Tell me everything about Guineas.

[CoyoteMagic]

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I wish I would have realized how loud before I had gotten mine!! I had to rehome 6 of the 8 so we could have some peace and quiet around here!!

Mine too started picking on some of my chickens. Were pulling the tail feathers out of my Red sexies but they followed my Black sexies around like puppies!! Mine do live with my chickens and have since they were about 12 weeks old. They are quick and can get away from the larger birds without being picked on too much.

Mine were great with the bugs around here and didn't destroy my veggie garden like the chickens did!!

 

[mcg30_40]

My guineas roam during the day (my hens stay penned) and they do great. They stay close to the chickens and close to home. They usually roost on top of the chicken pen at night, not inside the coop. Mine pretty much take care of themselves and find their own food. I throw them some feed every few days just to keep them coming up to me, not because they need it. I only have three but they are not that loud, like in the other post they only "scream" when something new is in the area. That's why they used to be known as moonshiners watchdogs...they always let you know when someone or something different comes into the area.

 

[seedcorn]

they hate snow. Loved it in spring when they would go outside and go from bare ground to bare ground avoiding snow. Or if I opened the house, they'd fly out, see snow and try to decide which was worse being cooped up in house or having to land on snow......

 

[chickenchickenbulkbulk]

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I have to agree with speckledhen..I am finding out about there behavior and I also am faced with the choice to keep them or get rid of them. They are violent toward my chickens.

 

[SandraMort]

I have lovely wonderful chickens (broilers currently in the barn/chicken run/free ranging and layers in the brooder) but am finding that we have a hawk problem. I want to have my chickens safe, so am considering not permitting them to free range and covering the run. Unfortunately, we have a serious tick problem here, so my landlady said it was okay for me to get guinea hens to control the ticks. My inlaws do this and let them roam at will, losing them one at a time until the fall by which point they're usually all done. It's kind of sad, but still (IMO) better than drowing the yard in poison.

My question is, how do I determine how many keets to purchase? The whole property is 8 acres but, of course, the cleared area around the house is the most important. Does JMHatchery have the best price for them? I haven't seen better. I'd be looking for guineas primarily for tick control, but if the meat is good, I would probably get a few extras for the freezer as well. Would it make sense to get them early in the season and then just process whoever is leftover at the end of the season and replace them in the sprint so I don't have to fuss with them over the winter? I hate to sound so cold, but I'm *really* not looking for pets here.

 

[seedcorn]

that sounds like a good plan to me. Buy very early, butcher after tick season.

 

[SandraMort]

What a pain these ticks are. *sigh*