Guinea Fowl Farming

Many poultry farmers in Nigeria don’t usually pay attention to guinea fowl farming but experts say farming the birds is quite easy and economical.

The Managing Director, Dan-Hassan Livestock and Poultry Services, Madugu House, Katsina, Malam Musa Rabo Dan-Hassan, said that one could start guinea fowl farming with one adult male and four females (guinea hens).

Musa said: “People tend to have preference for their meat and eggs. They also serve as security animals alerting on unusual things and persons in their environment.”

Dr Abubakar A. Adeiza, a poultry expert in the Department of Animal Science, Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, said that guinea fowls are best kept under a semi-intensive system.

He said that the young hatchlings (keets) are best kept indoors and fed on poultry grower mash until they reach about 12 weeks and then subsequently released to an open area that has a shelter and a bit of trees.

Adeiza said that the birds can also be fed with maize, sorghum and other vegetables. He said guinea fowls generally have higher disease resistance than chickens.

The birds take about 20 weeks to mature and lay eggs only during the wet season.

However, Dan-Hassan said that hybrid guinea fowls can produce eggs throughout the year with good management and feeding, unlike local breeds that lay eggs only in the wet season.

“Females weigh about 3kg while males can weigh up to 4kg and could be imported from France.

“Hybrids are best kept under the intensive system or indoors and layer mash is given to the guinea hens during production season,” he said.

“One limiting factor is that when kept in, say point ‘A,’ they lay their eggs in point ‘E.”

A local guinea fowl farmer, Lawal Barau, said that he prefers using chicken hen for brooding because they make better mothers and take about 28 days to hatch.

The farmer added that it takes about 25 days for guinea hen to hatch.

An extension agent, Dahiru Abdullahi, said that at about two months, the birds begin ‘helmet’ development on their head and are given white millet (maiwa) to help them while it takes about eight months to reach full maturity when extensively reared