New Arrivals and Some Questions

[Pyxis]

Just got my first guineas! They're 7 weeks old, and the woman who sold me them says she got them from Mcmurray hatchery as assorted eggs and hatched them herself. They are some wild little things! They got me good when I was taking them out of the box and they were scared and trying to get away. I would be scared too, though - they were raised by a chicken hen and have spent their whole lives outdoors so the concept of a box and a cage must have been terrifying. I'm keeping them inside in a crate for now, since the woman kept them with her chickens and I didn't know if they could carry diseases from her chickens to mine. Although she knew what I meant when I said I was going to quarantine them so that speaks well for her biosecurity.

I have them all set up with gamebird starter in a crate. There are five total, and I'll maybe end up keeping three. My question is, what colors do I have? She said she had lavender, but she kept all those, so she says what I have here are one chocolate, one pearl, and three royal purple, but I dunno. The pearl one is the one in front of the 'chocolate.' The 'chocolate' one does have some brownish spots, so maybe? You all can tell me

 

[PeepsCA]

The lady that sold these Guineas to you is wrong, there is no Chocolate in that mix. I do see 2 Royal Purples for sure but I cannot tell what the bird in the back is (coule be a Royal Purple, could be another Pearl Grey), there is definitely a Pearl Grey (front/right), and the light colored bird behind the Pearl Grey is a Buff Dundotte. It might be a Buff, but to me it looks fully-pearled.

Your Guineas will be happier if you keep all 5, because they are very flock oriented. Guineas thrive and stay happier/more content in larger flocks (of their own kind).... 3 Guineas is not a flock

The main issue with only keeping 3 is that they may eventually become chicken/other poultry aggressive as they mature and their hormones kick in, even tho they were raised by chickens, they need more of their own kind to stay focused on picking on only each other... so the more Guineas you have the better the chances are of them leaving your other poultry alone.

Guineas are skittish/flighty by nature, so don't take it personally that they are not lap Guineas (and most likely never will be, lol). They are hard-wired from conception on to be defensive, untrusting and scared/leery of everything. Start giving them treats on a regular basis so they learn where the food comes from... and if you make the same call over and over (or ring a bell, blow a whistle etc) every time you give them treats or feed them you can eventually use that to your advantage to help get them back in the coop each night once you start letting them free range. Coming when you call them and maybe learning to trust you enough to take treats from your hand is about the best you can expect from these guys, since they are older and already so skittish.

 

[Pyxis]

Well, if they'll be happier as all five, then I don't mind keeping them all. I wasn't really expecting these guys to be friendly, as I had heard that they're pretty wild. Now that they're settling in they're not running in terror when they see me, so that's good. What should I look for in terms of healthiness? Are there any signs of illness I should be on the lookout for?

Also, just out of curiosity, if they hatch out keets in future, what kinds of colors am I looking at coming from this mix?

 

[PeepsCA]

Things I'd look for would be sneezing, runny eyes, messy vents, scaly leg mites, feather mites and lice etc (look for the creepy crawlies at night). Guineas are pretty hearty and disease resistant, but with this batch coming from a place that had other chickens that is what would concern me...

The dark background color of the Royal Purples and Pearl Grey is going to be the dominant color gene, the fully-pearled gene of the Pearl Grey and Buff Dundotte is going to be the dominant pearling pattern in the hatches... so realistically I'd expect a lot of Pearl Grey keets. But you may get more Royal Purples too, and since you said she had a Lavender and you have a Buff Dundotte some of those may pop up as well. Without knowing what else she has in her flock (and what hidden genes these 5 could be carrying), in all actuality you could hatch a number of different colors/varieties.

 

[Pyxis]

She told me she ordered the eggs from McMurray hatchery and just ordered an assortment, so I don't really know what could be in their background. I guess it'll just be fun to wait and see!

 

[PeepsCA]

Oops. sorry I missed that part in your post...
I'm not sure if McMurry breeds their own Guineas, or has "their" keets drop shipped from another breeder that separates by color or not.
I agree, next Spring will be interesting to see what hatches from the eggs.