chocolate turkeys

[micayc]

got a dozen chocolate turkey eggs, no not milk chocolate. they hatched but all died!!! Got some from breeder with not much more luck. anyone know if this is a fragile breed? getting kind of pricey here and ican not even eat them!

 

[ivan3]

Sorry to hear that. How long after hatching did they die?

A specific `line' of turks, within a variety, might have expess certain genetic `weaknesses' (propensity for bony tumors, for instance) but not 100% die-off (there'd be no `line' at all). diet/age of hen - out of range temps anytime after lay - some environmental problem after hatch, are more likely culprits.

 

[njduck]

raise chocolates and only had 1 die off. It was my fault, because I was not around to handle them. My son and father took them from the incubator to the brooder. I think they starved to death because it was almost a week after hatch. other then that I have had a 99.5% hatch rate with 99.5% survival rate. However it took me a few months to get to that. I had to go through a learning curve. which inculded humidity, temperature, feeding method, teaching them to eat and drink. they are way more complex, compared to a chicken or a duck.

 

[joshm97]

Raising chocolate turkeys is a big responcebility along with raising any other breed. I have some right now 13 days old. you need to let them out for exercise if they are being kept as pets and check their feed every day because the first couple they eat little but at 5 days they east about 1/5 a lb. per bird. I have seen it and wow can they eat. you need to check water too and make sure they are in good health take them to your local livestock care center becuase they need to be healthy........