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- #11
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I didn't do any research before ordering our turkey. I had done a ton on the chickens for a few years before I decided to order them. My husband and daughter really wanted one, so when I called the Hatchery to order our chicks I asked them a few questions and they offered to put a turkey in with our chicken order. My mistake for not doing the research. The hatchery I ordered from would only ship Turkeys as straight Run, so we didn't know at first if we had a hen or a Tom. If you want only pullet I suggest you research who would sell specific genders. I bet the BB pullet have the same problem. It's not only that they are to big to walk, it is a leg deformity that is caused by the fast growth rate. I have been informed that they should be butchered at 16 weeks old and mine is now 6 months old.
I don't know what would be the best turkey for eating. I know mine looks very healthy. I don't know if BB is cheaper than the heritage breeds. I ordered him in April. I'll have to recheck my order form. You can go online and check out hatcheries to see what they offer and even order a catalog. I went with a hatchery that our feed store uses b/c it was closer, so I figure the little babies would have less stress traveling through the mail.
I know our feed store sells tukeys in their store around May, so that may be something to look into if you didn't want to put in a big order from a hatchery. The hatcheries usually require a min of 15 to order for warmth through the mail. They were able to put my one lonely turkey in my shipment in b/c I had ordered 15 chickens (pullets).
I'm sorry that I'm not much help! Good luck!
I didn't do any research before ordering our turkey. I had done a ton on the chickens for a few years before I decided to order them. My husband and daughter really wanted one, so when I called the Hatchery to order our chicks I asked them a few questions and they offered to put a turkey in with our chicken order. My mistake for not doing the research. The hatchery I ordered from would only ship Turkeys as straight Run, so we didn't know at first if we had a hen or a Tom. If you want only pullet I suggest you research who would sell specific genders. I bet the BB pullet have the same problem. It's not only that they are to big to walk, it is a leg deformity that is caused by the fast growth rate. I have been informed that they should be butchered at 16 weeks old and mine is now 6 months old.
I don't know what would be the best turkey for eating. I know mine looks very healthy. I don't know if BB is cheaper than the heritage breeds. I ordered him in April. I'll have to recheck my order form. You can go online and check out hatcheries to see what they offer and even order a catalog. I went with a hatchery that our feed store uses b/c it was closer, so I figure the little babies would have less stress traveling through the mail.
I know our feed store sells tukeys in their store around May, so that may be something to look into if you didn't want to put in a big order from a hatchery. The hatcheries usually require a min of 15 to order for warmth through the mail. They were able to put my one lonely turkey in my shipment in b/c I had ordered 15 chickens (pullets).
I'm sorry that I'm not much help! Good luck!