Feedback on Guinea Fowl

Here's a feedback from Acampo California on raising guinea fowls from the Practical Animal Husbandry

November/December 1973
By the Mother Earth News editors 
Article Tools
Print
Comments
RSS
Bookmark and Share

RELATED CONTENT

DEAR MOTHER:

I've just received my first issue-NO. 23-and found it very interesting...but the excerpt from Practical Animal Husbandry on raising guinea fowl was just that: foul! I've kept the creatures for a long time and speak from personal experience (not from the reading of some USDA publication).

First, using turkey hens as foster mothers for guineas may have been OK years ago before the advent of the currently popular broad-breasted variety of turkey, but it surely won't work today. Today's turkeys are too big and heavy to incubate even their own layings. They simply break them into a mess of scrambled eggs. And, of course, baby guineas wouldn't have a chance under those clumsy feet. Imagine such cruelty to innocent keats!

Also, if the author can't tell the sex of these birds by their call, he just isn't with it. The males and females have extremely different notes. In fact, since their calls change before the distinctive head characteristics appear, this is about the earliest way to distinguish gender in the young guineas.

A note on breeds: There are at present about six or seven color varieties of the common guinea. Other rare species are also available, but are usually expensive and hard to rear.

After the guinea fiasco, I was afraid to read about squab production.

Frank Newhall
Acampo, Calif.

Bookmark and Share
RSS | Comments | E-mail | Print

Comments

Add Your Comment

Please note that there is currently a problem with the comments function and your comment may or may not post successfully. We are working to correct the problem and thank you for your patience. 

You can use this comment form to enter your personal experiences or additional information and resources that you'd like to share with Mother Earth News readers. Your helpful advice will be posted on this page.  E-mail addresses are never displayed on comments, but they are required to confirm your comments.

Line breaks and paragraphs are automatically converted — no need to use <p> or <br> tags.

New to Mother Earth News?
Sign up to share comments.
Asterisks(*) indicate required fields.
Name*
Your name appears next to your comment.

E-mail Address*
This will be your login ID.

City State Zip Code

Password*


Confirm Password*

Comments
1500 character limit (Offensive materials and/or spam will be removed, no HTML allowed)
Please Note: Your sign-up must be verified via e-mail before your comment is published.
FEATURED ARTICLES
MOST POPULAR


Subscribe Today - Pay Now & Save 66% Off the Cover Price

First Name: *
 Last Name: *
Address: *
 City: *
State/Province: *
 Zip/Postal Code:*
Country:
 Email:*
(* indicates a required item)
Canadian subs: 1 year, (includes postage & GST). Foreign subs: 1 year, . U.S. funds.
Canadian Subscribers - Click Here
Non US and Canadian Subscribers - Click Here

Lighten the Strain on the Earth and Your Budget

Mother Earth News is the guide to living — as one reader stated — “with little money and abundant happiness.” Every issue is an invaluable guide to leading a more sustainable life, covering ideas from fighting rising energy costs and protecting the environment to avoiding unnecessary spending on processed food. You’ll find tips for slashing heating bills; growing fresh, natural produce at home; and more. Mother Earth News helps you cut costs without sacrificing modern luxuries.

At Mother Earth News, we are dedicated to conserving our planet’s natural resources while helping you conserve your financial resources. That’s why we want you to save money and trees by subscribing through our Earth-Friendly automatic renewal savings plan. By paying with a credit card, you save an additional $4.95 and get 6 issues of Mother Earth News for only $10.00 (USA only).

You may also use the Bill Me option and pay $14.95 for 6 issues.