Happy Treadler

I have three cute little guys who are just about ready to leave the coop (they've been here about 6 weeks or-so). We live in the woods, and I'm concerned about getting them back in at night so that they don't turn into someone's dinner. Are there any suggestions to help me lure them back in? Do they use a ramp like chickens do?

Sure hope these guys don't flee my house when I let them out! :shock:

Happy Treadler

BTW, these are two of my cute little guys. The third was camera shy. Are they just the cutest things. :mrgreen: They absolutely go crazy for crickets and grasshoppers, thus the 'look' - "do you have something for me today?".

kountrykreation

Thats a hard one, just never know what their reaction will be. I let all my fowl out (chickens, peacocks, guineas) and they go back into the coop before night fall. If one or two seem oblivous to the routine, I can usually coax them back in with bread crumbs. Maybe start hand feeding them and leading them around in a controlled environment prior to letting them 'fly' the coop on their own? However, I usually won't let chicks out til they're about 6 months old. Good luck with them.

Happy Treadler

Thanks. These guys are at least 14 weeks old or-so. I wish they were younger when we got them (end of July), and I've been talking to them & trying to befriend them since but they still refuse to eat out of my hand. Will probably get within 8" of my nose to the point I kinda get freaked out, but they always have a 'no touchie' attitude. Very inquisitve birds. :)

Rosyhf

They are sorta young to let loose. I would keep them contained within an area until they realize that at night they go in the coop......

Sandra-P

I agree with the rest. They seem too young to let loose. Ours would roost in trees at night. Yours are very cute.

Helovesme

I can't technically call him "mine", but we had a helmet head guinea fowl drop outta the sky from somewhere ? right into our neighborhood about 5 or 6 months ago. Dangest thing, and he is still around. We have named him Gilbert(we think it's a him), he sees us drive up after work or if we come out of the house he comes running! I love this bird. He is very unique and quirky, but I'm attached. People drive down the street and stop to take pictures. I feed and water him daily and a few other neighbors have started putting seed out as well. He eats all the bugs - I didn't see one June bug on my porch this year. People stop to ask about him and the thing is - I don't know where he goes at night, but he ALWAYS comes back to our house and hangs out in our yard the most. I've been caught talking to him...LOL. I suppose that's why people ask if he's ours. The school children (and the parents) love watching him as they walk to school everyday. He doesn't eat out of my hand, but lets us get pretty darn close. He loves our dog, who we have trained not to go after him. While we live in a regular old neighborhood, we do have a lot of undeveloped land/forest behind the house with deer, skunk, racoons, and whatnot and nothing has "eaten" him yet.

COYOTEMAGIC

Are they going to be going out with other birds that are older and have learned to come and go?

I think they are kind of young to let go all day but you could start by letting them out for about 30minutes before the sun goes down and then herd them back inside. Just work your way up over over the next week to longer and longer time.

I had them. They are the nuttiest things!! I got rid of them because I couldn't deal with the NOISE during post chemo weeks. My husband called them the Air Raid Sirens!

Happy Treadler

Oh Gilbert is SEW cute! Just so you know, boy birds can only make a one-syllable sound, whereas girls do two syllable ("buck-wheat").

I only have these 3 (so far!) and will be getting chickens in the spring (which won't be 'free roaming') so they won't be quite as loud as a big herd of them. ha ha One of the perks is the noise they make although I've heard they do get annoying, especially when you have a lot of them. I'll tell ya, these three did NOT like my in-laws. I was cleaning their coop 2 weeks ago when they showed up & these guys carried on like mad. Never heard a peep out of them before that! I bugged hubby get our our security system hooked up, and he never did (we live in a remote area). Now I don't think I'll need one if these guys stick around. I just think they are the quirkiest birds. I hear they love looking at themselves in the mirror. Gotta find an old mirror somewhere! :)

Wanted to show you all a pic of them a bit farther away. They're pretty big now. I'm afraid to name them for fear they go away, although I am already attached.

Helovesme

Oh, yours are so cute, too! And yes! Gilbert stands next to my daughter's black car parked in the driveway (hers is ALWAYS clean) and just admires himself! And I heard they make that noise when they are trying to alert you of danger...like other people. I don't know if I could handle several of these guys making that sound all at the same time, but Gilbert is a hoot. We left the garage door open one afternoon (and our garage is pretty empty; my car is usually parked in there) and the door to the house was open for whatever reason, Gilbert is in the middle of the garage cackling and my dog and cat were both sitting at the door like they were watching a circus. Couldn't figure out for the life of them what the heck that bird was doing.