best and cheapiest place order turkeys

[BirchHatchery]

i am looking to get turkeys to have ready for thanksgiving dinner they be free ranged what breed would be best i would like a big plump juicy turkey i dont want a tough bird what breed would be best for me and what the cheapiest place yall have found to order them?

 

[Oregon Blues]

If you want the traditional huge breasted roast turkey. you will want to raise the Broad Breasted White,

You'd better reserve now if you want to buy them at just the right time to have fresh, never frozen turkeys for thanksgiving. There is huge demand during that week.

I don't know any place that is cheap, but all the big national hatcheries sell them.

If you want heritage turkeys, you'd better get them right now. They grow a lot slower.

 

[BirchHatchery]

will the heritage breed turkeys be moist and tender or will they be tough and chew like barred rock roosters are to cornish rock roosters?

 

[BirchHatchery]

???

 

[ladychicken&Ducklover]

will the heritage breed turkeys be moist and tender or will they be tough and chew like barred rock roosters are to cornish rock roosters?

Just a suggestion, but you might get better responses from the Meat Birds Etc. Forum..:/

 

[BirchHatchery]

i ended up buying 5 broad bronze breasted turkeys they told me they be ready to butcher in 20 week that would be august correct? i heard of puttin a fine layer of fat on them before you butcher them so should i feed strait corn the last week of life?

 

[BirchHatchery]

anyone

 

[poultrypalacewhidbey]

Better to mix the corn into their diet starting a month (or more) before slaughter and gradually increase the corn %. this is assuming you want a really fatty bird. broad breasted bronzes or whites generally put on a lot of fat even when on a complete ration without extra corn. Suddenly switching them from a normal feed ( meat bird grower or some other high protein complete feed) straight to 100% corn will wreak havoc on their digestive system. drastic feed changes should always be avoided unless you have no other choice. a bird that has severe diarrhea from a feed change that drastic is not going to be putting on weight or developing fat as it will not be able to get much nutrition out of the food as it is passed through the digestive tract too quickly. also while they may be "ready" at 20 weeks, meat turkeys can be held longer before they get tough. Just keep them penned in a reasonable sized pen where they are not overcrowded. If you let them free range then they will toughen quicker due to the increase in exercise (gain lean muscle instead) (also increased activity will decrease the amount of fat deposited , hence the reason commercial meat birds are kept in such insanely cramped conditions). the plus of holding them longer is they develop more flavor.

 

[BirchHatchery]

i went out and bought 50 poulds of 28 percent protien medicated turkey starter to get them going good i lost one to unkown reasons the 4 i have left are healthy when the 50 pounds is done i think i will just feed the 20 percent protien for the remander of their life and a lil corn i want a really tender bird not tough bird so i think i butcher at 20 weeks