A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[karenerwin]

View attachment 1199121 View attachment 1199122 View attachment 1199121 View attachment 1199121 View attachment 1199122 Thanks!! We think they are good looking birds. I am very happy the mystery bird turned out to be a tom. We have killed 3 coons so far this fall. I feel like the predators have figured out the Chickens and turkeys are there now and so almost every night there is something in the trees around their pens. Crazy. So to candle I just take eggs to dark room and shine a bright flashlight behind it. If I see veins or start of embryo I let her keep them. She seems to be very broody. Only coming off nest long enough to eat quickly and then she’s back on em.

I usually go out at night with a flashlight and just candle them in the dark coop. That way I can put them right back in the nest if they are looking good. I also mark the questionable ones and put them back too. Then I check them around day 17. I smell the questionable ones, plus candle them. Then I either leave them be or toss them out. I have had questionable ones hatch before! But if they are stinky, through them out! Good luck.

 

[DwayneNLiz]

As frustrating as they are... The brat pack is at least entertaining. They've decided the warmest place in the world is squished between two turkeys and the turkeys seem ok with it.

LOL, my littlest chickens squeeze in between my turkeys!

 

[karenerwin]

View attachment 1199520 View attachment 1199519 Oh my gosh!!! I just went out and tried candling for the first time ever. Absolutely incredible!! I saw several fertile eggs with veins starting. Some were more MOVING!! Others I saw their heartbeat thumping away. I am sooo excited!! What do I do gang!?!? Let her sit on them or no? I don’t have an incubator yet since we weren’t planning to try hatching till spring time. Put a heating pad under her bin? Please give me some advice. I’m searching through all the articles and forums now.

Let her sit on them. Don't put a heating pad under her bin!! The eggs do better with a "hardening off " time, which is what they are getting when she gets off to go eat & poop. She instinctively knows how and when to turn them and all of that. Let her be, and I'm sure she'll do fine! I have had several broodies hatch eggs for me. Only one was bad at it ( and she was bad both times she tried) she freaked out when the eggs actually hatched and rejected the chicks, but once they were fluffy and dried she accepted them. I don't let her brood any more. My other broody hens had no problems.

 

[karenerwin]

Well fortunately the silkie hen that is sitting on the eggs is the “wife” of the rooster. They stay in their own pen inside an old truck camper. She is the only one that has a nest box in there. No one else goes in there. I’m gonna do a very thorough candling in a day or two and mark all the eggs I can tell are for sure good. She sure seems to be doing great. Doesn’t leave them for more than an hour at very most. As I was checking them tonight she would use her beak to pull them back under her wings and belly. She will have privacy to hatch and raise them as well. Very excited about it all. Was worried about the temps dropping here in Missouri especially at night but they felt very warm when I pulled them out. Will be watching her more closely though. Thank you for the tips!!

I live in Jefferson County, Missouri about an hour and a half away from you. I have had hens brood eggs in the fall and winter and do just great. I was like you at first, I thought they would get too cold, but even with snow on the ground, they were fine.

 

[aliciaplus3]

Ok not sure where to post this beauty

it's an old chick brooder!

here is the underside

the side view

and a turkey and some chicks checking it out they are 4.5 weeks old

 

[sfgwife]

So.... this happened today. . We went for just the two rp... i didnt realize he had them separate from each other. He had the tom in one pen and the two hens in another much too small pen together.... to us at least. The rp hen is a tad smaller than the tom and sweetgrass hen cause she is a month younger. Thought maybe since the hens had been together they would stick together here and not have such a hard time with bein alone til the ladies we have here adjust and are ignorin them. So i asked could we get the sg lady too. And lil mister tom will do fine i think.... he already played the chest bumpsies with cletis and didnt get his ass kicked while we put the littles in the coop.

He did have some beautiful birds there even though he only has the minimum per bird space for each pen. . I guess we just dont understand that when he had plenty of room for them all to have much more space... . Made us realize that yes ours are spoiled lol! He had them all in separate pens in quads or quints. He gets his from porters he said. He had burbon reds, somethin grey i dont remember what he said but they werent blue slates, rp, bronzes.... in there he had two lovely golden bronzes (they looked like the one that was posted in here earlier this week and someone i think @R2elk said the golden... guy said that what he thought when i asked if that what they were).

Anyhoo....... everyone is all settled in nicely. Saw the littles all eat and drink. The ladies and cletis here are non to pleased right now. Everyone is all locked up in separate stalls of the calf barn coop for the night and quiet. We will see if tomorrow the place to be is peekin through all the slats like some voyers Lookin like a bunch of fluffed up balloons again

 

[Molpet]

View attachment 1200990 So.... this happened today. . We went for just the two rp... i didnt realize he had them separate from each other. He had the tom in one pen and the two hens in another much too small pen together.... to us at least. The rp hen is a tad smaller than the tom and sweetgrass hen cause she is a month younger. Thought maybe since the hens had been together they would stick together here and not have such a hard time with bein alone til the ladies we have here adjust and are ignorin them. So i asked could we get the sg lady too. And lil mister tom will do fine i think.... he already played the chest bumpsies with cletis and didnt get his ass kicked while we put the littles in the coop.

He did have some beautiful birds there even though he only has the minimum per bird space for each pen. . I guess we just dont understand that when he had plenty of room for them all to have much more space... . Made us realize that yes ours are spoiled lol! He had them all in separate pens in quads or quints. He gets his from porters he said. He had burbon reds, somethin grey i dont remember what he said but they werent blue slates, rp, bronzes.... in there he had two lovely golden bronzes (they looked like the one that was posted in here earlier this week and someone i think @R2elk said the golden... guy said that what he thought when i asked if that what they were).

Anyhoo....... everyone is all settled in nicely. Saw the littles all eat and drink. The ladies and cletis here are non to pleased right now. Everyone is all locked up in separate stalls of the calf barn coop for the night and quiet. We will see if tomorrow the place to be is peekin through all the slats like some voyers Lookin like a bunch of fluffed up balloons again

ohhh I like that SG

 

[sfgwife]

ohhh I like that SG

Thanks! She IS a pretty lil thing! And boy is she the talker haha. She talked when we stopped at the farmers market, then the grocery then here. She even talked when i had her in my arms carrin her into the coop. It kinda suprised me that she was very calm cause he didnt handle his birds. The other lil lady talked jus a tinny bit but she didnt want have anything to do with the carryin mess lol.

 

[memphis]

Cool old broader! Nice looking birds SFGWife.

 

[Molpet]

Thanks! She IS a pretty lil thing! And boy is she the talker haha. She talked when we stopped at the farmers market, then the grocery then here. She even talked when i had her in my arms carrin her into the coop. It kinda suprised me that she was very calm cause he didnt handle his birds. The other lil lady talked jus a tinny bit but she didnt want have anything to do with the carryin mess lol.

Ha mine don't like the carring either