Beltsville Small White Turkey

[Tortrefarm]

I live near West Chester, PA and also am looking for Beltsville white. I, too, don't need 15 (current minimum) turkeys from McMurray but maybe we can split an order later this spring? I just lost my fabulous, eleven year old, blind (cataracts) Tom who was a white mini. One of the best pets ever.

 

[1MrsMagoo]

If you have birds from McMurray or any other hatchery you likely have Midget Whites.

Murray McMurray does NOT have authentic Beltsville. They falsely mislabel what they have which are Midget Whites NOT Beltsville. There are no commercial scale hatcheries with access to authentic Beltsvilles at this time. They are very rare and only exist in private hands.

There are only a few who offer them on the market right now. There are actually three lines or strains of Beltsvilles left. Brian Tibbot (former USDA) calls them Ames, Albertsen, and Ontario. Jerry Poole and others like S and S poultry have mainly the Albertsen strain and mainly stick to the Standard. Pam Hogan was the caretaker of the Ames line up until 2011 and she was very passionate about preserving the Beltsville’s original capacity as a meat production bird in addition to the Standard of Perfection. The third line is in Canada and only used as laboratory birds. I have been told by a breeder there that the line has drifted from the original bird and breeders are trying to build that line back up. Canada also has more access to the Ames line than in the U.S. Most of what you will find access to in the U.S. right now is the Albertsen line. Since Pam Hogan stopped working with the Beltsville the Ames line isn't widely available.

I love the Beltsville too. I have a pair from the Albertsen line (Jerry Poole) and 13 of the Ames line (Pam Hogan). My Ames birds are like medicine balls with leggs. Small, broad, heavier than they look but can still fly up to roost, go figure. Great gentle non-agressive keepers too. Oh, they also outlay my chickens! Can't beat em.

My birds are from Jerry Poole and S and S (who said they were dispersing their flock last year when I tried to purchase more eggs): I just love them even though they are mischievous little boogers.

I would LOVE to get some eggs from you to include some of the Ames line. Would you be willing to sell 12 to 18 eggs when you have some to spare? Getting actual Beltsvilles is terribly hard to do.

 

[ruralmom]

I have six Beltsville. I am positive they are up to standard and pure. They came from Duane Urch line out of Owatonna, MN. I started with two pairs, had three clutches last summer, hen was a great brooder but not the best mom. Young! and ended up hatching out 27, with 23 to adulthood. I too love these birds. Very friendly, so far very hardy to the extreme weather we have been having in Colorado. I originally got them from bug and snake control and didn't see a snake one last summer and not sure if it was the drought or they did their jobs. Great birds.

 

[4cats3kids1hubby2many]

I "acquired" some Beltsvilles as poults. A friend had some but had to down size her birds as she had been hurt. I now have 2 toms and 3 hens. I have 1 extra tom that any normal farmer would have chopped off his head...but my daughter and husband became too attached to him. The only reason we know it is a tom is because his beard started to grow. He is 99% blind. He is a spoiled brat and is obviously not breeding. He is just a pet. Even in the cold we are having my young hens started to lay, so I too all eggs and I have been putting them in the incubator and I have roughly 12 eggs at various stages. A few are going into the hatcher here in the next few days. Had I left the eggs with the hens they would have frozen inthe first 24 hours. I am in WA state up by the Canadian border. I told husband daughter not to get so attached to the babies as they would be sold and possibly a few put in the freezer.

These turkeys are absolutely hilarious to watch. If we let them out of the pen, one hen runs to our back door looking for my husband. Last fall, when it was still warm, the back door had been left open a couple times....guess who helped themselves and came on in. We go outside and they follow us like dogs. These are just the funnest birds.

 

[dragonfly130]

Just hatched eggs from Jerry Poole and am very pleased. He packs egg's better than I've ever seen and ended up with 15 poults from 24 egg's. Pretty good percentage on shipped egg's.

 

[4cats3kids1hubby2many]

Just hatched eggs from Jerry Poole and am very pleased. He packs egg's better than I've ever seen and ended up with 15 poults from 24 egg's. Pretty good percentage on shipped egg's.

I would like to bring some fresh stock into my lineage. How do I contact Jerry?

 

[dragonfly130]

Sorry didn't see the reply.
I found him on ebay
http://www.ebay.com/itm/12-BELTSVIL...096?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item35c4fee630

 

[poult boy]

I am not advacating any hatchery, but I have had excellent service for years from McMurray.
Could you please explain where you get the information that McMurray Hatchery doesn't sell Beltsville Turkey eggs, but instead sell Midget White eggs? I keep Midget Whites and I have just hatched poults from Beltsville eggs I purchased from McMurray.
I have just got off the phone with McMurray and was assured repeatedly that I have Beltsville poults. I can see already that these hatchlings are slightly different then my Midget White hatchlings. Bottom line, I will know soon for a fact which is true. I will post the results of these new birds as they mature, regardless of the result. Would you like to make any comment about your post before I post the results of my Beltsville experience with McMurray?

 

[rsohio]

I have one beltsville white tom from Jerry Poole. He was hatched in March. If interested please let me know. Located in Northeast Ohio.

 

[rsohio]

I have one beltsville white tom from Jerry Poole. He was hatched in March. If interested please let me know. Located in Northeast Ohio.