A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[R2elk]

I will be hand-plucking unless I decide to skin him. I've been skinning the roosters we've culled lately. I don't look forward to hand-plucking a turkey. lol

As irony would have it, my mom brought me two traffic cones a couple of years ago and I'm pretty sure we still have them somewhere. Long story...

Do a search in the Meat Birds ETC forum for pithing.

Post #17,624

@CindyinSD was trying it and did say it did make plucking easier.

 

[kfelton0002]

Do a search in the Meat Birds ETC forum for pithing.

Post #17,624

@CindyinSD was trying it and did say it did make plucking easier.

I will look into that. Thank you!

 

[kfelton0002]

I just would get an old feed bag and put a hole in the closed end to stick their head through and lead them inside before cutting off the head. Then their wings are contained inside the feed bag.

This may be the method we try. So I don't have to be involved. I hate to watch them be dispatched. Once they are dead I'm fine.

 

[Huntmaster]

My turkeys really went off today Toms going crazy Hens screaming it's definitely on here now. Watched 2 different Toms breed 2 different hens none of these hens were any of the other suspected already breeding. Within a few more weeks should be seeing eggs.

 

[Molpet]

Sold 3 jenneys yesterday and a tom started breeding a hen as I was talking with the guy. This was 1 pm, usually sunrise and sunset is when they are most active

 

[Huntmaster]

Yesterday afternoon when I was cleaning up around yard and pens, I could smell and noticed some skunk digs in the yard looking for grubs So I put out a few of my live traps baited around pens and today had to remove a possum. It had gotten colder last night and snowed so was able to also see where he came from (under neighbor's barn) skunks must have laid low in dens last night. Need a few more of those warmer nights to thin out more egg thieves. Never ending here as neighbors have many older outbuildings/sheds on his farm plus large brush piles that have been there and added to for years. Along with me pilling tree trunks and trimmings around pens/pines for years along one side for wind break. They have plenty of places to hole up and procreate.

 

[Huntmaster]

Used to be a pain using the live traps as my neighbors also have many feral cats. Always catching and releasing them, until I started baiting traps with eggs. No more cats since eggs only skunks, possums, coons doesn't attract them but they can't walk away from the sight of that juicy egg.

 

[R2elk]

Used to be a pain using the live traps as my neighbors also have many feral cats. Always catching and releasing them, until I started baiting traps with eggs. No more cats since eggs only skunks, possums, coons doesn't attract them but they can't walk away from the sight of that juicy egg.

I only bait with eggs. The skunks that pass by the eggs are fine. They are better mousers than cats are. I have had coons, skunks and cats eat the eggs while they were in the traps.

 

[Huntmaster]

Using my duck eggs right now tried a few quail eggs last fall but didn't get as much action on that trap don't believe they are as visible/noticeable as that big white duck/ chicken/turkey eggs. Spring and fall I aways have the live traps out 24/7s I slack off hot mid-summer and not at all in winter.

 

[kfelton0002]

Yesterday afternoon when I was cleaning up around yard and pens, I could smell and noticed some skunk digs in the yard looking for grubs So I put out a few of my live traps baited around pens and today had to remove a possum. It had gotten colder last night and snowed so was able to also see where he came from (under neighbor's barn) skunks must have laid low in dens last night. Need a few more of those warmer nights to thin out more egg thieves. Never ending here as neighbors have many older outbuildings/sheds on his farm plus large brush piles that have been there and added to for years. Along with me pilling tree trunks and trimmings around pens/pines for years along one side for wind break. They have plenty of places to hole up and procreate.

Oh no! I hope you catch the egg thieves!! The only egg thieves I have are my own egg-sucking dogs. They keep predators at bay but they take their tax. They sniff out the eggs, and the hens can't hide them from them. I only have one hen in their lot right now because of the egg suckers. The other day I got to an egg before the dogs did and put it in the feed bucket on top of an old holding pen that's about 4 feet off the ground. The old Pyrenees, Waylon saw where I put it. Unwilling to accept defeat, he climbed up on a cinderblock beside the pen, nosed the feed bucket over, and claimed his ill gotten gain.