Just got guineas

[Clovis]

Yesterday my husband and I acquired 2 adult guineas at a small animal auction. We also got a chicken tractor made for about four chickens at the same sale.

My questions: is this an appropriate size coop for them for the time we need to keep them penned til they get used to home?
How long should we keep them penned til we let them free range?
I feed wild birds and wondered if that food is okay for a supplement for a few days til we can get some other food?
The bottom of the coop is open so they can get some bugs and grass but I know not a lot. How much else should I feed them?
What else can I feed them? I found some earth worms earlier and they sure loved them.
Will they eat (or should they eat) crushed egg shells?

I'm sure I'll have a dozen other questions later but these are my main ones right now.
Thank you for any replies.

 

[pnewman]

Hello

I am not an expert butt I have 11 of them, I hope you like noise.
If you leave the coop open it will be stripped clean in a week.
I built mine off the ground with air gaps between the plank and use deep hay.
I feed them chicken scratch meal worms and the like lettuce as well.
I do no know how long you need to keep them under lock dow I raised mine from chicks.


Good luck hope this helps a little.

 

[JLeigh]

Keep them penned for six weeks (minimum - more is better) until they "program" to where home is. How large is the tractor? Guineas need more space than chickens IMO, but you want to be sure you give them as much space as you can, as quickly as you can. They'll be happier that way. Will they be free-ranging, or will you build a coop & pen for them? Free-ranging guineas soon become predator food, so be aware that that will happen sooner or later - and probably sooner. Cooping them at night lessens the chances that predators will get them. Guineas are virtually blind at night, and they're easily taken by predators.

Feed them where you want them to roost though. And you can get 16% chicken layer pellets at any Tractor Supply or farm feed store - that's what you should supplement adult guineas' diet with. They'll be happy eating what's in the yard, but they do need a supplement.

There is a lot to acclimating guineas to your property, but the long-term care for adults is about the same as with chickens. It's a good idea to start searching the internet on care and feeding of guineas because you'll have more than a few questions come up, and the internet is a great place to get your foundation education. After that, this is the best forum for having specific questions answered.

Two guineas might be just fine, but it isn't usual. A minimum of 10 guineas assures a happy flock. They're strong flock animals and require a large group to be their happiest. A bonded male and female can sometimes do just fine, but again, it isn't the norm.

Good luck, and let us know what size your tractor is so we can better advise you.

 

[Clovis]

Thank you for your replies. We've got a coop that is meant to accomodate about 4-6 chickens. It has an "upstairs" for sleeping and they went up there last night to sleep. It is on 4x4 slids up off the ground.

We are wanting to free range during the day with them penned at night. We have a female and male (Pink and Floyd, hubby's idea LOL) and they seem very happy together. And they are surprisingly quiet. One of our dogs went out this morning to look at them and they never fussed a bit.

I sure think they're pretty and hope we can get them used to us and keep them a long time. BTW, how long do guinaes live usually?

 

[PeepsCA]

Healthy Guineas, that were fed the correct feeds while they were newly hatched and growing hru all of their growth spurts can live 12-15 yrs.

Your coop is only being enough for their pair of Guineas... I wouldn't add any other birds. They typically like larger/roomier coops. As mentioned, be sure to keep them confined for the full 6wks, you don't want to let them out too soon only to have them fly away looking for their old home/old flock. Toss in as many greens and bugs for them as you can while they are confined. A little millet, wild bird seed mixes and some freeze dried meal worms (or live) will also make them happy to see you coming... you want them to look at you as the food goddess/god as well as acclimate to/get comfortable with their new home so they will want to go back to it at night to roost. Only feeding them in their coop/pen for a while once you start free ranging them, and giving them their favorite treat each evening once they are in will help too.

 

[Clovis]

Thank you Peeps for the info.
I have another question tho. My birds don't seem to be eating very much. We have been putting chick weed in for them and they seem to like that but they haven't really touched the chicken grain/scratch we put in for them. They have eaten the earthworms I've put in, but I can't find very many of them.

Do guineas just not eat very much when confined or is there something wrong with them?

Thanks again for the replies.

 

[PeepsCA]

They may not like the feed you have for them... it could have a different taste or texture than what they are used to, on top of the stress of being in a new home/coop. They may also be scared of the feeder if it is different that what they are use to (Guineas hate change, even simple things). They should eat when they are hungry... but maybe stop the treats for a day or 2 then just toss a handful of feed to them on the coop floor and see what happens.