12 Red Bourbon turkey hatchlings!!

[chickenannie]

2 of my free-range turkey hens have hatched some chicks this week!! They're all so cute! One hatched 4 eggs only, but the other hatched 8 out of 12 eggs sitting in a wheelbarrow on my porch all month. All the babies are doing great, eating and drinking...

I put both tiny families out in a pen made out of an old trampoline (idea from BYC forum). It worked well until one henmom started beating on the other henmom and stealing her chicks (I mean who needs 12 chicks!). So today I put 4 bales of hay down the middle to separate the pen in half and things have calmed down. The tom is just hanging around the outside of the pen displaying all day. He's been really lonely without his girls!

Just wanted to share the good news. I'm interested to see if their mortality rate will be much less than hatchery chicks raised without momma. I'm thinking yup, but it will be a good test. Plus, momma does all the heating etc., so I don't have to do all that extra work!

One more observation -- I noticed the turkey mommas know who their chicks are, but the chicks tended to dive under whichever momma was nearest. Does anyone know if mothers and chicks bond and know who is who?

 

[ironrat]

A broody turkey in a wheelbarrow on your porch...
You have out-hillbillied me completely.

Congrats on your broods.

 

[chickenannie]

I know, these chickens and turkeys are taking me down hillbilly lane right quick. The trampoline-turkey pen doesn't hurt either.

 

[wynedot55]

congrats on the poults.ny broody blue slate brooded her eggs under the shrubbs in front of the house.an as soon as she hatched.we moved her an the babies to the coop.she hatched 12 out of 15 eggs.an ive got 10 lil poults left.waiting to see how meny she raises to 6wks old.

 

[chickenannie]

wynedot, what are you planning to do with your hatchlings and poults?

 

[wynedot55]

its funny that you should ask that.i lost 2 grown toms an 2 grown hens about 3 days before they hatched.only had the sitting hen left.was talking bout order 10 poults when momma came out with 12 poults in tow.planning on using what lives to replace the turkeys i lost.sorry i got so long winded.

 

[chickenannie]

sorry to hear you lost 4 turkeys. how did that happen all at the same time? Glad you got the 12 poults in tow though. Not long winded at all (especially not compared to me!).

 

[chickenannie]

Hey, when my turkey hen hatched 8 chicks and then left the nest, I took the last 3 unhatched eggs and put them under another broody hen who's eggs went bad recently. That was just a few days ago and today I heard something peeping under her wing! they must have hatched! Even though they sat out for a day with no broody setting on them. Hooray. Hopefully she'll let me peek tommorrow and see how many there are.

 

[chickenannie]

Hey, four hatches yesterday! Four new little red bourbon chicks. Problem is it was a 2 hen nest, so now they have 2 mommas. Extra warmth, but I will watch them with caution -- not sure if they are going to fight over them or not. Anyone know?

So far, so good. The mommas are sharing chick-warming duties peacefully.

 

[wynedot55]

our farm covers 400acs.an theres alot of pasture accross the road as well.so we think they ranged to far an got lost.an then they couldnt get back by nite.or some person ened up catching them.an putting them in their freezer.