Hi Sara and All
My GF are now just over 3 months old, I have a house raised 8ft from the ground covered with homing net.
The first 2 days I kept them in the house with food and water then let them out, the problem is getting them back in I'm having to wait till dark then put them in.
I eventually would like them to free range but be protected at night, how can they be trained to go back to the safety of the house come nightfall??
Thanks
Gill R
Hi Gill I got all my good advice on this from Sarah!
The homing net you have over the house-is it staying? I have my guineas in a secure house with a covering cage so when I put them in they have access to perch & entrance to their hut. Once in the cage area they are easier to control! They are notoriously daft but now mine go into hut when it gets dark & I shut them in! Is there a ramp up to their house? Mine is on the ground so I use Sarah's advice of 2 long sticks as arm extensions & guide them in! It takes a while for that to filter in & for them to do it themselves but as they get used to you & that routine they will start doing it themselves!! Good luck!
Yan.
Hi Yanky
Thanks for the reply, I was hoping to use the net for a few months then free range them, yes the hut has a ramp for them, they seem to like using it to come out but not in!
This is the second lot I've tried to keep, I nurtured the others in a hut and ground run then when they where set free the fox ate them.
I wanted Guineas after visiting a friend who had bought an Old Hall in Shropshire and they inherited a large group of free range Guineas, they stuck together in a group and roosted in the trees at night, thats what I want mine to do!!
They are a funny bird aren't they, they look like little old men with a walking stick, and yes not overly bright!!
Thanks again, hey Sara... any advice please>
Gill
Hi Gill how awful that the fox ate your last ones-heartbreaking!! My friend has 7 guineas & she started off wanting them to roost on the trees but like me finds it safer to lock them away at night. They are so unlike hens! When I tried to leave mine to roost in the summer they ended up taking residence on the front door step poo-ing everywhere & then someone would come in or out & trail it into the house-yuck!
Good luck-sure Sarah will post soon
Yan.
Hi Gill
We have GF which roost in trees - I love to hear them chittering at night if we walk by.
You say " The first 2 days I kept them in the house with food and water then let them out" & I wonder if that means they are new to you.
I was told to keep ours in for 2 weeks when we first got them - I thought it was an awful long time, but the man insisted. He said GF need 2 weeks to get re-orientated! Anyway it seemed to work!
Hi all, Topveg I think you are right, as it is suggested for most young birds to keep them in an enclosure for two weeks . We have always done this with all fowl . Makes life easier for getting back in at night . Regards Mama .
Hi Gill,
Good to hear from you. Sorry I haven't posted sooner - new kitchen extension building work and frozen water pipes make kept me very busy, oh and guinea fowl that don't like snow or frosty ground have been keeping me busy also. Just a note that my guinea fowl will not step onto snow if they can help it and when they came out of their hut this morning and it was frosty they flew straight up onto the bales!
My guinea fowl now know where their hut is ( the other day they were waiting outside the hut to be let in and will have a daily routine and a walk around the farm, fields, orchard and garden and then head back to their hut, if they are not where I want them to be then as Yanky said I take two sticks and with outstretched arms I guide them to the hut, I do this way before dark as my guinea fowl will fly up to the rafters of the barn where the bales are and although I think they are safe from foxes, the guinea fowl are exposed to the elements so I prefer to get them into their hut before they fly up!
Guinea fowl don't care for flying and only really fly when they want to get away from something so, they may not want to fly up to the house. I wonder if you can put treats into their house late afternoon or before it goes dark so that they get used to flying up to their hut on their own.
I assume you have the house raised so they can be left to roost on their own without fear of predators, however I think they would use a hut more if it was on the ground. Having said that my guinea fowl preferto roostin the rafters of the open barn rather than the trees in the orchard as the barn does have a roof, but no sides and so is alittle more sheltered from the elements. My guinea fowl do actually prefer most of all to go into their hut on the ground, but if I don't open the door in time (I leave the door closed in the day so that vermin don't get in.)they will fly up to roost somewhere.In the Summer I can leave them out between 6-8pm depending on foxes but in Autumn and Winter I get them in between 2-3.30pm. At the moment I go out at 2.30pm in the afternnon and they are ready to go in. I am lucky that I work from home so can go out and round them up or just open the door to the hut to let them in.
As Topveg & Mama have said guinea fowl will get to know where their house is if they are kept in it for up to 2 weeks before being let out and then if you can let just a few out at a time they will not go far and want to come back to the hut to be with the others. Guinea fowl really flock together as a group in the Autumn and Winter.
Guinea fowl can be trained in a few weeks to know where their hut is and where the food and drinkers are outside etc. As I have said my guinea fowl have a routine and a set walk they follow around the farm each day in Winter time.
Good luck with the training.
Best Wishes
sara @ farmingfriends
Hi All
I hatched the GF and they where kept in a brooder in the stable, I have since my first post put them back in the house only releasing them 2 days ago...but they still not interested in going back in, even in the heavy rain!
I'm wodering if it is because the house is raised? although there is a ramp, new idea is to close in the base and see if they will go in underneath.
Thanks for all your replies, what do you reckon now?
Oh and I have a broody hen is that usual in the winter??
Gill
Hi, It is unusual to have a broody at this time of but not unheard of. I had one february time, I think, and she raised her chicks. Heres hoping. Mama
Hi gill I find guinea fowl so daft-they dont seem to like anything complicated & I suppose to them going up a ramp is! Think your idea of filling in the bottom is good & if you can put a run outsIde it at night you can put them in the run & if their food is in the house I think they will go in. Good luck with it! It really is just trial & error & routine!
Good luck
Yan.
Hi Gill
Your guinea fowl are quite young to be going out on their own, particularly at this time of year (if you are in the UK). I wonder what others think - but 6 months would seem a good age to me?? Hope they are doing well!
Hi Gill
I know how you feel mine won't go inside at night either... not untill it's really dark and nop they don't even want to roost up the trees. there is 1 that always stays out-i might add it watches the rest go but it doesn't follow so i stand, walk with my sticks & even sing(which is scary) but i have to catch it eventually and put it with the others. There great little birds always busy but their must be an easier way to train this pesky gf
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