Broody tom?

[mama24]

I bought a pair of year old blue slate turkeys 2 months ago from a friend. These were our first turkeys. Unfortunately, I was stupid and decided to let them out of their pen to forage like I do with the chickens. They did not go back to their pen at night, and instead roosted on very low things. Like lawn chairs. The hen disappeared. We have a lot of foxes, so I can only assume either a fox got her or she got lost in the woods and didn't come back. Anyway, when we realized she was missing, we got the tom back in the pen and he's stayed there ever since. It's been 2 weeks and the hen is just gone for good, I can only assume after all this time. Anyway, the question I have is is it normal for toms to go broody??? Some bantams can get into the turkey pen and they started laying in the turkey nest. About a week ago, the tom started sitting on the nest and he acts broody! He won't let anyone near him and he puffs up and bites if you try to check the nest for eggs. Is that normal?

What should I do? The bantam eggs he's sitting on probably aren't even fertile since my stupid bantam rooster can't seem to get the job done. lol. I have porcelain and mille fleur OEGBs with one porcelain cock, and I put about a dozen eggs in the incubator 2 weeks ago and only one was fertile (and I think it was an egg from my splash unknown breed bantam, and she lets my Ameraucana rooster mate with her.) Should I let him set till he gives up? I could give him some chicken or duck eggs if he is likely to actually sit till they hatch. What do you think? I do have 1 turkey egg in my incubator, about 2 weeks in, but it seems like 1 by itself wouldn't do well. I do have duck eggs put in the same time.

 

[JLaw]

Lmao I'm sorry I have no idea but I just find it funny as heck reading the post. Once again sorry no help.

 

[chooks4life]

I don't think a male could brood the eggs since the enormous fat deposit tom turkeys build up in their chests won't maintain a correct temperature like a hen's breast muscle does... But you never know.

I have had one tom turkey go nuts about the geese's nests and keep attacking the geese to roll their eggs under him and try to brood them, and I've heard of other toms try to brood eggs, but have not heard of any successes. I have had a few roosters have fleeting thoughts of brooding, and one was such an excellent father to chicks that weren't his own that at a week old he got them to abandon their mother for him, LOL. Earned himself a stay of execution. Then never did it again, and he wasn't good for anything else....

I think you should get him a girlfriend unless you're going to eat him. One tom I had took a shine to the chook hens because he was lonely because all the turkey hens were brooding, and he nearly killed a bunch of hens by mounting them while they tried to dust bathe or right after a rooster got off. Also my turkey hens, when lacking a male, will chase roosters that they think are attractive, sitting in the mating position practically on his tail every time he stands still for a second.

If a turkey's sitting and you don't want him/her to, removing all the eggs usually works. But doing it at night so you don't inspire a permanent distrust or outright aggression is best in my experience. Turkeys can get stuck hating a certain animal or human.

 

[mama24]

Thanks! I would like to get him a mate, but no one has any just now. My friend I bought him from lost a few hens to coyotes recently, so she has no more extras to sell. She's going to give me a few poults once her hens have hatched and brooded them. I gave her 8 eggs before my hen disappeared, so hopefully we can both get a few hens back to make up for our losses.

 

[chooks4life]

Hope that goes well for you both. I'm also in the process of rebuilding my turkey flock after several unexpected losses to mishaps and disease. Might be a good time, in the interim, to build a stronger trust with the tom, if he's not that tame. If he is already, well, hopefully you'll get some good poults from him.

 

[mama24]

My friend gave me 4-2 day old poults and I put them under him 2 nights ago. He's doing great! So this morning, I put 2 3 week old bourbon reds I had from the feed store in there, and he started taking care of them immediately, too. It's really cute to seem him puffed up like a hen being so sweet and gentle with those babies!

 

[chooks4life]

Interesting. Hope he continues being a good dad instead of turning into a killer like some of my toms...Let us know how it goes! Does he try to feed them?

 

[mama24]

He's still taking good care of them. Yes, he feeds them. They are small enough to be able to escape the turkey pen, and he gets very upset when they are on the wrong side of the fence. He's a very good daddy. My friend who I bought him from said he was raised by his dad. Maybe some breeds are better dads than others? He gets along very well with the bantam chickens who would rather live with him than with the large fowl in the coop. I also have a brown leghorn hen who hangs out in there. He's very sweet. He's not nice to people at all, but seems to get along well with all the other birds.

 

[Coupe]

Please please post a pic of this!!!

 

[ColbyNTX]

Yeah, broody tom's are a PITA! They usually end up breaking even turkey eggs by the 3rd week. Glad he's being a good daddy.