I have had guineas for about 4 years. At first only a pair and then one of their chicks. Then this last year a "stray" came to visit and stayed. No idea where she came from, no one raising Guineas within a 1/4 mile of me. They always hung together and stayed in my yard and slept in the trees. Last summer I bought some keets so at the beginning of this Spring I had 11 Guineas. At the time not certain how many of each sex.
One day I found a dead one, just laying in the driveway. A few days later another. No signs of injury, just dead. Then another was missing and I found it a month later dead under a tree in the orchard. Not sure why they died; thought maybe they had been fighting as all the dead ones were Toms.
But the strangest thing is that they are just starting to disappear. At first I thought maybe the hens were sitting somewhere and would come home, but they haven't. I am down to 4 birds. They sleep in trees at night and there are no coyotes on my land during the day. It is almost entirely fenced and a large part is protected by my LGDs. So my question is this, do guineas just wander off? Will they form a flock elsewhere, like turkeys? I have no idea where they are going, it really bothers me. I only have one close neighbors and the guineas aren't going to their house. Is there something that would be taking them out of trees at night without leaving feathers everywhere? They don't wander far during the day but I am not sure if they are disappearing at night or in the daylight, I never can count them at night. I just know that they are missing. Any ideas?
One day I found a dead one, just laying in the driveway. A few days later another. No signs of injury, just dead. Then another was missing and I found it a month later dead under a tree in the orchard. Not sure why they died; thought maybe they had been fighting as all the dead ones were Toms.
But the strangest thing is that they are just starting to disappear. At first I thought maybe the hens were sitting somewhere and would come home, but they haven't. I am down to 4 birds. They sleep in trees at night and there are no coyotes on my land during the day. It is almost entirely fenced and a large part is protected by my LGDs. So my question is this, do guineas just wander off? Will they form a flock elsewhere, like turkeys? I have no idea where they are going, it really bothers me. I only have one close neighbors and the guineas aren't going to their house. Is there something that would be taking them out of trees at night without leaving feathers everywhere? They don't wander far during the day but I am not sure if they are disappearing at night or in the daylight, I never can count them at night. I just know that they are missing. Any ideas?
