Good breed for first timer?

[Quacking]

My sister has asked if I can hatch and raise some turkeys for her, and hand them over when they are ready to leave the brooder. Neither of us know much about them, so I thought asking here about a good breed to find hatching eggs for. They would be raised for eating birds, what can any of you recommend?

 

[KBlue]

The standard bird for eating is known as the "broad-breasted white". They grow big and relatively fast. They do eat a lot though, so be prepared for that. There is also a "broad-breasted bronze" turkey, which is also designed for meat production but because of the darker feathers, they will not dress out as nicely as the whites.

 

[ColbyNTX]

Any of the heritage breeds will be a good choice for a first timer. The narragansette, standard bronze, burbon red, midget white, beltsville small white ect. The Palm colors do not have as much breast as the others and are smaller. You will not find eggs for the broad breasted types because they are bred by AI. The heritage birds take longer to raise but the flavor is worth the wait.

 

[Quacking]

Thank you both for your input. I am not very comfortable yet with the idea of raising birds specifically for eating yet, but since my sister is trying to increase the level of her families self sufficiency I am happy to at least help her on her way with information even if I do not go through with helping her source young birds to start with.

 

[Smiles-N-Sunshine]

Midget Whites have been a great first (and only?) breed for us. They have mellow temperments, and are small enough for me to wrangle by myself, which is a great advantage. Pretty sure an angry, full-sized turkey could whoop my behind!

 

[Lagerdogger]

Luckily, full-sized angry turkeys are relatively rare. Most of them are very friendly, which doesn't make them easier to butcher

 

[aussieheelr]

We have burbon reds (and 1 royal palm hen) really like them both. If you're looking for self sufficientcy then the heritage breeds are the way to go since they breed by themselves (no AI needed). That way you can have generations each year instead of buying poults every year (since this is the point

)
Anyway ours are docile, even the tom... now that we have just the 1 tom. More than one tom was a bit hairy at times.

 

[A.T. Hagan]

Quote:
I agree with Colby though for a first timer I suggest going with the Midget White or Beltsville White as they are smaller at maturity and thus less intimidating.

Unless your sister is absolutely certain they really will butcher the birds when the time comes I would not start with either of the Broad Breasted varieties. They become enormous at full maturity which leads to skeletal and cardiac problems that often seriously shorten their lives. They really are not meant to live long, but they do make a lot of meat. Quite a few of the folks I sell birds to find they can't bring themselves to do the deed when they come to know their birds personally.