Here is a strange question: I started with 9 guineas from babies this May. They are thriving and doing very well, but when I open their house to allow them to free range, either they refuse to leave their coop OR they spend most of the day roosting in a tree!
They seem VERY confused about entering or exiting their house, I usually shoo them out of the coop in the morning and shoo them back in at night. At night, they scream and cry until I feed them their game bird feed, despite being out all day in the woods with TONS of ticks and bugs.
They are almost 4 months old now and basically full grown. They have been able to free range since they were a month old. I do not see them foraging, in fact, they seem addicted to their game bird feed. I have not seen them eat greens either.
Is this normal? Is there something I can do to get them to foraging on their own? I do not want to stop feeding them in case they starve, some of the guineas seem a little more stupid than others...
Please help! Love my guineas, they are so cute roosting in trees, but I want them eating bugs and eating less game bird feed!
Many thanks in advance-
Amy
PS I have a chicken coop they used to reside in (like a brooder house) when they were babies. I am raising chickens in there now, but the guineas also have not ventured near the coop or visited the neighboring chickens. I heard they will flock around your chickens and hang out with them in the yard.....so far, they have no interest except roosting in trees or taking a nap in the blackberry bushes!
She didn't seem to want to have much to do w/her offspring when they were able to free range.
