Has anyone ever have any problems introducing guinea hen chicks to adult chickens? We'd like to order some guinea hens but have free range adult hens (no roosters). Will there be a problem?
How about introducing ducklings or goslings to chickens? [img]/forums/images/icons/confused.gif[/img]
I don't know about guinea hens in particular, but I would NEVER house chicks with adult chickens. When I find it necessary to 'replenish' my flock, I raise the chicks separately until they are of adult size (12-15 weeks, typically) and then slip them into the coop after dark.
Chickens are not overly bright, and tend not to notice the extra birds in the morning. There might be some "pecking order" disputes for a day or two, but that's about it.
If you plan to house them separately but let them run free together in the daytime, that's fine, but the same guidance applies: Not until the chicks are adult-sized and ready to defend themselves. Keep them penned up in a separate yard for several weeks.
(Earthmother is my wife) We would keep the chicks separate until they're gown. We're going to get more chickens in the spring, and that's what we'll do with them.
Do Guinea Hens need some sort of hen house when they're adults? I wonder if theyll try to get in our henhouse with the chickens. I've read that they roost in trees. Does anyone have any experience with them? I know they're real noisy.
We'd like to hear what anyones experience with them are, good or bad.
Thanks.
Rich
"What a long strange trip it's been."
We have raised Guineas for the past three years. It all depends on the flock. Most of the time, they will attack the new chicks and not let them into the flock. In fact, we have one adult hen that is part of one flock, but has to keep to herself most of the time because she has never been fully integrated. I had three chicks this past summer that I hatched and tried to introduce to the flock. Tow were killed by other animals and the one remaining has taken up with the chickens because she has been rejected by the guinea flock.
But, I also let one of the hens raise her own chicks this past summer. Two survived and were accepted by the flock as their own. Go figure.
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Frank
We love ours. Yes, they are noisy, but only real bad when they are startled. They are our "guard hens". As for roosting, we find they roost in the trees in the summer and in the rafters of the barn in the winter (as do our chickens). We tried a henhouse, but the current chicken flock never took to it (bad trining from us probably).
We got the guineas as "tick eaters", and were a little dissapointed the first year as there seemed to be as many ticks as before. But in the past two years we have seen a great decrease in the numbers of ticks on us throughout the summer. They seem to have really reduced the population.
Frank
My sister in Arkansas keeps Guineas, and she swears by their tick appetite.
<font color="blue">My sister in Arkansas keeps Guineas, and she swears by their tick appetite.
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Hmm, all the commotion about lyme disease (I live in a "hot spot") never heard about this. Do they eat deer ticks?
Any chance of our dogs (labs) getting along with them? As in not killing them?
Are they raised for eggs or for meat?
Hazmat
<font color="purple"> Any chance of our dogs (labs) getting along with them? As in not killing them? </font color>
My sister did say at one time about coming out and finding one of her dogs with a mouthful of guinea, but the bird was OK and it seemed to be an isolated instance (she has three dogs, all different types, no Labs, though).
She raises them for eggs. I cannot answer your question about what "types" of ticks they prefer. Would be nice if they liked deer ticks, though, wouldn't it?
Most any type of fowl will eat ticks. I used to have a goose that would pick 'em off my shoes and pantlegs lickety-split.
As far as I know, they eat ticks and any other bug they can find. We have eaten the eggs, but they are much smaller than the chicken eggs, plus they like to build nests in a remote place (like the middle of the hay field), so are sometimes hard to find. When you come upon it, it will have 25-30 eggs in it and you have no idea how old they are.
I understand that the meat fetches a good price in the city, but I have never pursued it as I only have a small flock and really don't have the interest in spending the time and effort to try and market them.
As far as dogs (and other animals), once they are grown they can pretty much take care of themselves. They are loud and can fly a pretty good way. I imagine if a dog had a disposition to attack the birds, they would, but if they do OK with chickens or other animals, I would imagine they could be trained to leave the guineas alone as well.
Frank
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