Will the Guineas roost in the coop like Chickens?

[wbruder17]

Are Guineas more like chickens when they roost at night or will the choose an outside sleeping spot like the pheasants, quail or ducks?

 

[Ashburnham]

Mine always slept up a tree.

 

[wbruder17]

So, if they are all enclosed, in 2 very large runs, with a coop as well as several tree branches all over in the runs at various different heights, they will choose to sleep outside on the tree branches rather than in the coop?

 

[Ashburnham]

Yes - that is my experience from having them for 20 years

 

[PeepsCA]

Most will choose the trees, it's instinctual for them, but not always safe depending on your predator load.

If you want them to sleep in the coop they'll need to be trained/conditioned to coop up each night before the sun goes down and should never allowed to sleep in the trees to begin with. I herd mine in, some use herding sticks as extensions of their arms to help guide the birds in and get them to go where they need to go. I find that making the same call over and over every time you feed them from day one helps them correlate that word/call with FOOD, which helps immensely when you want to get them in. I can call my birds and they all come flying/running at me from all directions when I call them for treats at any time of the day,

You have to be consistent and make a nightly routine of it, sometimes it takes a couple weeks, sometimes it takes a couple months for the training/conditioning to grab hold of their little pea-brains... it depends on how consistent you are, and how stubborn the birds are, lol. Getting a treat each night in the coop helps.

Once it's a well established routine and they've learned to go in the coop for a treat and then get up on the roosts, they usually stick with it. All my birds are squawking at the pen gates wanting in at feeding time (before sundown) and if I am late... (I close my pens while the birds are out free ranging... so they can't come and go as they please for feed and also to keep wild life out to control disease)... I hear extra loud complaining and they don't hush til they have a beak full of treats to muffle the complaining, lol.

 

[prairie]

When we bought our 8 -10 week old guineas we kept them in the coop and run along with the 6 new chicken hens-- for about 2 weeks. They were used to going into the coop at night but I had a hard time getting them to do it until we started putting a little scratch grains in a pan for them as a treat.

Now they have a larger coop and the roosts are about 10 - 12 feet high. I think they like the higher roosts cause I have no trouble getting them in there at night.The chickens are always on the roosts first and the guineas wait for their treat usually. If it is dark before I get out there to close up the run and the coop they will have roosted inside already. p.s. - they free range all day.

 

[Joe.G]

I am not pro but I kept mine in my coop for about 4 weeks, I then let the free range during the day, the second night out they slept in the trees but only that one time they come back and go in with the chickens every night and take the highest roost in the place.

 

[wbruder17]

Thanks everyone. I would actually prefer them to sleep outside the coop. More room for the chickens then. The whole thing is enclosed and the pheasants and ducks sleep out of the coop. There is no way for predators to get in, so they will be safe. Great info and the response I was hoping for.