A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[memphis]

R2elk....that hen with the poultry is so sweet! I just love pictures of momas with babies. And the SS are just the cutest little chipmunks! Thanks! I needed some baby pics.

And your right. As gorgeous as the Tom's are...it's just so easy for me with just my spoiled hens. Maybe some day....

 

[gevshiba]

Word to the wise, DO NOT APPROACH a Turkey hen on the nest if you do not have too. Turkey wrassling will start soon thereafter.

Hmm, I guess I got really lucky. 3 hens with babies and they are all fine with me. I've had to catch babies that have escaped and untangle some from the mesh that's supposed to be containing them. The hens jump around and run over to us, but they wait until I rescue the little buggers. 2 hens on nests, one is fine with me checking under her and the other hisses but nothing more. Her mother was the wicked mean hen that I sold. My chickens are worse than the turkeys.

 

[holm25]

Tbh I like my tom more than my hen. The hens are nice but they arent as social as my toms have been. But Mr. T has been my baby for two years and I am attached to him. Thats why he cant go to just any home. I know Ralph would love him just as much as I do!




@R2elk why wouldnt she want Mr. T?

 

[R2elk]

@R2elk why wouldn't she want Mr. T?

Just go back through your posts that you made when you were mad at him and you should be able to figure it out. Just off of the top of my head, I recall a post you made about him injuring your hen and another about him trying to kill your rooster.

 

[duluthralphie]

Tbh I like my tom more than my hen. The hens are nice but they arent as social as my toms have been. But Mr. T has been my baby for two years and I am attached to him. Thats why he cant go to just any home. I know Ralph would love him just as much as I do!




@R2elk why wouldnt she want Mr. T?

Just go back through your posts that you made when you were mad at him and you should be able to figure it out. Just off of the top of my head, I recall a post you made about him injuring your hen and another about him trying to kill your rooster.

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2 points for R2elks side.......

Holm, Do you know what I have to do to get Mr T? We will need to get a blood sample while he is still at your place, I will need the report back from Willmar saying he is MG free, then I can bring him here. That will be 7-10 days after the sample is mailed.

Once I get him here he needs 30 days of quarantine then another blood sample. If that is clear I can bring him in. It is not big deal I just want you to know I cannot just pick him up. The State is kind of fussy on that. But I could test your birds you want to show at the same time. The ones you got from me, if you want to show them, I can just issue a statement of Origin.

I think it would have to be my Wife's day off when I come up there. Just last night I heard how I gave away her favorite chicken without her getting to even say good bye. Who knew she liked Lucky?

 

[memphis]

R2elk is right...ya'll have me leary about upsetting the hen pen down here with a tom.

So today is Daisy's big day. Spent two hours bathing & drying her so she can spent 10 minutes at the birthday party.

Sounds like a lot of work for Ralphie to get Mr. T, but I'm SO curious about the outcome. Mr. T is gorgeous. Can't imagine what he could produce with some of those blue hens.

So Ralph...can you accept birds from other parts of the country if that breeder has done the testing? If you ordered poults, let's say from Porters, do you still have to test them? And hatching eggs, can you only accept eggs from tested sources? Just curious how all that works.

I just had the dogs all out in the back. Funny....my chickens are up and at their pen gate whining at me to let them out. The turkeys are still in bed. Bums....

 

[OneMountainAcres]

I have a story to tell you guys since you all love speckled sussex.

You know, a while back, I was hatching a ton of eggs? Well, one of the types I was hatching was from my rhodebars because the babies would be sex linked (black ameraucana daddy). Well, I had a very odd shaped egg that I had thought was from one of my younger hens coming into lay. It hatched and as this chick grew, I had no clue where it got its coloring. It was almost spotted, kinda calico. Since it didn't have a beard, I was thinking maybe it was some kind of product from one of my silver penciled girls and the cream legbar roo instead of the rhodebar ameraucana cross that I expected. Anyway. Someone bought this chick because they loved her coloring and I even told them that I really had no clue what she was or where her colors came from. A week ago, I saw my old speckled sussex hen (she should be about 6 now) laying outside the coop panting a bit and that strange, odd shaped egg laying behind her! I was convinced that she was done laying! I didn't get an egg from her at all last year when she moved in with us and suddenly this spring, she's laying. Very sporadically of course. Though, last night, she was sleeping in a nest box. Maybe she's going broody? I just thought it was a sort of funny story. Now I really wish I could find the lady again to tell her that I solved the mystery lol.

 

[duluthralphie]

R2elk is right...ya'll have me leary about upsetting the hen pen down here with a tom.

So today is Daisy's big day. Spent two hours bathing & drying her so she can spent 10 minutes at the birthday party.

Sounds like a lot of work for Ralphie to get Mr. T, but I'm SO curious about the outcome. Mr. T is gorgeous. Can't imagine what he could produce with some of those blue hens.

So Ralph...can you accept birds from other parts of the country if that breeder has done the testing? If you ordered poults, let's say from Porters, do you still have to test them? And hatching eggs, can you only accept eggs from tested sources? Just curious how all that works.

I just had the dogs all out in the back. Funny....my chickens are up and at their pen gate whining at me to let them out. The turkeys are still in bed. Bums....

Porter's is a NPIP hatchery, I can get birds from him, and I have eggs coming from him. I just need a 9-3 form and an import permit. I cannot import a bird that is not from a NPIP source. Actually, no one can.

I can buy a bird from someone within the state, but I have to test it prior to my purchasing it. If the results are clean, I can then bring it to my place, but it needs to be quarantined for 30 days and retested before I can add it to my flock. The problem is turkeys, They need to have a blood sample sent into the Poultry Board Lab, here that is in Willmar, Minnesota.

Chickens and Guineas I can do the rapid whole blood test. I do the test and get the results in 2 minutes. The only eggs I can bring in are from a NPIP source. There is no way to bring in eggs from a non-NPIP source.

It is kind of drastic, but I guess it is a good thing. There has not been a case of PT in chickens in Minnesota since 1993 and there has not been a case of MG in turkeys since 2005. Of course, that is assuming all testers are honest. The USDA vet and I were talking about that during my testing. She has seen two Positives on the Rapid Whole Blood test in the last 3 years. The one she got on my hen "typhoid Mary" and one other.

Both birds tested clear on a full blood test in the lab. She says with as few birds as she tests to get 2 false positives it is hard to believe no one else gets them. The lab claims no one else sends in blood for further testing. Her concern are:

"Are others getting positives and just not reporting them?"

Are they just skipping the reporting and culling the bird?

Are they just not testing but reporting they did?

It is kind of an "honors system". I am looking forward to doing Holm's birds, not that I want to have him have a positive, but am curious if there are other false positives. I think some people are just afraid of the state over reacting and culling their birds.

That is not what happens. When a positive is found you have to call the lab, They will quarantine the flock for a few days, test the blood and when it is clear release the quarantine. I am curious when I test Typhoid Mary this fall will she test positive again? The vets did not know. I might test her a week before the rest, just incase so I can run a blood sample to Willmar if need be.


I hope I got the answers to your questions.

 

[feedman77]

I went one night and didn't catch any predators. Last night caught a coon again.

Glad I got all my birds locked up.

I looked at npip but decided it would take my enjoyment of bird sales and auctions out.

I get get some birds from a couple that is npip. But it's like a bio security fortress there.

No visitors to the pens. So you can't see the parent of poults.

They have a room where they have only specific clothes and shoes they change into to feed and go into the pens.

They took it to a whole new level.

I like to free range my birds. I have had wild turkeys in the yard with them.

And about 1/4 of a mile across the field I have a 20 acre lake. It will hold up to 30000 ducks and geese over the winter.

I'm not sure how the wildlife visiting would play into that npip stuff.

So I guess I will just sell my birds in state.

Aurora: glad you solved the mystery.

Memphis: hope Daisy has a good time at the party. She at least deserves a small piece of cake.

 

[holm25]

\
2 points for R2elks side.......

Holm, Do you know what I have to do to get Mr T?     We will need to get a blood sample while he is still at your place, I will need the report back from Willmar saying he is MG free, then I can bring him here. That will be 7-10 days after the sample is mailed. 

Once I get him here he needs 30 days of quarantine then another blood sample. If that is clear I can bring him in.    It is not big deal I just want you to know I cannot just pick him up.  The State is kind of fussy on that. But I could test your birds you want to show at the same time. The ones you got from me, if you want to show them, I can just issue a statement of Origin. 

I think it would have to be my Wife's day off when I come up there. Just last night I heard how I gave away her favorite chicken without her getting to even say good bye.  Who knew she liked Lucky?

Yep I know. It will take awhile but if u think its worth it. If not thats fine.

Judy wants to come see him? Thats fine lol. I'm sure he misses her!