Are hatchery Naked Necks Turkens?

[luvmychicknkids]

I guess that sounds like a strange question, but I am a little confused by them. I bought two Naked Necks from Ideal and they have very little in common. They are both big and have naked necks. That's about it. One looks like a black sex link hen and one looks like a RIR more than just about anything. They have different eye color, different leg color.....so anyway, I am just wondering if these are the REAL Turken breed chickens or something else......like how hatcheries sell EE's and call them Amerucanas.

I absolutely love my two little bald necked darlings, though. They are perfect IMO, I was just wondering.

 

[Kev]

Some of the hatcheries mention they deliberately 'mix the flocks for a variety of color'.

Your girl at top seems to be about the most common color of hatchery stock, basically either a buff or reddish with black tail. Black ones aren't too rare, most of them do leak color somewhere on them like your other girl.

Also another thing, the hatcheries(and to be fair, a lot of private breeders too) don't seem to select for birds pure for the naked neck gene. Your girl in first pic is pure for it, the second one is not. It can be seen by the bowtie size difference.. birds pure for the naked neck gene can either have a very small bowtie or a totally bare neck.. although totally bare necks(no bowtie at all right from hatch) seem to be uncommon.

Now, it's pretty often said that only the ones totally bare necked are the only ones pure for the naked neck gene but this is not true. For example, if you bred the first girl with say, a RIR, 100% of the offspring will have naked necks.. but the bowtie will be bigger. The second girl, on the other hand, will throw 50% naked necked and 50% not if bred with the same RIR rooster(or any other not naked necked rooster).

There is a show standard for Naked Necks. It is possible to breed for birds matching the standard, if one gets lucky with getting birds of an accepted color.. just select birds with yellow legs(standard calls for yellow legs). I can't remember if the standard allows for black tailed reds, but if it does and that girl has yellow legs, well she matches the standard.. (most hatchery stock have green or blue legs though. Green is halfway there- it's a combination of yellow skin plus leg pigmentation.. get rid of the latter and presto, you have yellow legs)

Now that's been all said.. a lot of hatchery stock turkens are actually nice birds, with personality and/or being productive layers and roosters can be rather heavy/meaty. Your girls are very pretty IMO!

 

[wohneli]

I believe that Naked Necks are supposed to have less breast and rump feathers in addition to the "naked neck". The Turken in the first pic seems to have a full set of breast feathers so it may have less than the pure "Turken" genetics.
Either way they are really cute.

 

[luvmychicknkids]

Very interesting. Thanks for all the info.

Well, the first pic (Margaret) has yellow legs, and her breast is almost completely bare, her shoulders are pretty bare too. she also has thin/sparce feathers all over her body. Beatrice (the second one) has black legs and thick, full feathers everywhere but her neck, and, as you could see, that HUGE bowtie.

I am not looking to ever get a show quality one, and know I wouldn't from a hatchery anyway, but it is nice to know what you have and don't have.

I think they are pretty wonderful ladies. I will probably hatch some of their babies next year and see what they look like.