I hatched 12 guineas around September and they have been separated from the adults this whole time. At what age can I mix them into the adult flock? Ild also like to point out I only want to mix the hens into it and sell off the young males.
I should also point out the adult flock consists of only 3 hens and one male if that makes a difference. Thank You
They should be about 5 months old, give or take, so they're large enough to integrate into your flock. What is your set up? That can make a huge difference in how you go about it. Do you have a coop and/or pen for your flock? Do they free-range 24/7 or just during the day? That info will help us all answer your question. .
Just so you know, 1 male Guinea won't cover/breed more than 4-5 Guinea Hens effectively if your plans are breeding and hatching keets.... but if your hopes are just eggs from the Guinea Hens, and not fertile eggs, then you should be fine. Integrations go much smoother and quicker when it's done when the keets are younger, and everybody's hormones aren't flaring tho... doing this now with a batch that are around 5 months old you are basically merging 2 mature flocks, with their own pecking orders to rearrange and mesh, right at the start of breeding/laying season. It may not go as smoothly as planned, or as quickly. I'd separate the Hens, get them set up side by side with the adult flock (separated by wire so they can see each other but not get to each other/pick on each other) ASAP, and then give them 6 wks to get used to each other before you try integrating them. If you see any aggression thru the wire, wait longer, and when you integrate you will want to supervise everybody. It may not go well on the first attempt and you may need to separate the 2 flocks and try it again in a week or so. Some integrations take less time, some take more time... but being there is only one adult male in your existing flock you may get away with less side by side time needed, and fewer aggression issues. Generally speaking tho, an existing flock no matter the male to female ratio does not accept new members very willingly or quickly. The new girls may have to go thru the school of hard knocks for quite a while until they are accepted and the new pecking order is established. Plenty of places for the girls to duck behind (but not get trapped behind) are a good idea so they can dodge a few of the blows. Hopefully your birds work it out quickly, with minimal issues.
I had a small separated are in the coop and put a board divider appr. 2ft high. When they could fly over I left them to mingle. No problems.
