A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[memphis]

JJ's behavior is interesting. R2elk....what's your take on this.

Daisy will insert herself between me & any bird I'm paying attention too. But thats her being jealous. What JJ is doing is diverting the renagrade toms. Man I love turkeys!

What tom are you matching up with Snitch? How is she progressing? Is she still hanging out loose with you?

 

[duluthralphie]

JJ's behavior is interesting. R2elk....what's your take on this.

Daisy will insert herself between me & any bird I'm paying attention too. But thats her being jealous. What JJ is doing is diverting the renagrade toms. Man I love turkeys!

What tom are you matching up with Snitch? How is she progressing? Is she still hanging out loose with you?

I have not let her loose in several days. She is not progressing as fast as I want. I will be pairing her to a self blue, So maybe Sidekick. She is a blue and I want blues and self blues but no blacks from her. I am going to put her egg in the incubator, but I have no hope of it hatching. The others I have found might but the poults could be anything..

 

[R2elk]

I did not even notice that until Holm pointed it out. I have some many hens "walking the street looking for a man" it is disgusting. I am so far from ready for it this year. I thought I would be ready this year, but alas I am not...




Memphis after seeing the video as short and poor as it is, how else can you interpret JJ actions? I am hoping r2elk weighs in on this as he is by far the most experienced of any of us...


To me it seems to be the same actions I see Sidekick take when Toms come to close to JJ. I must be the head Tom, which also explains all the hens dropping to the ground around me....I am thinking I might bring a Tom into the pole barn to visit Snitch.

That is your answer right there. You are the head tom, JJ is up next and is followed by Sidekick.

The reason the palms are looking to make a challenge is because they are the low dogs on the totem pole and know better than to challenge the other toms. If they can put you in your place then they get to make a monster jump in the pecking order. Instead of chasing them away, catch one of them and perform a forced lapsitting with it for as long as it takes to get it to stop struggling to get away.

I recently captured one of my young toms to put a legband on him. He was so upset that I manhandled him that he was very depressed and moped around for several days. His attitude now is that he will not come within arms distance of me.

Horses have pecking orders also and it is always the bottom horse that goes after dogs and other smaller animals. The dominant ones can't be bothered to go after other animals when they already have their subservients to pick on.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

Ralph-JJ is awesome I love how he protects you.

I think that's the same issue I'm having here with Adam and Romeo. Romeo KNOWS I'm the boss and respects that but is also lower than Adam. Adam hates that I'm in charge and feels that it's his right to be. Lately, I can't even walk in to the turkey run without my stick to keep Adam at a respectable distance. Even in the evening when they're all on the roost and I go in, Adam stands up into a full strut and starts yelling profanities at me. When I do have to pin him, Romeo is quick to try to jump him but always respects me, even runs to me for protection when he's getting chased.

Tomorrow is lockdown for my first set of turkey eggs. I haven't candled since week one but all looked good then. Hopefully all 6 hatch!

 

[JRNash]

came home for the weekend and the birds met me at the driveway. Rolling to the nightshift Monday for a month of 7-12s. Been living inva motel for the last 4 months. I MISS MY BIRDS

 

[Molpet]

came home for the weekend and the birds met me at the driveway. Rolling to the nightshift Monday for a month of 7-12s. Been living inva motel for the last 4 months. I MISS MY BIRDS

looks like they missed you too!
your job better pay well for all that time away and the hrs

 

[stephcraig78]

Hey all just catching up on everything again. Our birds have been doing good. Still 1 or 2 turkey eggs every day plus the chickens are starting to pick up again. After two rounds of permethrin dusting it looks like the lice are gone. No sign of live bugs or eggs. Very happy about that. I am very seriously thinking about either separating or doing away with our rooster. He has calmed down a lot towards my kids and has even let me hold him and pet him a few times. But now it's his treatment of the hens I'm concerned with. I know they can be over aggressive during mating attempts and it's completely natural and normal to pull some feathers from hens neck. But it's a bit more than that. I found blood splatter all over in their pen yesterday. I immediately became checking everyone for injuries. FINALLY i noticed our BSL hen had a big chunk missing from the back part of her comb. It looks like "Elvis" the roo pecked her and actually bit out a piece of comb and now it flaps loosely and is separated from her head in the back. Here's a pic. I smeared some triple antibiotic cream on it but wonder if I should do anything else. She seemed fine, wasn't bleeding anymore and she didn't seem in pain from it. Is this common? Or is he being a jerk rooster?

 

[JRNash]

It does Molpet. I'm already making plans for MORE birds

 

[duluthralphie]

JR..

I had to read up on Crazy Ants. I had never heard of them... I am so glad I live in the frozen waste land that would kill them.

 

[OneMountainAcres]

The only reason that I know about crazy ants is from the movie Ant man lol

I just locked down the first set of turkey eggs. Out of 6,all 6 developed. One looks like a possible late quitter but still. Of the 17 total that have been set so far, only 1 has failed to develope. I'm starting off good this year. Last year, I was always a day late for lockdown and there was almost always a poult in the bottom of the incubator, waiting to be rescued. I'm on time this time but 3 are already internally pipped. They're going to keep me on my toes this year, I know it!