A century of Turkey talk 2000-2100.

[memphis]

R2elk...what do guineas taste like? Chicken??

 

[feedman77]

my luck with guineas is bad. maybe I should consider it good luck. with the gang style tactics and meaness.

I have tried a few batches from day Olds to adults. the longest I've had any stay around is 4 days after I let them out of their pen.

So I'm leaving guineas to the experts. I'll keep my chickens and turkeys. less corruption that way from your all experiences.

ralphie: you dint have to bother your roos beauty sleep and get bit to check his spurs last night. daylight would have been fine. but thanks so I do owe you one.

 

[Hardemans]

Ralphie, I live 50 or so miles north of Houston. Not sure when breeding season starts around here. No laying hens yet. I have some 8 x 8 hoop coops and 10 x 10 kennels that I am thinking of converting into breeding pens.

Weather is not an issue here. At worst we will get a day or two of upper 20's and a few 30's. Rest of the time it is moderate.

We have 75+ chickens that free range with the turkeys. The chickens have better sense and go into their coops at night. The turkeys sleep where ever is is most uncomfortable.

 

[memphis]

Hardaman...being as Houston is hot & humid, even worse than Memphis...here is my best bit of advise for handling those hot summers...

Daisy has perfected her technique....

 

[feedman77]

My last blue slate.

a young palm tom. hatched last spring not going use him to breed.

they boys were displaying hard and gobbling at everything this morning.

maybe early spring?? I sure want some turkey eggs before end of march.

thinking about building a pen for a trio and adding some solar lighting to see if I could hurry some along.

 

[duluthralphie]

Ralphie, I live 50 or so miles north of Houston. Not sure when breeding season starts around here. No laying hens yet. I have some 8 x 8 hoop coops and 10 x 10 kennels that I am thinking of converting into breeding pens.

Weather is not an issue here. At worst we will get a day or two of upper 20's and a few 30's. Rest of the time it is moderate.

We have 75+ chickens that free range with the turkeys. The chickens have better sense and go into their coops at night. The turkeys sleep where ever is is most uncomfortable.

Thanks for that.

I apologize in advance for what I am going to say.

I do not think you should have turkeys, You said you have blackhead and predator loses. That is bad. Blackhead is terrible. When I got JJ and Ethel I had decided if they got blackhead they would be the last turkeys I would have. in addition to killing the birds, Blackhead makes them weak. A weak and sick turkey is like a flashing sandwich board advertising Turkey as the days special.

They will come in and the chickens will get picked off too,

The breeding pen idea is good, however, you would have to cover them, top and bottom. If the Toms can see each other they will fight through the fence instead of breeding. You have way too many Toms. Fill your freezer now.

If you do have any breeding it will be a gang bang on the poor hen. They will be raped over and over and die. ( I hope that description does not offend anyone) You might ask how I know this. It is simple I made these mistakes. I did not have a hen die, I stopped the rape and starting taking heads, literally.

You might be able to keep the turkeys if you limit the number of Toms, one or two only. Along with heavy worming often, I am not sure but I think it would break the cycle if there are no other poultry for miles around you.

Not a encouraging post I know, I am just trying to help you. I do not consider myself overly pessimistic I am just calling this as I see it.



I feel for you, I know how much I would miss my turkeys.

 

[duluthralphie]

Hardaman...being as Houston is hot & humid, even worse than Memphis...here is my best bit of advise for handling those hot summers...




Daisy has perfected her technique....

I know this may seem a long shot, but I think you might, maybe spoil your birds a bit...

 

[duluthralphie]

My last blue slate.


a young palm tom. hatched last spring not going use him to breed.

they boys were displaying hard and gobbling at everything this morning.

maybe early spring?? I sure want some turkey eggs before end of march.

thinking about building a pen for a trio and adding some solar lighting to see if I could hurry some along.

Are your birds close to the SOP? Are you NPIP? I would love to get some early eggs. The woman winning the shows up here last year drove to Texas to get eggs in January. Waiting for them to lay here will not give us big birds. The older the bird the better they do.

 

[R2elk]

R2elk...what do guineas taste like? Chicken??

Sort of but with lots of flavor. To me chicken breast tastes pretty bland but guinea breast is bursting with flavor. If you were to take a ringneck pheasant and butcher it like a chicken instead of filling it full of shot and carrying it around all day before processing it, you would find it to taste very similar to guineas.

 

[duluthralphie]

Sort of but with lots of flavor. To me chicken breast tastes pretty bland but guinea breast is bursting with flavor. If you were to take a ringneck pheasant and butcher it like a chicken instead of filling it full of shot and carrying it around all day before processing it, you would find it to taste very similar to guineas.

This is not good for my pen full of guineas!