Oh Wise Dalesfans.... any tips with Guinea hens?

[Debbie]

Along with our new home, we 'inherited' a Guniea hen, often nicknamed Henny. Yes, I'm so creative that way Her backstory, Adrian had her and a mate and they had chicks and they used to go back and forth across the highway to the campground on the other side. Yeah, no cigars for knowing one of them would be killed and the male was killed by a car.

Henny then learned her lesson and stayed on the property with her chicks, but the local hawk sussed chicks were tasty and they were eaten one by one so Henny is now by herself. She's loose, roams the property, puts herself up to roost high in the barn's rafters at night. During the daytime she prowls around the house eating bugs.

I've taken to tossing her slices of bread morning and night, but the question is, should I be getting her anything else? She eats tiny pebbles so I don't think she needs grit like my hens needed. Last night I gave her a raspberry which she treasured. She's incredibly curious (tapping on the glass as I type), loves listening to the tv when we run movies and will waltz into the sunroom if we aren't careful.

Any tips for food as we head into winter? Anything I should be careful not to give her?

Eldon thought we should get more to keep her company, but to be honest, I don't want to add more. Hen's pretty tickled with just us for company, I don't need more critters to care for, and with free roaming fowl, I'm worried the others would just end up killed by cars too. I'm happy to keep her solo.

[valerie n scout]

She sounds like quite a character Debbie, can't help with the husbandry but am sure someone will be along soon any pics x

[benjismum]

I have a friend who used to have all sort of fowl including guineas, I'm sure he fed his millet as a treat, and somewhere in the back of my mind I thought he also gave them suet, like you would for wild birds, but I might not be remembering that right! I'll ask him! Henny sounds a great character, it's nice to hear that she's settled with you

[harveydales]

Aww she sounds a real character. I think it is unusual to have them so friendly and human orientated so you are right to keep her alone. I've heard they mix well with chickens so she will have yours for avian company. She should get most of her food from the wild herself and they prefer insects and the like rather than fruit and veg which is why a few people I know keep them in preference to hens who wreck the garden. Millet and suet sound sensible for winter and I know you can feed normal poultry corn if you need - don't know how snowed in you get in the winter when there won't be many insects about. Do post some pics.

[cadeby]

Banana slugs

[Debbie]

Sorry it's taken so long for me to come back with pics. It's been a heavy work week plus other soap operas kept me from downloading Hen's pics.

Here she is, having her morning breakfast slice of bread:



This one's a little blurry, but I wanted to show it too.



They're rather large. Even as big as my Buff Orpington, HenPen was, Henny's about 1/3rd bigger. They have a little dome on top of the head and two wattles. The head's naked for the most part, but she's pretty and very, very nosey. She's got an amazing repetoire of sounds and calls. When we first arrived, we alarmed her at every turn. Now she's gotten used to us being here, she hangs out nearby the doors. She loves to listen to the tv, especially if Eldon's got "Farscape" going. She adores the themesong

Much of the time she patrols the property on her bughunts. I've tempted her with a raspberry and a strawberry, but usually she'll only get a slice of bread or a croissant. It took her only 2 times hearing the word 'croissant' and she'd learned it and would come at a dead run for one we're giving those a rest at the moment and letting her have bread slices that have a big variety of nuts in them.

She does make a good alarm bird. If anything/anyone new steps onto the property, she usually sounds off an alarm. You can't miss it, she's louder than a car alarm. I did shush her the other day because she was sounding off but I didn't see why. The second time I came out, I discovered it was one of the baby red tailed hawks learning to fly. She only knows that their mother was the one who killed her own chicks, so small wonder she was screaming

[tinkerdorisalison]

We got a ouple of Guinea Fowl, kept them in for a couple of weeks, but as soon as I let them out they pegged it!!

I think they went off to join the gang that are on the shoot area near our house.

We saw 6 of them today as we walked the dogs. I wish they'd come back they are much nicer than hens..

[cadeby]

She looks to be a real character. I bet it's not long before she ventures inside the house

[heathera]

I've asked around as we have a couple of people in the hamlet that breed and keep these. You can buy guinea fowl pellets but they said you can also just feed poultry pellets, much better for them than bread products.

One of my most exciting hacks out with the boys involved meeting 40 escaped guinea fowl on the track! The boys grew two hands taller as we beat a hasty retreat with the fowl in hot pursuit making their loud alarm call.

[harleydales]

LOL, Heather, Harley and I met some Guinea fowl on an endurance ride, it took a lot of persuading to get him past them (and them out ofthe way!).

I think they are ace, really funny with bonkers characters - you'll have your hands full Debbie!

[Debbie]

Aug 19, 2013 5:57:24 GMT -1 cadeby said:

She looks to be a real character. I bet it's not long before she ventures inside the house

Actually she comes into the house and gets her fluffy nickers ushered right back out many times. I've contemplated getting baby gates just for her

I can't begin to imagine that many sounding their alarm calls all at once. I'm so glad you were able to keep atop your pony to beat the hasty retreat and to manage to get by them