GUINEA FOWL

Guinea Fowl

May 25, 2024

Guinea Fowl

Meenaxi

Veterinary officer, FCAPL Zaheerabad

The Guineas are also sometimes called Guineas, Pintades or Gleanies. The domestic guinea fowl (Numida meliagris) is originated guinea coast of West Africa where. Guinea fowl can also be raised for meat and egg production. Guinea fowl farming is a profitable enterprise for numerous poultry producers in Africa. In contrast, the production of guinea fowl has shown to be economically feasible and is successfully commercialized in Europe and the United States of America, where it is farmed in enormous quantities, as these are easier to manage by poor farmers in there available resources and resistant to most poultry diseases at the adult stage. Keeping guinea fowl is an effective means of pest control.

Varieties of Guinea Fowl- three main varieties: CPDO (ER):

Pearl: The most popular and typically the one and feathers used for ornamental purposes.
White

Guinea fowl special characters

Guinea fowl meat is rich in vitamin and low in cholesterol
Greater capacity to utilize green feeds
Hardy birds and Premium quality of meat.
Better resistance to common poultry diseases like Ranikhet and Fowl pox
Low cost of production.
Better ability to protect itself from predators.
Resistant to many common diseases
Better capacity to scavenge insects and grains.
More tolerant to mycotoxin and aflatoxin
No requirement of elaborate and expensive housing
Genetics of immune competence like high reputation for inbuilt disease resistance potential, resistance to RNA tumors, resistance to tick infestations and low aflatoxin susceptibility.

Brooding Management

Clean the Clean all the equipment that use in brooder and brooding house well. Before arriving of birds prepare the brooding ring, put the litter and lay papers on litter. Light source used as brooder heating. Place feed trays and drinkers. Records the space requirement/stock. Count and record the keets and release keets into brooder. The ME and Crude protein required during brooding are 3000 kcal/kg and 20-24%, respectively.

Hatching and Incubation

Incubation period for guinea fowl: 26-28 days
In Hatchery, the in setter for 24 days temperature is 99.5°F and 58%
In Hatcher the temperature is 97°F and relative humidity is 60%

Stocking Density

Floor space requirement- 0.06m/bird from day old till maturity
Stocking density- 55- 65m²/100 birds per
more than 16 birds/m- overcrowding and result loss up to 50% of the entire flock

Housing System

1.Free Range System

The birds are not confined they are free to go anywhere and free to find for their own feed and shelter. No need of any special housing for the birds.

Advantages of Free Range System

No cost for house construction, it’s much suitable for poor farmers almost at no cost to the farmer. No need of any technical knowledge for farming and not required any feed costs.

Disadvantages of Free Range System

Huge amounts of land and pasture are needed and there are risks from predators, disease outbreaks, and unrecognized sick birds. It is also challenging to gather eggs.

Semi Intensive System

A permanent home with adjacent fenced runs or pasture is needed for this setup. The space allotted to birds is small. Need to supply more water and food. Birds are not permitted to travel everywhere.

Advantages of Semi – Intensive

Particularly suitable where land is limited and small holder farms, requires less amount for feeding when compared with the Intensive system and low labor cost. No much risk of Predators.

Disadvantages of Semi – Intensive

In this system requires close monitoring and control and disease conditions could be common. Requires more land than Intensive system and competition for foods more.

Intensive System

This is the commercial approach where the birds are kept indoors in huge, regulated environments, either in battery cages or on deep litter. Because the birds’ needs for food and water are always met, there can be a high stock density and effective labor and resource management, which boost production. For large-scale commercial guinea fowl production, this approach is advised. Placed in 4 feet diameter brooder guard for under hover or gas brooder (100°F). Floor space: 0-8 week – 0.5 sq ft/bird and later 1 sq ft/bird.

Advantages of Intensive System

It system helps in saving land and feed. No harm from any kind of bad weather conditions to the birds. Birds can have enough nutrients due to commercial feeding. Easily access the diseases of the birds. Collection of eggs will be very easy and maintained hygiene. Control and treatment of diseases is well monitor in this system.

Disadvantages of Intensive System

In this system required technical knowledge for farming. For construction of building need too much money. Birds are in stress, need especial care for birds. Outbreak and transmission of diseases is more prominent. In intensive rearing conditions, feed conversion ratios (FCR) are between 3.1. feed wastage could be minimized by feeding the required feed twice daily. Clean water should be made available always. Feeder and Drinker Requirement/100birds

Management of Grower and Layer guinea fowl

After 16 wks of age floor space: 2sqft/bird, require enough space with perches.
1 nest provided for 4-5 birds with12 hr light and 12 hr darkness, which give better results. Calcium, ME and crude protein for layers are 3.35%, 2900kcal/kg and 16-18%, respectively. For growers ME required is 3200 Kcal/kg.
Grower and layer houses are well ventilated
Linear or trough feeders are used
water guard is used for watering,
Feeder space- 6-8 cm
Waterer space – 3 cm

Productive performance

More of B complex
Less fat and cholesterol
Egg weight: 41-45 grams
Age at first egg-250 days
Egg production – 100-120 eggs/year up to 2-3 yr well.
Age of marketing for meat 12weeks
Feed conversion ratio – 3.3 (meat type).
Dressing percentage – 77%

Sexing Guineas

Until nine weeks of age it’s very difficult to apart males and females
Size – Adult males are usually larger
Sound – The females – two-syllable sound, while the males make a single –syllable sound.
Males have a narrower opening between their pelvic bones than the females
When you hold the bird under one arm and use your free hand to feel the bones, you should notice a distance of about two fingers on males and three fingers on females.
It is very difficult to sex young guineas because pullets (young females) and cockerels (young males) look exactly the same.
When the guineas are older: The hen makes a two-syllable noise that is “buckwheat, buckwheat,” “put-rock, put-rock,” or “qua-track, qua-track.”
In excited, emit one-syllable cries in both the hens and cocks, but the cock does not emit sounds similar to the two-syllable noise of the hens.
Helmet- males helmets larger than female.
Wattles – larger in males than female.

Reproductive performance

Age at sexual maturity: 21-22 weeks
Body weight of adult: 1.5 kg
Sex ratio – 1:4 (domestic) 1:6-8 (confined)
These are seasonal breeder, laying begins at 28 week (laying from March to October)
Fertility in guinea fowl -90%
Guinea fowl hatchability -80%

Meat and egg characteristics

Egg

Egg weight :35-40 gm
Egg contain low cholesterol 550 mg/100 gm

Meat:

Gamey strong red lean meat
Rich in vitamin B & vitamin E and iron
Calories/100gm meat: 134%
Protein – 12%
Fat – 4%

Feeding management of Guinea fowl

Under rural conditions meeting nutritional requirements successfully through scavenging and foraging. Birds consume 115-120 gm /bird/day. (oguntona, 1983). The guinea fowl eat a variety of foods, fruits, berries, seeds, grass, spiders, insects, worms, mollusks and frogs.

Suitably formulated diets. In intensive rearing conditions, feed conversion ratios (FCR) are between 3.1. Wastage of feed could be minimized by feeding twice daily. Plenty of clean water should be made available always.

Starter: 24% protein and should be fed for the first 4 weeks
Grower: 20% protein should then be fed until 8 weeks
Finisher: 16% protein fed until market age

The feed intake of guinea fowl

S. No	The ages	Feed intake/day
1.	0-6	25-30g/day
2.	6-12	50-60g/day
3.	12-16	70-80g/day

Feeder and Drinker Requirement/100birds

Age (weeks)

Drinker Requirement

Feeder Requirement

0-4

2 * 4 liter – size

2 * 1.2m size

4-8

4 * 4 liter size

3 * 1.2m size

8-16

4 * 4 liter size

4 x 1.2m size

16 and above

6 x liter size

5 x 1.2m size

Aflatoxin in feeds and performance

Natural tolerance to aflatoxin
Aflatoxin of 1.00 ppm should no adverse effect on wt gain and feed efficiency
Autopsy showed absence of gross pathological lesions.

Health care and disease control

Cleanliness: regular washing of feeder and waterer
Clean stock house regularly and place fresh litter in nest boxes
Adequate Feeding
Higher innate disease resistance to indigenous guinea fowl no vaccine, deworming is required
Livability 0-8 weeks -85-92%, 9-24 weeks -97%
Routine postmortem investigations and mortality monitoring indicated
Highest deaths during brooding period particularly rainy season
Coccidiosis caused highest damage in growers
Deaths due to smothering and overcrowding were next in order
Others include enteritis, unabsorbed yolk, emaciation, hepatitis and osteomaicia.
Mortality in adult female was mostly due to egg bound and egg peritonitis.

Marketing

Guinea fowls – ready for market at 15 weeks (usually 16 to 18 weeks of age). Live weight body weight at this week is almost 1.25 to 1.47 kg. Meat of Guinea fowl is drier and leaner than chicken meat and it has a gamey flavor.

Reference