questions about roosting

[chloebetsychicks]

We seem to have the whole thing managed with the guineas and chickens in the coop locked up together at night. I feel they are much safer this way and they are also much, much quieter at roosting time. I just do a feeding in the pen a little while before sunset around 5 now. I get all the birds into the pen and the guins have taken to trooping on in with the chickens. The only prob now is that guinea poop is way stinkier than chickens and coop needs more frequent cleaning!

 

[cackler]

It finally happened tonight - one pearl guinea decided not to come in with the rest of his/her brothers and sisters (20 chickens and 5 guineas). The guineas are over 4 months old - and I KNEW that one day what I had been reading about on BYC would happen to me.

They have ALWAYS come in the coop. Today I think it was the first time that they found they could fly REALLY high

and this lavendar one decided that that was WAY too cool to sit way high up in the tree.

I threw sticks and branches up to see if I could scare her/him - with no result. Finally I yelled "The cat will eat you! You can't sit up there all night!"

and gave up hope. I did a final count on the girls , shut the coop door and came out - - - and Pearlie was waiting outside to come in.

I sure hope this doesn't happen every night from now on since the guineas have found they can fly really really high.