Beltsville White vs. MIdget White for meat birds

[Just Fluff]

I am interested in purchasing the smaller turkeys to fill a niche for meat in my area and am curious as to what exactly is the difference between the Beltsville Whites and the Midget Whites. Sometimes they seem to be basically the same thing, other places I get the impression they are quite different.

I am interested in learning the difference between the two, temperament, foraging abilities, how long on average does it take to grow them out to finish and any health issues that one should be aware of. I would like to purchase enough to sell off most of them for the freezer, but keep some of the best ones for future breeding and raising. As I live in a high mountain desert type climate where days in the summer can be hot at times, but evenings and nights are cool, and the vegetation is mostly pasture, I would also like to know which of the two breeds would do better here.

Also, where is the best places to obtain either one? I live in western Colorado, so any breeders that are closer would be preferred.

 

[pineapple416]

The Midget White is similar to the Betsville small white.

The Mdget White is a fairly new breed, bred to be a smaller bird for backyard production. An old Tom of this breed would weigh about 20 pounds, and an old hen would weigh about 12. The Midget White is the smallest variety of turkey.

The Betsville small white was created to be a small, white feathered turkey for home and small scale production that would provide a turkey for market year round. This breed was very popular in the 1950s, but lost its popularity as commercial broad breasted turkeys took over and almost went extinct, though today it is kept in flocks in the U.S. and Canada. It is slightly larger than the Midget white, old toms being 23 pounds and old hens 13.

Both breeds are somewhat rare and uncommon, but are great small scale farm turkey breeds. It's up to you which breed you think is the right one, Good luck deciding!

 

[Just Fluff]

I am thinking the best way for me to learn which would suit me better is to get a half dozen or so of each breed and raise them to butcher. That might be the easiest way!

So I'll be looking for breeders for both. Any suggestions?