When will my guineas start laying?

[1st_chicken]

I got my guineas as keets two years ago, last year they were laying well.. i have 12 guineas in total. I know that most of them are gals, and some on them are boys.

The weather here is breezy, rainy, but warm. When do you think their laying season will begin?

 

[zazouse]

Where are you located, i live in southeast Texas and my guineas have been laying sense February

 

[PeepsCA]

If they are free ranging every day they might already be laying...

 

[zazouse]

Yep they are good at hiding them nest even in plain site sometimes

 

[PeepsCA]

I musta walked by this Hen 50 times in the 2 weeks she was missing.
I left her there when I found her and something nabbed her and all her eggs the next night

 

[mkcolls]

Sorry about the loss Peeps.

She's a beautiful guinea.

We have chickens, turkeys and guineas. The chickens and turkeys occasionally lay outside, our 9 month old guinea hen lay inside the barn. We walk the tall grass and tree line twice a week looking for eggs, but so far we have found only chicken & turkey eggs. Go figure!

 

[PeepsCA]

Thanks, that pic was from was 2 laying seasons ago, and that's the last Broody Hen I lost to predators because I won't let my free rangers go broody out in the bushes any more. I hunt down their nests and collect their free range eggs each day for consumption... I only incubate eggs from my breeding flocks that I keep penned until they've laid their eggs in the coop/pens each day. The buffet is closed to predators, they can dine elsewhere!

 

[funnyfarmllc]

I have some hens and I heard they are poor parents. How true is this?

 

[zazouse]

They are not poor parents just out of the enviroment they have instincs for.
Look at it like this, they are from a fairly dry and open habitats ,
We brought them here and put them in high and wet grasses where keets get wet and die, it's not the parents fault instinc tells them to keep moving all day it's what they do, if you pen your hen and keets she will be safe as will her keets but they can be left behind by the parents when free ranging in the tall grasses.

 

[racuda]

Last year I had a Guinea hen successfully raise four keets, for the first time. Maybe its because I don't have tall grass anymore. Actually I don't have any grass anymore. The chickens and Guineas ate it.