Too many male guineas?

[annaserv]

I have 12 young guineas 5 female and 7 males, I believe. I've put rings on the females when everyone was isolated in the coup and I heard the "Buckwheat" sound.

I think I may have to many males. They've gone from a cooperative little pack to constantly trying to chasing each other. I've noticed this for the most part with the males although a few females chase certain males away. Their about 3 1/2 months and their hormones must be kicking in. Am I best off getting rid of the lowly males? There are about 3 that get along and are top males. I know with chickens I would definitely want to thin out some roosters, so would this work with the guineas too. Or are they like a bunch a juveniles that will just find someone else to pick on when the other outcasts are gone.

I did remove the meekest one and he's sort of content (for a guinea) with my chickens. Even the little Banty hens outrank him. But I added another outcast this morning and the new one went right after the easy going one, so he's in isolation right now awaiting his fate.

For the most part they are still in a coup with a little outdoor enclosure and allowed out on the days I feel up to hiking down the road for the guinea round up. Even when their allowed to roam certain guineas are chased away to the outside of the group and they have to linger behind (decoys for the predators, I imagine). I kind of want to keep my bigger leaders, hoping they'll add extra protection for the group (instead of the wimpy males).

So should I reduce my numbers or do they get over this phase?

 

[morninggloryhatchery]

When i had my first Guineas i had 2 females and 1 male. THe male was ALWAYS chasing the 2 females around non stop so i would put 3-5 females with one males.


Joy

 

[annaserv]

Okay, it was a sad day but I have a few less males. Maybe still too many but I'm not going to do anything until I watch their behavior for a while. 4 males and 5 females and a lone male wandering the farm where the chickens are (he refused to go back in the coup or by the coup yesterday. Poor boy, almost like letting a house cat out to fend for itself for the night)

 

[annaserv]

Oh, the females don't get harassed at all by the males... yet. Probably cause they haven't hit breeding age yet. They might chase off other males but no one chases them. Maybe because of their low numbers their a hot commodity.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

We have just the opposite problem with our white guineas, we are way way to female heavy. We have about 25 more growing out now so that problem should clear up. I'm sure the extras will be a fast seller in the local sale paper. "Guineas for sale mostly females" lol

Steve in NC

 

[morninggloryhatchery]

Quote:
Lol.

Good Luck with your Guineas annaserv. And if they start chasing each other around again instead of getting rid of males you can probably try getting more females

 

[Aj1911]

pair them up 1 male to 1 female and they should do fine

if there is any chasing after that it could be play if they are both chasing each other or it could be pecking order if its just 1 doing the chasing

if thats the case just make sure they dont hurt each other and break them up if need be

if they are too aggressive (I.E. draw blood on each other and chase each other 24/7) then i would eat the mean ones

if they just do a little run and then stop after a foot or 2 they are fine.


one of my males keeps the other at a distance alot but they get along ok unless he's in a bad mood.

 

[cw]

yea i dont see a problem with havin a few too many males as guineas are tasty, try 1 for yourself,

 

[annaserv]

Well I do have 2 in the freezer now. 1 on hold in the hen house and 1 that refused to come in one night and I found a few piles of feathers in the ditch

. (this is at the other farm where there's a fox that's been spotted up the road.)

I've thinned it down to the 3 top males and 5 hens and everyone is pretty peaceful now. All the males fight a little at one time, establishing pecking order, so that's expected(I got to see the 2 big ones go at seriously it one day, but they worked something out after that). The extra submissive males were constantly running in fear and making the whole group extra wild. The dominate males didn't even want to see them on the outside of their group, they wanted them totally gone, out of sight.

So now that I feel I have the perfect ratio, I feel a bit nervous about letting them out to roam for the day and they've been staying in their outdoor pen. Their still a bit young and naive. They were out chasing grasshoppers in the open field and the red-tail hawks were screeching away about a quarter a mile away. When I had a surplus I was like "oh well, they'll have to learn the hard way" Of course, that was after countless times of herding them back, only to have them drift back to the open field.

 

[shelleyd2008]

Yes, guineas should be in pairs. Even with even numbers they'll still chase each other. I wouldn't worry about it