Oh Tre3Hugger, I’m so so sorry. Believe me, it’s not just you, I take every death way too much to heart! When we first got poultry, my husband‘s work friends, long time country poultry keepers, laughed at all of my pictures and names, and doting ways. They told him, “Don’t worry, after she loses a few birds, she’ll stop naming them and settle down about this whole poultry business.” He just laughed because he knows me too well... All this to say that some people just stop naming them and caring so much to save themselves grief. I get that and totally see that viewpoint. Some people double down. At any rate, keeping free-ranging birds is hard, no matter what the species is. I’ve spent some time browsing the Predator and Pests forum and the post that starts “My birds free range and ...” always goes next into some gruesome predator details. Guinea fowl ARE better at surviving predator attacks than most other domestic poultry but their learning curve is steep. I've done some wildlife rehab, and if you just plunked down human-raised crows or doves or pretty much anything else and expected them to survive like their wild brethren, you’d be watching them get eaten too. Going from a human-raised brooder chick to a predator savvy adult is quite the transformation. It won’t happen all at once, and there will be losses. So, you’re feeling awful and need some time to process these losses, but you also need a plan. My thoughts on this:IDK what I'm doing. Last night I couldn't get anyone cooped up. Lost two guineas last night to a predator. Heard the poor things getting eaten at around 445(one hour tll F-in sunrise) and when the sun came up two were missing. What works one day with these birds does not work the next. I am obviously going to keep trying but I don't really know what else to do. Got the white millet on order, Hopefully that will help. Going to make minor coop adjustments today finally that I have some time. It was pouring and thundering last night. I thought for sure they would want to coop up. NOPE. I wasn't prepared for the emotional toll of these birds. They leave, they come back. They coop up one night, scatter the next and get killed. Gaah! I hope all the time and energy I put in doesn't end up being just to feed a couple raccoons, but that is becoming a distinct possibility. Down to 5 guineas, and feeling defeated.
Thank you for that thoughtful response. Here are the answers to your questions:
That’s tough. I’d do anything I had to to get them in there by tonight as your predator will be looking for them. If they are too spooked, you may need to resort to getting them to eat treats in a garage, or knocking them off their roost after dark then netting them on the ground, or whatever you can think of. Best of luck!!!
Where were they roosting, in a tree? How high up? Easy climbing or somewhere only a squirrel could get to? You found feathers but no body parts? You live in a woodsy area in Massachusetts?
They were sleeping in some tall grass on the ground near the coop last I saw them. Just feathers no blood no body parts. Woods of Western Mass.
Total sitting ducks then. If you see them a n the ground roosting again, they are not too hard to catch from the ground at night with a net and red light. Removal of the bodies means something big enough to carry them off or consume entirely. So that leaves raccoons and opossums as unlikely. Instead, coyote or bobcat comes to mind.
