Why doesn't my guinea girl make eggs?

[Guinea and Chicken raiser]

Yesterday, I kept her all day in a cage and she didn't lay. It's not like it's possible she can keep her eggs in, is it? And we had a male guinea before, so she can't be a male because when they were growing up, 3 females and one male, when the one male died, the rooster (chicken male) got twice as big. So we have one female now, and all her life she never laid eggs. Is it true that you need like 14 guineas to make them have eggs or something? I was thinking of cutting her open to see if she has eggs their but then I thought not to because she is my only guinea, my best friend.
I even recall now having them in a coop all together, the chickens and the guineas, for two seperate rainy days, and they never made guinea eggs. I have never seen guinea eggs from any female. I know they make secluded nests, but I've had guineas for a year now and no eggs.

 

[PeepsCA]

Guinea Hens will lay eggs even if they are the only bird you have, and they can't hold them in, lol. BUT...Guinea Hens are seasonal layers, Spring thru Fall. In some areas of the US the Guinea Hens won't lay until well into March or April. My Hens usually only skip one day every 10-14 days or so, once they start laying regularly... until they taper off at the end of the season.

You could try adding supplemental lighting (with a full spectrum bulb) for a couple hours AM &PM, set to come on and go off with a timer. 16 hours of light may help trigger her to lay. Older hens are not as productive as young Hens... but make sure she is on a layer ration (with 16-20% protein) and also has access to oyster shell. She'll lay when she is ready, or when her body is ready I should say.

Later in the Spring if you are still not getting eggs, she may be laying them outdoors if she is allowed to free range. They are very sneaky and usually choose well hidden spots to lay.

If she does not lay this season for you she may have an underlying health issue that is preventing the egg production.

 

[Guinea and Chicken raiser]

thanks PeepsCA. We live in Louisiana. She free-ranges right with the chickens. I can find most of my chickens egg-nests all the time, but never seen a small guinea egg, unless she makes big eggs. I will pay more attention to her from Spring-Fall. It's winter now, so I'll try in a month or two to collect her egg/s.

We got chicken starter food that has crushed oyster shell, she ate it a few times, cuz I only gave it to her a few times. Is it best then to coop up your guinea so they eat that crushed oyster shell up?

she's a young bird. she has matured, supposedly. I got her in March of 2011.

 

[PeepsCA]

Oyster shell should be provided free choice, she will take what she needs. I keep my breeders on a layer feed year round free choice also, pellets seem to work best for my flocks (Guineas need a minimum of 16% protein), and they have access to fine stem leafy alfalfa hay. I usually bump up the protein level a little and add some cracked corn or sweet feed during the the colder months so they have enough energy/fat to keep themselves warm (since they aren't out getting as many bugs, green and seeds free ranging).

No need to coop her up all the time (just at night for her to be safe is best IMO), it's much healthier for her to be able to free range and get a more varied diet (just make sure to keep the layer feed available free choice in the coop). Once she starts laying she may share a nest with your Hens, or she may sneak off to a very well hidden private spot. Guineas eggs are small like a banty eggs, but noticeably pointed at the smaller end, and the shells are super thick.

 

[Guinea and Chicken raiser]

good. I just got 3 bantams. One bantam I squashed accidently by putting the waterer in the cage. I learned how fragile they are. The other was the fault of my hen I left in their. So I got three fine ones. The yellow baby feathered bantam had like 4 pink spots, 2 on one wing at the top arm part and 1 on the other same region of that wing and one spot was on her back but it got a lil pinker... she's with barred rock babies and they are same size as the black giant babies. they are growing up together. The giants were about the same size as the barreds at first. now they are all growing. The yellow is growing a lot for a bantam.

I wish I can start hatching keets. I never had yet. I have no male guinea. Like 6 months ago my only and first male guinea got ran over on our road. Someday we plan to move and he would have been safer at our bigger farm. We always free-ranged our birds. I was lucky, I got my first 4 guineas, they turned out to be 3 girls and one boy. but now I'm down to one girl.

I was asking you all that because we think the rooster may be doing her too besides his only 7 adult hens now. Which we got 2 new females for him I seen him do the dance for his babies, which he dont know they are his own babies. But I did get 5 new males, RIR's. 4 of my roosters babies are males and we gotta eat 3 of them, cuz of too many males... I wanted one RIR st. run b/c it's a bigger chance of male but my man I live with said make it 5. We got 5 Americana baby pullets too. Why are girls pullets, exactly, why called that? pull-its? pollo is italian for chicken, male. polli is italian for males and females grouped together or only males in a group of chickens. Polle is if it were females, all female in a group only. Polla is one single female chicken. French has the -ette I thought. Like Baguette.

I know there are people out there that can hatch keets often. Maybe I'm not the kind of person for that... How do you find a secluded nest? I thought it would be simple but our birds go to our neighbors and their dogs barked when I tried to follow her one day.

OOh... wait.. do Guineas have an "egg song" of their own after they lay like a chicken? I hear her do that... but I ran there and seen nothing. I didn't know where to look. I was careful not to make the neighbor's dog bark... The neighbor gave me a weird look for going there. Soon we will fence in our birds in a big area, once we get fencing for that... Maybe I'll have better luck for a half-bred guinea. When we move, we'll have to order more Guinea babies/fertilized eggs. We are going to live in Oklahoma, can you help me with that? But I know a place I can order them from another state close by enough.. but do you know if you got something like that or a place closer to me that you know of?

It's all good.

 

[Keets an Chicks]

We live in Oklahoma and raise both Chickens and Guineas. We are in Eastern Oklahoma along Interstate 40.

 

[Guinea and Chicken raiser]

welcome, keets an chicks... sorry, it seems like either I took ur name idea or you are trying to copy mine. if ur a legit user here though I'll accept u for chatting to every now and then. u just joined this month and one post... and you seem to know your way around this site...

 

[Keets an Chicks]

I'm sorry we raise chickens and guineas. I didn't know a similar screen name was a crime. I'm sorry.

 

[bigdawg]

i see no problem with the screen names. now my guineas lay between 10am and 2pm. her mate will be close by when she is laying or sitting. he will sound the alarm when you get to close to her and try to lead you away from her and the nest. so look for a single guinea hanging around by himself between 10 and 2 and you will find the nest. but dont take any eggs while they can see you or they will nest in a different spot. they like to nest in the bushes,under something, mostly in the thickest ugliest snake infested place they can find. the are very private when it comes to laying eggs. good luck finding there nest.

 

[perchie.girl]

from San Diego.... Keets an Chicks.... There are plenty of usernames that are similar here .... Great minds and all. No worries here.

deb

I'm sorry we raise chickens and guineas. I didn't know a similar screen name was a crime. I'm sorry.