are toms really mean?

[Dust Bunny]

Quote:
oh i only have the 1 bbb she came outa the feed store, they don't sell heritage breeds, that's why i ordered from cackle because it's hard for me to watch her waddle around, she weighs 27lbs and i know being that heavy isn't good for her quality of life, i ordered 2 royal palms 2 Narragansets and 1 bourbon red plus 10 chicks i will be sending to freezer camp, i will need to brood them together and to be honest in not sure about protean, I'm told they need more but I'm not sure if they really just need more or if they "need" more to get up to weight to butcher and i wont be butchering my turks as they will be pets, do you know how much protean i need to promote good health and proper development? and did i hurt my bbb by raising her on chick starter?

 

[Cindiloohoo]

My tom is docile, but he is strictly a breeder, not a pet. We have raised him to be just a breeder, and he has a healthy respect for us. I think it makes a difference.

 

[Dust Bunny]

Quote:
we don't have many munchkins that visit but i will certainly keep the turks locked up when company comes over just as a precaution, so thanks for that heads up, but about the cuddling.......what about when they are babies? it will be nearly impossible to resist cuddling the babies! and i wont know boys from girls for some time, could i cuddle them until some point?

 

[fancbrd4me02]

My Tom is a very gentle boy. He is almost 5 years old and kind of a pet. I handled him a lot when he was younger, but he was with others of his kind and isn't overly friendly. he has never behaved agressively towards a person. However, this week my polish roo attacked one of my Tom's ladies (My renter witnessed the event), so he went Turkey crazy! He faught my Polish Roo! And the Roo faught him! I broke it up with no problem from my Tom. When I admonished my Tom, my renter said: Don't blame Godzilla! That rooster attacked his hen! So I can't blame my Tom at all, but for safety, I am rotating the chickens and turkeys to free range seperately.

I want to add that I called him godzilla because he goes around stomping at chickens like godzilla stomps on tokeyo. I really don't trust my turkeys with chickens.

 

[Struttn1]

My experience with toms who turned aggressive is that it is usually an older tom that will get aggressive after he hits 4 or 5 yrs old. I did have a Bourbon Red jake that got aggressive toward my young grandson a couple of years ago so I unloaded him on someone else.

I would not trust any turkey around a toddler.

 

[Dust Bunny]

Quote:
ya my mom told me stories about how my great grandmothers tom would "terrorize" her as a small child, i don't have or plan to have children so i only need to worry about guests and we don't get many, so it shouldn't be a big deal to put up the birds when company comes over.

 

[pdpatch]

It's turkey matting season, so the well behaved Tom will do some rather strange things at times, then settle down later.

I want to add that I called him godzilla because he goes around stomping at chickens like godzilla stomps on tokeyo. I really don't trust my turkeys with chickens.

It's because he wants to mate with the Chickens, the stomping is part of a Male turkeys mating dance. The problem with that is that he is so much larger he will injure the Chicken if he tries. The he may kill the injured chicken because it it then a treat to draw in predators.

I would not trust any turkey around a toddler.

You should never trust any animal around a toddler you never know for sure if the toddler will do something to set the animal off. Like our cats you can rub then around the neck all day, but never give the a tummy rub because you will get a bloody hand. You can tell an adult that and they understand but a toddler won't.

but about the cuddling.......what about when they are babies? it will be nearly impossible to resist cuddling the babies! and i wont know boys from girls for some time, could i cuddle them until some point?

Managing a really small flock is somewhat different then larger flocks, a really small flock can be said to be less then about 10. Yes you can cuddle some what, as that does help manage the flock latter they won't be nearly as spooked when you are around them. But many people have problems later when it come time to butcher, so you have to be the judge of how much and kind of interaction you have around your poultry.

Before you purchase any turkeys you kind of need to decide about there future, If they going to be a breeder, layer, pet and then adapt your behavior and interaction to that.
You must also get a handle on how you are going to react and act around the turkeys. Some times you can only to this by trial and error.

Tom​

 

[Dust Bunny]

Quote:
It's because he wants to mate with the Chickens, the stomping is part of a Male turkeys mating dance. The problem with that is that he is so much larger he will injure the Chicken if he tries. The he may kill the injured chicken because it it then a treat to draw in predators.

I would not trust any turkey around a toddler.

You should never trust any animal around a toddler you never know for sure if the toddler will do something to set the animal off. Like our cats you can rub then around the neck all day, but never give the a tummy rub because you will get a bloody hand. You can tell an adult that and they understand but a toddler won't.

but about the cuddling.......what about when they are babies? it will be nearly impossible to resist cuddling the babies! and i wont know boys from girls for some time, could i cuddle them until some point?

Managing a really small flock is somewhat different then larger flocks, a really small flock can be said to be less then about 10. Yes you can cuddle some what, as that does help manage the flock latter they won't be nearly as spooked when you are around them. But many people have problems later when it come time to butcher, so you have to be the judge of how much and kind of interaction you have around your poultry.

Before you purchase any turkeys you kind of need to decide about there future, If they going to be a breeder, layer, pet and then adapt your behavior and interaction to that.
You must also get a handle on how you are going to react and act around the turkeys. Some times you can only to this by trial and error.

Tom​

they will be pets/layers/redneck entertainment oh and protection from birds of prey​

 

[Struttn1]

My main concern about turkeys around small kids is an eyeball getting pecked because a turkey gets curious or mistakes the eye for something to eat.

 

[turkey guru]

not on this farm, we rasie turkeys 100/200 at a time !I watch to see whos , easy going at the feed plate,roosting at night who does not fight for a place, those are the birds I add to the flock. you guys kill me, turkeys are very agreseve(sp) thats their nature, you every watch wild turkeys ( I'am not talking pen raised wild turkeys )! they fight all the time! so folks lets not be foolish treat your tom ,,like your dog you don't know who they might bite, and for those who never have a problem, make sure your home owners is paid up!!! tom 1111