Thinking of getting a few guineas and really need some info

[pattypenny]

I have guineas, last year I got 6 adult guineas. I kept them pened for 3 months when I turned them out they took off and I never saw them again.I did hear them calling a few times along with the sound of a shot gun. now I have 14 young guineaqs I raised under a setting hen and I hope if I keep them pened until spring they will stay close to the house. I don't want to keep them penned because the whole purpose in having guineas is letting them roam and eat bugs.
I love the call of the guineas. they are bertter than a watch dog. I have read that it is one male and one female mating and then I have read that a male will take of the mormon life if he is the only male. the eggs are etible, the meat of a guineas is dark and has a wild flavor. I say again I love guineas.

 

[dmdhart]

So having them just spend the night in the same chicken house yet free ranging at day will cause problems? The fenced area they have during the day is about 1/2 acre. The chicken house where they sleep is not giant, about 10 x 12 and is about 10 feet tall. There are several roosts in there, a window (that's screened) and several nests. They are let out first thing in the morning and go in by themselves at dark.

 

[robin416]

Quote:
Yes. A balanced Guinea flock consists of more than ten birds. There has been a lot of discussion about this on a Guinea board and why it is some have never been able to have chickens and Guineas together. It took a while to see what the difference was but in almost every incidence of Guineas going after chickens the Guinea flock was small.

Before my own flock began to grow the chickens were a prime target. Now that my flock is some where near 30 they never go after my chickens or rarely go after my chickens. They are in and out of each others coops, range together. The only time I see a male dodge at a chicken is when it has gotten too close to its mate.

 

[speckledhen]

I want guineas again, but I'll do it differently next time. They will not be housed with my chickens and I'll start with a flock much larger than I did the first time. And mine were very tame. It was painful to let them go, but I had to make the choice.

 

[Cindiloohoo]

Quote:
Same here. And I need to find some more females pretty quick! The 3 keepers are 8 weeks old right now, and I need at least 5-7 more!

 

[newchicks8]

Robin, you are so guinea savvy.......so if I let my original pair and their 12 offspring out to free range together they are more likely to stay together? I have watched my flock of chickens free range all summer.......they are penned in the coop at night. How different is the flock dynamics of guineas vs chickens?
I don't know yet the sex of my 12 keets (born 7/21) Will it matter how many males/females are in this particular flock? Would it be best to wait till spring until I know how many hens/cocks to let them all free range with their parents?
Claudia/Ohio

 

[robin416]

Quote:
No it doesn't matter the about the balance of males to females. Well, it actually does to the males that don't have mates but for the flock its numbers. Think of wolf packs, they have males and females but there is a hierarchy and lower males do not mate. That's pretty much what a Guinea flock is.

To those that have not been around them much it the flock looks like it doesn't make sense, that they do nothing but fight. But watch them. When the one who was keeping watch decides to eat immediately another male head pops up and stands watch.

I can not imagine my chickens ever joining my dogs to run off an interloper but the Guineas do and vice versa. The Guineas work together as a unit, where a chicken is out for itself in most things a flock of Guineas will flock up and come to the rescue of another.

 

[newchicks8]

Very interesting re guinea dynamics, when I can get up the courage to let them all out together they will be a treat to watch and study.
I have been so facinated by my chickens and how the rooster really watches out for his girls. It's like my group of horses or my pack of dogs it is so very interesting to watch their interaction and their pecking order. Facinating how the dominant guinea cock will only be allowed to breed. It's like watching my own Animal Planet.

When do keets reach the size of the adult guineas? I have 5 lavendars among the other pearl keets. Wont they become a target for everything because of their color?

Robin, thanks again, I love reading your posts and your guinea attitude. They seem very odd but I am sure they are very smart. I know I am not getting the full effect of my guineas since I haven't let them free range. I am getting braver, just hate the thought of seeing them murdered or killed on the road. Claudia/Ohio

 

[robin416]

Let me correct an impression I gave, it is not only the flock leader that mates because they pair up. Its just the lowest males do not have the opportunity unless there are more females.

Guineas are still very much the wild birds out of Africa and I consider it amazing that we can train them to return to a coop each evening for food and treats. Their genes are calling them to do what they do in the wild which is to roost in trees. That is when you are most apt to find your young birds take to the trees at bed time. If they do that the next day they need to be rounded up and coaxed in to their coop and locked in for a couple of days to reset their thinking. It helps by having a treat to give them at bedtime.

Young birds are more frustrating because their genetics are pulling them one way and we humans are trying to pull them another. With patience and consistency they can be pulled in the direction we want them to go. As adults they are more laid back, more accepting of some changes and interference from us.

Once they are out they will teach you a lot about how their flock functions. It will be more evident the differences between them and chickens. And it will give you insights on how best to handle them. Probably the biggest thing I've discovered with them is don't push. Give a bird or birds a moment to think things out because if there is too much pushing by us then they get excited and things go down hill from there.

 

[newchicks8]

Robin, In post #13 you say your guineas and chickens go in and out of each others coop and range together.
Does each group go back to their own coop at night??

Mine are each in different horse stalls side by side left open all day then closed up when they go back inside after dark? That is my plan for the guineas when I am ready to set them free. It works perfectly with my chickens, I open up the stall door noonish and close it up at dusk when they put themselves to bed. The guineas are now in the next stall over but not allowed outside so far. They have a full screen door to watch it all.

You are giving me the knowlege I need to allow them to be guineas.....getting braver but still "chicken"

What age are keets full size guineas? Are lavendars big targets??

Claudia