Poults of 2023

[R2elk]

I ordered a turkey saddle on ebay so I can replicate it and make my own pattern from it. I only keep one tom in each area with hens but one of them got ripped up a little the other day. She is fine, but I'm going to make up some turkey saddles for some that lose feathers on their backs just in case.

Talk to @OneMountainAcres about making turkey saddles. She makes and sells them.

The other thing that gets hens injured is allowing toms to have access to the nest. They will take the hen sitting on a nest as an invitation to breed. The unwanted attempts often lead to broken eggs and injured or killed hens if the wound is severe enough.

 

[Kiki]

I was right! Woohoo!

You win!

 

[Kiki]

Do not allow multiple toms to be in with the hens. You are asking for a hen to get hurt.

Jath ^ You are in trouble.

 

[kfelton0002]

Talk to @OneMountainAcres about making turkey saddles. She makes and sells them.

The other thing that gets hens injured is allowing toms to have access to the nest. They will take the hen sitting on a nest as an invitation to breed. The unwanted attempts often lead to broken eggs and injured or killed hens if the wound is severe enough.

I have made several nests and given them plenty of little hiding places to lay but I guess where they are young some of them still lay right out in the open. The Tom that did it may have been too heavy for the hen also. That along with young toms that are still working out their technique maybe contributed. The hen that got injured is still laying and eating, but we have her away from the tom now in a pen by herself. It's a big roomy pen and she seems happy as a clam in there. It's only temporary until her saddle comes in and she is healed.

 

[R2elk]

I have made several nests and given them plenty of little hiding places to lay but I guess where they are young some of them still lay right out in the open. The Tom that did it may have been too heavy for the hen also. That along with young toms that are still working out their technique maybe contributed. The hen that got injured is still laying and eating, but we have her away from the tom now in a pen by herself. It's a big roomy pen and she seems happy as a clam in there. It's only temporary until her saddle comes in and she is healed.

It can help to trim the tom's toenails before breeding starts.

 

[kfelton0002]

Talk to @OneMountainAcres about making turkey saddles. She makes and sells them.

The other thing that gets hens injured is allowing toms to have access to the nest. They will take the hen sitting on a nest as an invitation to breed. The unwanted attempts often lead to broken eggs and injured or killed hens if the wound is severe enough.

I had forgotten that OneMountainAcres makes them at the time. It was an impulse buy but I am pretty handy with my sewing machine. All I needed was a pattern but could only find patterns for chickens. I could have measured and scaled the pattern up but I can take the saddle and sketch a pattern from it so I can make my own in the future. I made saddles for my tiny bantams before when I had them several years ago. Lol. They were feather pickers.

 

[kfelton0002]

It can help to trim the tom's toenails before breeding starts.

I can do that. I don't want anymore hens getting hurt.