Not good!! Free range guinea holding up it's leg....

[fledgling]

I shooed it into the chicken yard. It let me touch the leg briefly and it can pull it up to it's body. Hopefully, it will stay in the chicken yard long enough for me to coax it into the coop. Better chance of catching it there. I'll listen later to determine if it's a male or female. Poor thing! All nine of our guineas roost in a large oak tree. We lost one about 8 months ago and about two weeks ago our large dog chased off a raccoon after we were awakened by shrieking and running guineas. The guineas are pairing off right now so perhaps this was a female trying to nest. Just saw our first guinea egg earlier this week.

 

[fledgling]

I have it trapped in with our layers and it seems better today. It can put some weight on the leg. I picked it up and felt the leg carefully. No hot spots or swellings at all. Couldn't see anything wrong with it's leg. What could make them gimpy? They just started laying, if this is a hen, could being egg bound cause a leg problem? It is not tame enough to take to the vet so if it doesn't continue to get better on its' own, we'll put it down. These are wild free range guineas. They stress out considerably when handled.

 

[sred98]

I would say just let it be. Either it will get better, or it won't. That sounds really harsh, but like you said, they are wild. Mine get too stressed out trying to catch them. I've caught 2 of my guineas. One, because she got into fishing line and bound herself up and was cutting off the circulation to her legs, and I was simply able to pick her up. I just cut out the line, treated the wounds and let her go. The other one was some type of animal attack and he was just laying there. When he let me pick him up I knew it was bad. Apparently internal injuries, his colon was ruptured, among other things. I put him down. Another time the same female was attacked by neighbor's dogs and I really thought she was going to die. No skin along her entire back. No way to catch her to treat her or put her out of her obvious misery.

Good thing I didn't...she healed up and is the matriarch of her little group. She walks funny, and is rounder than the rest (scar tissue?) but she rules the roost!

Sometimes it's just better to let them be. They are still wild enough that it causes them more stress to be caught and treated, than the actual injury, in most cases.

Chickens and geese are completely different. In fact, mine run to me if they get hurt. Total opposite of the guineas.

Shelly

 

[keatonskeets]

I've noticed that one of my guineas started hopping a couple of weeks ago. His foot swelled up to about twice its normal size, but there were no other noticable injuries. At first he wouldn't even put weight on it, but now he has only a slight limp.

I have absolutely no idea as to what could have happened.. it was so sudden. One minute he's fine, the next he's limping. This means that it couldn't have been an infection.

I kept mine in the house for 3-4 days before letting him loose again. It's not the first time that Ive kept a guinea in the house before. Once I had to pop a guinea that had ruptured thoratic and abdominal air sacs. There was also a chunk missing from his tail.........dog attack.

 

[Cacklin" Hens]

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I have heard of many one-legged guineas making out great LOL. I am for real though!

 

[Cacklin" Hens]

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Could he have stepped on a bee and gotten stung? What does it mean the other one ruptured thoratic and abdominal air sacs? I have never heard of that!