Just bought a pair of Guineas

[mychookschick]

Quick question: Do you think that 4 weeks is long enough for them to be locked up? The poor things are in the biggest dog cage I could find, but it doesn't seem fair to leave them there for any longer than 4 weeks (that is next Saturday), and frankly, I am tired of the extra work of separate food and water. And I need the cage. I have 2 broods of chicks under momma hens, and 2 more hens that want to hatch... Ugh!

 

[PeepsCA]

You don't have a covered chicken pen/run you that can let them out into during the day then get them back into the dog grate each night? Being adults they may still take off if you turn them loose to free range after only 4 wks...

 

[mychookschick]

Not really... I have a 2ft X 8ft "run" (sides are chipboard and top is hardware cloth) but I am using it as a "grow out pen" for 5 chicks. Doing sort of the same thing, on nice days they go outside and come in at night and on yucky days.

I mean, I clean their cage regularly, and all, I just feel bad leaving them in there for so long. And the male rams the side of the cage when one of my BR's comes into the coop (he doesn't do it with any other breeds, so I assume he thinks that it is a guinea hen).