Can Guinea Fowl Fly? Everything You Should Know

One frustrating factor about keeping Guinea fowls is that they are escape experts. Take note that some Guineas can jump over fences several feet high and vanish into thin air and never return.

Similar to chickens, Guineas are habitual animals and instantly become stressed when moved to unfamiliar locations. In such a scenario, they may become aggressive and run from alien settings.

Ultimately, this explains that keeping Guinea fowls requires prior planning to prevent them from escaping. This piece defines the main reason behind Guinea fowl flying away and how you can bring it to a halt.

Will Guinea Fowl Fly Away?

For any bird owner, the mere thoughts of their pets flying or walking to the unknown can be a nightmare. More worrying is that domesticated birds cannot fend for themselves and are an easy target to predators.

Soon after flying away, day one can be exciting as the birds explore a new environment. However, from day two, your pet friend may have it rough from hunger, dehydration, exhaustion, and lack of enough sleep. At this juncture, they may approach strangers seeking aid and mainly food. The most unfortunate thing is that their vulnerability enables unfamiliar people to capture them without a struggle.

There are cases where reliable individuals take suitable measures if they come across lost birds. The first rescue attempt is to console any lost bird that appears weak, hungry, or shivering. Also, consider seeking expert help if unable to flutter its wings or have visible injuries.

You may come across a domesticated bird attacked by other animals like dogs. If wounded, prepare a comfortable carrier of old clothes, towels, or blankets. Then arrange them nicely in a sizable carton or box. Due to fright, some Guineas may peck or stab using their beaks. Therefore protect yourself by wearing gloves.

If the bird appears excessively cold or wet, cover them well with a warm blanket. Bear in mind that birds can quickly die from hypothermia and require instant attention to keep them warm.

For guinea chicks, you can try to warm them using your palm. Nonetheless, bigger birds need other measures like an electric light. Finally, please report the issue to the nearest wildlife rehabilitator to give the birds a chance to reconcile with their families.

Can Vulturine Guinea Fowl Fly?

The vulturine is the biggest bird among the Guinea fowls. The strikingly gorgeous bird has an eye-catching white and black plumage with blue breasts. Thanks to their remarkable appearance, Vulturines are also recognized as the Royal Guinea fowl.

It is worth pointing out that they got their name from the close resemblance with vultures. They are also monochromic and monomorphic, making it nearly impossible to distinguish between females and males.

These fantastic creatures originate from East African countries like Kenya, Tanzania, Somalia, and Ethiopia. In their natural habitat, Vulturines prefer staying in grasslands, savannahs, and desert areas. One unique trait about these Guinea fowls is that they produce very thick and hard eggs.

Although vulturine are brilliant runners, they are pretty immobile and rarely fly. The only time you may observe attempting is when reaching out to roosting perches at night. Something else, while they prefer living in flocks, they perch on trees independently.

The beauty about these birds is they hardly jump or fly over the coop fence. However, take precautions of openings in reachable areas because they can quickly dash off.

How High Can Guinea Fowl Fly?

Raising Guinea fowl can be more complicated compared to ducks and chickens. Given that they are considered wild, it might take slightly longer to train them. Another significant disparity is that Guineas can fly for considerable long distances.

In truth, your pet Guineas may fly 400 to 500 ft high. As a result, they are classified in the class of great bird fliers. They are also exceptional runners who take on their heels when confronted by predators.

Guinea fowl chicks start flying from as early as two weeks old. By this age, they already have enough flight feathers, which enable them to experiment roosting on shelves or low trees. Even if Guinea fowls love flying high, it is crucial to discourage them from flying away as it may lead to a string of drawbacks.

How to Stop Guinea Fowl From Flying Away?

One amazing trait about Guinea fowls is that they are extremely curious. Even after domestication, these birds still possess some wild inclinations like running away. Fortunately, there are several things you can consider to keep them safe.

– Habitat Needs

Placing your Guinea fowls in low-quality living standards triggers them to run off. As mentioned earlier, if you provide your birds with a comfortable environment, they may not find the need to fly away.

Start by ensuring that moisture and temperature are within normal range. In addition, consider that they come from a hot African climate and give them something closer to that.

Even if Guineas manage snow very well, keets should be kept dry and warm before the wings become waterproof. Most likely, if the environment suddenly becomes too wet or cold, they may run away or vacate as soon as they get a chance.

– Proper Diet

Guinea fowls are omnivorous who enjoy feeding on worms, slugs, grains, weeds, and small rodents. Moreover, they are admirable foragers and excellent in cleaning up around the yard.

Often, they may require grit in their diet to aid in digestion. If by any chance, food becomes scarce, the birds may be forced to seek other options out of the yard. Therefore, provide them with enough food, and they will not need to disappear.

– Sufficient Space

Akin chickens, Guineas dread living in crowded quarters. For this reason, ensure that the living space is not less than two or three feet. Do not forget that Guinea fowls are social animals who fancy being in flocks.

Still, overcrowded birds are more likely to break into fights and eventually move to less crowded areas. However, if you give them ample space, your birds will thrive better and coexist happily with the rest.

– Meet the Safety Needs

Similar to other living animals, your feathered friends need to feel secure always. Their primary source of safety is roosting on trees. This habit helps in keeping away from predators and other elements. If you fail to give them comfortable and ample perches, there is a high probability they will go searching elsewhere.

Nonetheless, roosting on the trees around may not be the safest preference. Instead, provide and stable perches for your birds. When installing the roosting perches, you should also consider if they are easily accessible to predators.

It would be unfortunate for your birds to get injured during their relaxation moment.  Importantly, train your feathered pets to return to their pen at night because most attacks tend to happen at that hour. Train your birds early enough because it is not within their nature to sleep indoors.

– Satisfy Social Needs

Guineas are social creatures that prefer living in flocks. If left alone, the animals can instantly become stressed and agitated. The brighter side is that Guineas are easily influenced and learn fast from others. For example, introducing docile species in the flock can prompt other birds to take over similar temperaments.

It is worth pointing out that chicken hens make better mothers than Guinea fowls. If you have keets in your flock, a gentle and humble chicken hen can actually instigate them to stay closer than home and not fly away. This exposure sticks with the birds even in their adult days. In other terms, Guinea birds brought together with chickens are more content and less likely to run from home.

If you want to expand your flock, consider introducing keets rather than full-grown adults. At first, old birds may bully the new ones but become protective after familiarization. This form of introduction allows baby Guineas to feel more at home and minimizes the chances of escaping.

All in all, some farmers prefer bringing in adult Guineas rather than keets. Please do not keep them in free-range in such a scenario before they familiarize themselves with the area. Due to fright and anxiety, they may seek consolation by flying away and never coming back.

Instead, house them indoors for a couple of days. It is prudent to place them in an environment where they can see or smell their future. After familiarizing with the territory, release the new bird and observe its reaction.

Their social nature may come into play here and prompt the bird to stick with others. If the newcomers show no sign of leaving after a couple of days, they are content with their new home.

Bottom Line

Owning Guinea fowls has a whole load of benefits to the farmer. Not only are they admirable free-range creatures, but also excellent in pest control. You would not want to lose such a desirable pet bird for whatever reason.

More so, escaping may expose your birds to hideous risks out of the cage. The thumb rule is to meet your bird’s basic needs and ensure that they live in a secure and habitable environment.