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BlessedChaosHomestead
Songster
Last year we had 2 Naragannset turkeys. We sold them at around 3-4mos. But I was pretty sure they were male & female due to their actions, sizes, etc... I could have been wrong but there were differences in them.Attentive people who know what they are looking for can often identify the sex of their poults at a very early age. Some of the clues are physical and some are behavioral.
What I tell people is that sex ID from photos requires that the poults be at least 3 months old and even better if they are 6 months old. Identifying their sex from photos is not the same as watching them in person, especially if you have both sexes to compare against.each other, it is possible at much younger ages.
Ok so I do know what a gobble is. Grandparent's had a pet turkey for years. He'd gobble frequently.A brief tell is that at 2 months old the males will grow their wattle. The hens will follow soon and catch up so it is only a brief determiner.
Both toms and hens can and do strut.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-century-of-turkey-talk-2000-2100.966414/post-16580628
Fighting at a young age is often more about pecking order position than it is about sex. Both toms and hens will fight over their position and they will even fight each other.
I have read claims of hens gobbling but have never heard any of my hens gobbling. Last year was the first I ever heard one of my poults attempt to gobble at 2 months old. I have read of people claiming that much younger poults have gobbled for them. I am skeptical of those claims and wonder if they know what a gobble sounds like.
My turkeys last year never gobbled. But this white one distinctly gobbled just like 2wks ago, but it was like he scared himself because just as soon as he did it, he was running from himself to safety! ROFL Has not done it since either.
But I can get them to respond to my Primo turkey call. They will strut & chest bump each other. lol Hence why I tend to think that at least the bronze are males. But ehh if females do that too, idk. lol
I read the knobs on their head were able to tell. Seemed to work for me last year as the one with the taller knob always strutted & looked to be a male by the time we sold him. The smaller knob was the one we assumed was female.Toms and hens have different shaped heads right from the time they are hatched. I have correctly sexed my own poults when I take them out of the hatcher. I can't do this sexing them from photos.