to be happy and healthy. Once they have more of their own kind, they'll leave your poor chickens alone. I have guineas, chickens and ducks, and the guineas can't be bothered with any of the other types of birds in the barnyard.....they're too busy worrying about their placement within their own flock. I don't have mine cooped up with the chickens & ducks, so I honestly can't way whether yours will ever be able to share the same coop as the chickens. They might need their own place to sleep at nite. Good luck - and I'd get some more guineas, if possible.