New Visitor to the Coop

[SpartanFarms]

We are new to the site and pretty new to the chicken world. We started with a few for my son's b-day in May 2011 and have enjoyed them ever since. We currently have 17 chickens of various breeds. Most neighbors have them as well and this little guy showed up today hanging around the coop. Can anyone shed any light on what breed it is, if it is even chicken. Sorry the quality isn't the best, best thing we had handy for the photo was the IPOD.

Thanks.

 

[sourland]

It is a guinea fowl, not a chicken.

 

[sumi]

Yep. It's a guinea fowl.

 

[JLeigh]

Congrats! Are you planning on keeping it? If it will stay, that is. Or you can try to find out if some neighbors lost one.

If it gives a two-syllable sound like "buck-wheat" or some people think it sounds more like "pot-rack" (others more clever than me say it sounds like "butt-sweet" LOL) it's a female.

If the only call it makes is a one-syllable "CHI CHI" sound, it's a male. The females can make the single syllable call, but ONLY the female can make the two syllable call. Have you heard it yet? You can pull up the two different calls on the internet if you have any questions about it.

How come I can't get lucky and have a guinea choose MY house as home? I'd love that! Sigh..........

 

[SpartanFarms]

Thanks the info, we put it in a side section of our coop since we weren't completely sure what it was. It hadn't been than 20-30 yards from the coop since it showed up. I'll do some checking with neighbors to see if one lost one before deciding if we want to keep it or not. We don't know anything about them but rrom what I have seen they seem compatible wtih the chickens.

 

[sourland]

One adopted me/this place out of the blue about ten years ago. He made it free range for 5 years. A fox sneaked up and caught him in an old dog house one winter day. I could read the whole tableau in the snow. Every morning about a half an hour after daybreak he would fly to the deck railing and raise pluperfect heck as only a male guinea can. The Princess does not miss him., but I do.