Im getting GUINEAS!!!!!!!

[CochinBrahmaLover]

YAY I FINALLY am getting guinea keets. So I have a few questions



1) Can I house my chickens and guinea together??
2) Are guineas cold hardy? Because we live in AK
3) Are guineas very friendly, in general of the breed
4)If I get guineas how many, like could I just get 1 or do they need a small group or a pair?
5) Do guinea 'roosters' crow like chickens or just all guineas make the same annoying noises, except that femalse go 'buck wheat buck wheat'
6) Are they good flyers, do I need my run to have a net on the top
7)Will guinea cocks fight with roosters or with any chicken?
8) Do guineas roost at night, like do I need a chicken roost and a guinea roost



Sorry if I ask questions that are confusing or seems useless or too many. Just want to be clear since I've had problems with like quails so I don't want it with the guineas.
I did do my research but I want some info from people who've had them so I don't have the quail incident (we lost them behind the TV and they all died there

)

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

Anyone? Please I need some guinea elder wisdom

 

[mr bellmere]

Ok will bite on this one.

1) Yes you can but they do get stroppy with the chooks come breeding season

2) not sure, never get snow where I am but people I speak to in the US have them in snow.

3) Friendly towards you as a person yes they can but wont hand tame as such, other animals, mmmm from experience they do get on with chooks but will annoy the heck out of peafowl.

4) Never get one, not a good idea as guineas prefer to be in a group. Again personal a group of 6 is a good starter.

5) Guinea male 'rooster' they have a machine gun type sound, (you will know when you hear it), females are generally noisier but males can put on a turn when strangers or something strange is around.

6) Yep they can fly well. An enclosed run would be of benefit, especially if you have bird eating predators around.

7) Yes they will annoy roosters at breeding season, not so much as cock fight but chase your roo around ragged trying to pluck its tail.

8) Trees & very tall ones at that, guineas think are a perfect roost.

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

Well thanks so much!!! And we have this HUGE birch tree, gotta be like 100 something years old, and our chickens always roost in it but the sebrights always went highest so we'll see how high they go. So we'll have like 1 or 2 roosters MAYBE at most 3 but ya 2 at most prolly, so 6 guineas?? Wow, their like $6 so could we get like 4? But I'm not sure if 6 is a lot, our feed store is getting guineas for the first year. So no specific crow just a machine gun, our neighbors are gonna LOVE that.... We have a raven who eats our chickens (I named him Deep Fried Chicken, Frys for short), would he be able to get a guinea? Well since they annoy the heck out of peafowl good thing we don't have any!! Well thanks sooooooo much I won't forget this advice since it'll come in handy.

 

[ColbyNTX]

Guineas fly just like a pheasant. Keets should be housed differently than chickens as they have different diets. Keets need to be on a 28-30% protien diet their first 12 or so weeks and then a 20% diet there after if they are cooped and in your hard winters. They are very cold hardy and you shouldbe fine if they have some shelter. Guineas are friendly to people but don't like new birds to be introduced.

 

[patty12]

guineas mate one on one, I mean they pair up so you would need a cock for ever hen or the one that hasn't a mate will be alone most of the time. A cock will cover a extra hen once in a while but not enough to provide a constant companion for her. The cock looks after the hen helps her when she is on the nest and will stay by her side. The flock will roam together until mating season then they pair off two by two. of course if you pen them up in a pen they might act different. mine roam and that is the benifit of the fowl . They eat insect such as ticks, grass hoppers and any thing else that moves that they can catch. They yell loud if anyone strange or animal comes near thier range so they are as good to let you know if anything is amiss.

 

[Kevin565]

Quote:

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

Thanks for the replies!!

So is there like a special guinea food?? In the winter except on really warm days they will be in the coop and during summer when we allow them they can go outside of their run and in our entire gate. But how stubborn will the guinea hen be if she nests outside of the run?

 

[Kevin565]

Quote:
Many people feed game feed. While others feed flock raiser, layer pellets, crumbles, etc. A guinea hen can be quite stubborn but will lay a very large clutch before she sits. You may be able to find her nest before she goes broody.

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

Maybe, but my mom has hunted pheasants and she says their really good flyers so if a guinea flys as well as a pheasant then the hen will be able to nest in the woods outside our fence

how many eggs will the guinea lay? So since guineas will alarm you if anything new comes they'll do the same with say a raven that come around right? Because that stupid stupid raven always eats our chickens