# New Guinea Keets



## rwbwfarm (Aug 24, 2011)

My white hen (May) showed up yesterday with 12 adorable keets. I knew she was sitting so was patiently (??) waiting to see. Proud papa is such a big help, too.


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## jodief100 (Aug 24, 2011)

Congratulations!  They are cute!   

I have heard most guniea hens are not good at hatching and rearing thier own chicks.  Is yours the exception or have I be misinformed?


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## currycomb (Aug 24, 2011)

they are good at hatching, but the survival rate for the keets is low if not raised in a brooder. might work if the hen is kept in a coop situation, but free range just doesn't seem to work


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## elevan (Aug 24, 2011)

Congratulations!


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## terrilhb (Aug 24, 2011)

They are so adorable. Congratulations. I have 9.


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## rwbwfarm (Aug 24, 2011)

Thank you!! Last year, we (husbands idea...) took all 18 away but I'd like to leave most with them this year. My horse trimmer wants 5 so I'll take those away. The father is amazing with them - very protective. They stay right around the barn & coop so I'm HOPING most (if not all) will survive. I was told by DH that he didn't want to hear about it if I lost any but I'd like to watch nature this year.


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## manybirds (Aug 24, 2011)

rwbwfarm said:
			
		

> Thank you!! Last year, we (husbands idea...) took all 18 away but I'd like to leave most with them this year. My horse trimmer wants 5 so I'll take those away. The father is amazing with them - very protective. They stay right around the barn & coop so I'm HOPING most (if not all) will survive. I was told by DH that he didn't want to hear about it if I lost any but I'd like to watch nature this year.


If you start loosing some just pen them up until the babies are 2-4 weeks. the reason they loose them is because they don't seem to comprehend that the chicks just arn't as fast as they are. also they lead them through wet grass


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## Royd Wood (Aug 24, 2011)

Thats great - what will you do with them if they survive


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## rwbwfarm (Aug 24, 2011)

Just add them to the crew . I love the guineas (esp. when they play chase me around the barn - such a hoot) & am thrilled to have more.


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## rwbwfarm (Aug 24, 2011)

Well, the last almost hour has sucked - I ended up taking them away. She took 3 & went into the field next door & left him with the others. Of course, he's screaming for her too. And while I'm catching the little buggers, our puppy decided a full 2 qt. water bowl would be a great toy to spill all over our unfinished wood floor (GRRRRR). Anyway - at least I know these guys will survive.


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## that's*satyrical (Sep 7, 2011)

ohhh. that is a bummer  Good that you can help the little guys survive though. We have 4 adolescent guineas in a coop right now. I won't let them out yet they are so flighty & I'm sure they can still get thru the fence.


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## Goatherd (Sep 7, 2011)

> I have heard most guniea hens are not good at hatching and rearing thier own chicks.  Is yours the exception or have I be misinformed?


I'll give you my take on this...

Guineas, in my opinion are great brooders and moms.  They will even make a "joint" nest where several hens will sit at the same time.  They are very family oriented and keep close tabs on their chicks.
Where the problem comes in is that guinea chicks are extremely susceptible to wet and dampness.  They can tolerate cooler temps, but water/moisture is an almost certain death for them.  Guinea moms often make their nests in high grass fields.   In the morning, the dew on the grass, is enough to wet the chicks when they walk through it and that will cause them to die.  If it rains, guinea moms will cover their chicks with their bodies, and that works, but when the chicks start to move again, get wet, they die.

When I started with guineas, I had two hens go off and they were gone for several weeks.  One day, they both walked up the driveway with 23 little balls of fluff.  Like you, I though they were bad moms and felt so good to see them bring these chicks home.  I let them keep their chicks because I believed they had been the exception to the rule and would be able to raise these babies to maturity.  Within a day or two, I noticed some missing, then every day I would see them with fewer and fewer chicks until there were none.  We also had much rain during this time.

Fast forward to the next time...same thing again...two moms, many chicks, all dead within a few days.  After that, I decided when they brought the next batch home, I would catch them up and artificially brood them.  I did and all lived to become adults.  I hated to take the chicks from the moms, but I knew they would only die if left to rear them by themselves.  Can honestly say I've never lost a chick if I brooded it and not let a mom raise it.

An interesting fact about guineas and many don't know this, a guinea is originally from Africa.  They are very tolerant of temperature variances that is why they can live in colder climates.  But in Africa, the guineas breed and have their chicks when it is not the rainy season, so their survival is exceptional because they are not dealing with wet and moisture.


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## CCourson05 (Nov 8, 2011)

A guinea is an excellent brooder.. They tend to have VERY HIGH hatch percentages. However, they are very poor mothers, because unlike chicken mothers, they don't "talk" to their young constantly... The keets then tend to fall behind while the mother is walking, and fall prey to snakes, hawks, and anything one can imagine... On my farm, I leave chicks with mamas, but keets always go into a brooder.. They aren't reliable enough to raise them themselves... IMO. :/


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