One of the fun things about life is that you never know what might happen. Today, we were getting off to a slow start, and Cedar was barking at the back porch. Assuming it was a deer in the pasture, I was shocked to see an unfamiliar face at the window…
A Guinea hen is not a native bird species!
I have always been partial to Guineas, because they are beautiful, in an otherworldly way, they are not truly domesticated fowl, and they eat ticks. But I have never seen one around here. This hen was all alone. Usually they live in flocks. How did it get here, and where did it come from? It seemed lost and lonely. I took some pictures.
A lost, wet Guinea hen 
She carefully negotiates the steps 
And away she goes, peeping and cackling 
Heading down the road, like she’s on a mission
She headed for Jane’s house, so I called Jane and told her to watch her dogs. I was getting attached, and followed her down the driveway. Then she went to the Herters’ house. There was some commotion, but they kept Holly inside. Jane called Joanne Bonell, who lives over on Tuque Road. Sure enough, she has one Guinea, and it’s missing. Now we were on a mission to catch the Guinea and take her home. Ha! Diane Herter warned us that they are not easy to catch, and she was right. But we were able to herd the hen back toward our house.
I could not take pictures because of the rain. Which is a shame, because the horses’ horror at seeing this large bird would have made for some great shots. I took Bart out first, and was barely able to hold onto him, he was so freaked out. Then, Oisin had a similar reaction. Next, I brought Stone out, and the Guinea had wandered into the paddock. Stone took one look, and immediately trotted over to the bird, which scampered out under the fence. He may be the smallest member of the herd, but he is definitely the bravest.
We called in reinforcements. Harry came out to help, and to get wet with us. We herded the hen for quite a while, and finally got her into the barn. Joanne said she would come over and help catch her, and she showed up with a crate and two sons to assist. But we made one drastic error. We did not close the bale doors. It turns out Guineas can fly a lot better than chickens. When an effort was made to shoo the Guinea off the top of the stall, where she was roosting, she flew up and out of the barn through the bale door. Joanne and her sons gathered up their things and left the Guinea hen to her fate. Apparently, she had been home that morning, joining the chickens when they emerged from their coop, so she must have traveled east with a purpose to get here for a reason we cannot fathom.
Atop a stall 
In the loft 
Planning escape from the barn 
Damp but good humored
When last seen, the Guinea was traveling westward, getting away from this place, where she had been stalked and cornered and almost caught. We expected her to provide a meal for the coyotes, as she trundled off into the woods, but a couple of hours later, Joanne texted Jane to say that the hen had returned to her flock of chickens! A happy ending to a damp but exhilarating adventure morning.
Rebecca has Guineas, so if this happens again, and IF we can catch her, we will relocate her to Rebecca’s flock, her own kind. But we are all relieved that she has rejoined the birds she knows. Joanne said she ate and drank a lot when she returned, so with any luck, this experience will have taught her “there’s no place like home”, and she will not roam again.
Later, I went over to Jane’s house to deliver some pears and to see her beautiful gardens. One of these days, we are going to fix the signs! Gravity has taken a toll.
Jane’s security system 
From the south 
From the north 
Derry 
Jane
Next, Marilyn rode in on her new horse, Trigger. She and Kay both bought fox trotters from the same guy a couple of weeks ago, Trigger and Jewel. They are lovely horses, and it was fun to meet them.
Trigger 
As for my horses, they got plenty of exercise today in the excitement of the Guinea invasion. When it was time to come in, I called them, and they were ready for down time in their stalls.
Oisin is always the first to show up for a treat 
Bart swaggers in 
Stone is bragging about how brave he was
Once the horses were settled, I took a quick look at the studio. Harry is at work on a new piece, a departure from sports figures, this will be Mater Admirabilis!
She begins 
The laying on of clay 
Happy sculptor
It was a gray day, but very beautiful indeed. The woods are greening, but the blooming trees are lasting, thanks to cool weather. This Spring is a benediction.
Stay safe, stay well. Peace.
Guinea’s , a true dinosaur throw back walking in our time , feathered dinosaurs with a hump on their bill , love them !
I love the Guinea story! The alpaca neighbors, who have since moved to Montana, had guineas.
The hens started roaming a few years ago…about the time that I was riding Remy and Ozzie. Oh!! That never went well because I counted 60 of them the first visit. (I’ll send the video.)
Sure enough, every morning that I wanted to ride, here came the guineas. I often had to dismount and herd them back across the road. Urghh!
The numbers dwindled over time, but I have fond memories of those little ones entertaining the horses and certainly interrupting my rides!
When the neighbors moved last summer, I believe that there were three left. I sometimes hear one or two somewhere across the road.
It seems that they do travel and are not easily kept in. They are entertaining and cool, but gosh, my horses seemed to think that aliens had invaded!, so I can appreciate your eventful day yesterday!