We do not ship (call us for 25+ bird drop ship option)
Straight Run ONLY
French Pearl variety only
We order keets from an NPIP Certified Hatchery.
For 2022 - Day Old only
We do not sell adult birds or Eggs
Availability/Date of Arrival on farm is dependent on the hatchery. Watch dates of shipments below.
...Tick eradication !
Guinea Fowl for tick eradication and guard work: Guinea Fowl ARE GREAT for reducing the tick population on your property. They work well in gardens, too, as they do not dust themselves as heavily as hens, and so won't uproot your plants.
Pre-orders are required,50% of your payment is non-refundable Available day old, or brooded to 3 weeks, ready to go. Day old keets are straight out of the egg and need to be kept warm and out of drafts for about 3 weeks. This is called " brooding". It is what the mother does in nature. Brooded keets are straight out of our brooders. They are about 5 inches long and 4 inches high, fully feathered out and ready to be trained to your coop/property.
Due to the frequency of deliveries of keets from the hatchery, we ask that you please be prompt in picking up your order. Failure to do so may result in boarding fees being incurred. Please remember we are a working farm with busy schedules, please be considerate of our time. 2021 Arrival Dates: BROODED - (Not offered for 2022) Batch #1 DAY OLD - March 25, 2022 - OPEN Batch #2 DAY OLD - TBD Batch #3 DAY OLD – TBD
Go to our Online Shopping page for pricing. Minimum required purchase of six (6), per NYS Ag & Markets Law Prices subject to change without notice. These are Pre-Order prices. Pick up on farm! Straight Run ONLY - sexing of keets is not available in the USA.
PLEASE NOTE: Due to experiences during prior seasons, we have had to update our purchase requirements and terms to include the following. THERE WILL BE NO EXCEPTIONS. We order 100 keets at a time to provide to customers as day old only starting 2022:
When you place your order, keep your Square receipt. The date indicated in the item description is your Pick Up Date, unless we tell you otherwise. This receipt constitutes a purchase contract subject to, but not limited to, ALL requirements listed here. Automatic messages from Square with pick up dates/times DO NOT APPLY. We are not able to adjust this automation at this time.
CASH PURCHASES - Payment must be received at time of order, or the birds will be assigned to the next paying customer. A phone call of interest, but no payment received, does not hold birds.
If you ordered Day Old keets, you are to pick up on the date of arrival or next day, on farm - date provided to you at the time you order, in the item description. You will receive an email prior to pick-up with instructions.
Brooded NOT offered in 2022.If you ordered Brooded guineas, your e notified of your Pick Up date -
at the time you place your order or
when the keets arrive at the farm, AND
the week of your pick up date.
Please keep your appointment timeon your pick up date!We make appointments to maintain social distancing for your, and our, safety. No early-birds, please, and if you are running late, please notify us so we can adjust if necessary.
Please bring a box or boxes sufficient for the number of birds ordered. You can order a chick box that holds up to 25 day-old keets when you check out at our online shop. No wire dog/cat crates or plastic tubs, please.
We do NOT ship, and delivery is not offered. The birds must be picked up at our farm.
Requests to hold birds beyond your pick up date will be granted entirely at the discretion of Helder~Herdwyck Farm, and is dependent on situations here at the farm at the time requested, including but not limited to, available space for us to keep the birds, if any, and will require additional fees.
Birds not picked up on your specified date may incur an additional 10% per day in boarding cost, based on the number of birds reserved for you, and, timely communications as to the delay in pickup.
If therre is a no-show for pickup, and we have not recieved any communication from you - at Helder~Herdwyck Farm's determination, they will be sold to the next customer on our waiting list. If this should occur, please remember the 50% deposit is not refundable.
Helder~Herdwyck Farm is not responsible for any birds once they leave our premises!
NOTE: YOUR KEETS ARE NOT RESERVED WITHOUT PAYMENT!!!
Getting Keets Started...
Day Old:
Remember to bring a cardboard box that will fit the age/number of keets you are getting.
Make sure your brooder is set up and warm, with dry bedding, water, and feed.
depending on the number you have, a plastic tub or trough works well to keep out drafts and is not as flammable as a cardboard box.
Use a waterer with either a narrow lip or put marbles or pebbles in the lip so a keet doesn't accidentally drown.
We recommend chick electrolytes be added to the water. Usually mixes a gallon and they are good after that is used up.
Keep waterers elevated to prevent shavings from filling them and wetting bedding.
Please use safety measures when utilizing a heat lamp.
Use a brooder thermometer to make sure the brooder is 95F degrees the first week. Lower the temp by 5 degrees each week until outside temp is reached or birds are fully feathered.
Your keets are cold if they huddle under the light (and could suffocate each other)
Your keets are too warm if they push to the outside edges, away from the heat.
Adjust temperature by raising (cooler) or lowering (warmer) the lamp, and/or covering a portion of the brooder top.
We recommend a high protein poultry starter.Either turkey starter or game bird starter for the first 8 weeks. Then a layer ration can be used to feed them at night to bring them in.
Guineas need a higher protein feed than chickens, but do quite well on regular poultry diets. Keets need a 24% to 26% protein ration as the starter feed. The protein level should be reduced to 18% to 20% for the fifth to eighth weeks. After eight weeks, the keets can be fed a 16% layer mash.
Brooded and how to train your birds:
Make sure your coop or cage is set up with roosts about 3 feet up, dry bedding, water, and feed.
Keep waterers elevated to prevent shavings from filling them and wetting bedding.
If they seem unable to utilize roosts, lower them and then raise them as they grow.
If you will be housing them with other poultry, allow an introduction period of about a week, in a separate section of your coop so the birds all see each other.
Keep the keets enclosed in their "home" at least one week.
We recommend a high protein poultry starter. Either turkey starter or game bird starter for the first 8 weeks (5 weeks if purchased already brooded) you have them. Then a layer ration can be used to feed them at night to bring them in. They will then be sourcing their protein requirements by foraging.
Feed EVERY evening before dark, before they are looking to roost through the year.
When it's time to begin letting them out, let only a few out. They will stay closer to the coop and their buddies while adjusting to foraging. Herd them in if necessary at feeding time.
Each day, let a few different ones out. Do this for a week. Always putting them all in at night.
The next week, let about 1/2 out and follow feeding/herding instructions.
The next week, let them all out, and if possible, enclose in a fenced area accessible to the coop, but not necessary. Do this a few days and then let free range during the day.
If you are mixing with other poultry, this will go much easier, as your hens will help train them.
Guinea fowl are susceptible to predation. Training them to come indoors at night will help survival.