A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Most heritage varieties are the same under the feathers except the midget whites which are smaller. So a sweetgrass is not as meaty as a broad breasted, as I don't eat meat I can't say how they taste, I know they take 7-9 month to be big enough, I know a lot about turkeys, but taste isn't one of them, sorry, I did say they were pretty.

 

[duluthralphie]

Most heritage varieties are the same under the feathers except the midget whites which are smaller. So a sweetgrass is not as meaty as a broad breasted, as I don't eat meat I can't say how they taste, I know they take 7-9 month to be big enough, I know a lot about turkeys, but taste isn't one of them, sorry, I did say they were pretty.

So you raise turkeys like I raise Zucchini. I can't say what it tastes like cause I don't eat it.


I must do things wrong, I find my heritage turkeys take over a year to be large enough to eat.

 

[SilkieSensation]

My boys take a full 2 yrs to reach max weight, but I have butchered young toms the fall after hat h before just because I didn't want to winter them over & didn't manage to get any broad breasted that year. They were very flavorful but only about 8-10 pound carcasses. That was enough for me & 2 kids for Thanksgiving dinner but not enough for a bigger family. You would need 2-3 birds that size to equal a 20-25 pound adult tom carcass or broad breasted carcass.

 

[duluthralphie]

My boys take a full 2 yrs to reach max weight, but I have butchered young toms the fall after hat h before just because I didn't want to winter them over & didn't manage to get any broad breasted that year. They were very flavorful but only about 8-10 pound carcasses. That was enough for me & 2 kids for Thanksgiving dinner but not enough for a bigger family. You would need 2-3 birds that size to equal a 20-25 pound adult tom carcass or broad breasted carcass.

I am going to "eat" my Daddy turkey (not JJ, his sidekick) this fall, he will be about a 1 1/2 when he is the guest of honor. I have a "queasy' feeling, like I am doing something wrong killing the turkey I have so many babies from, But I need to eat someone and JJ is not on the list ever.

One of his sons will have to be my Breeder next spring

 

[SilkieSensation]

My boys take a full 2 yrs to reach max weight, but I have butchered young toms the fall after hat h before just because I didn't want to winter them over

I am going to "eat" my Daddy turkey (not JJ, his sidekick) this fall, he will be about a 1 1/2 when he is the guest of honor. I have a "queasy' feeling, like I am doing something wrong killing the turkey I have so many babies from, But I need to eat someone and JJ is not on the list ever.

One of his sons will have to be my Breeder next spring

I try to winter over 2 toms each year. Anyone who doesn't sell before snow flies gets to go to freezer camp. I never butcher hens unless they are broad breasted. They get to stay as breeders or get sold for breeding. I cut my flock in half in June right before I moved, so I only have 4 adult turkeys left. I may keep a few extras this fall to rebuild. So far I only have a lavender that seems to be a hen & a bronze that is also likely a hen picked out for keepers. I need to keep at least another 2 pairs yet. That will give me an extra hen & an extra tom come spring. I try to keep 2 breeding quads for spring. And I never have trouble selling extra turkeys if I want to. Someone is always wanting turkeys.

 

[duluthralphie]

I wish it was like that around here. It is hard to get rid of extra turkeys.

Which is weird, because poults go for 8-9 bucks, but if I try to sell an adult turkey for 15 people complain.

 

[R2elk]

I wish it was like that around here. It is hard to get rid of extra turkeys.

Which is weird, because poults go for 8-9 bucks, but if I try to sell an adult turkey for 15 people complain.

The people that complain about $15 for an adult turkey aren't the people that you want to be selling to. Raise your prices up on the adults and you will find a different class of buyers. That class of buyers look at your low prices and think there is something wrong. They don't even bother checking on them. When I have trouble selling poultry, I just keep raising the prices until I get the right kind of people looking. When I get the price up to where it should be, they sell very quickly.

 

[duluthralphie]

where is that?

I really have no idea what price to charge. Turkeys are a hobby to me. I do not even think about breaking even.

 

[SilkieSensation]

I wish it was like that around here. It is hard to get rid of extra turkeys.

Which is weird, because poults go for 8-9 bucks, but if I try to sell an adult turkey for 15 people complain.

I charge $15 each at hatch for heritage poults. Prices go up $1 each week I keep them until they are pretty close to adult size. Adult toms go for $50 for unproven & $75-100 for a proven breeder. Adult hens sell for $40-75 each. I just sold a trio of proven blue slates for $200.

 

[duluthralphie]

I charge $15 each at hatch for heritage poults. Prices go up $1 each week I keep them until they are pretty close to adult size. Adult toms go for $50 for unproven & $75-100 for a proven breeder. Adult hens sell for $40-75 each. I just sold a trio of proven blue slates for $200.

I AM RICH!!!!



I HAVE TONS!