Do turkey hens ever display?

[Omniskies]

Now I want a gobble ring tone...

Or the hen chirrup noises as a ring tone.

 

[warcard]

I have a Blue Slate hen who no only struts but has a beard. Amy's definitely a girl and Thumper's favorite one at that (we had to buy her a saddle this year, poor barebacked girl :| ).

#1 Discriminator - hens lay eggs

#2 Discriminator - hens don't gobble (every other noise in the book, but no gobbling)

 

[Struttn1]

All three of my hens have been displaying lately.

 

[chickenannie]

Yup, my RB turkey hens do the strutting/displaying thing sometimes. And warcard, I have a hen like yours who nests and raises chicks but also displays a grew a tiny beard. It's strange but true. I don't know if it's normal or not, but she keeps laying eggs too.

 

[warcard]

How long is a normal male beard? Thumper almost always wears his off on the girls. Amy's is actually about 4 inches long.

 

[M@M@2four]

Quote:

--I can totally picture this!

All of my turkeys display. I think it's pretty funny the way they strut, turn red in the face, drop their wings, and start talking trash. lol I break it up if they start fighting, but it's funny watching them try.

 

[M@M@2four]

Well, I just found out that my white and bronze broad breasted turkeys can's mate. Marlinchaser just made me aware of this...we went in together on a shipment of turkeys. I had mentioned to him that I haven't seen them mate and he said they physically can't. They have to be artifically inseminated. I looked it up and yep, he's correct! So, I sarcastically say, "What do you use, a turkey bastor?! Sure enough....:|

 

[CindyS]

She does look like a she. One day this spring I had every one of my turkeys in full display (or strut)at once, 3 toms and 20 hens, only 1 day I saw this. They were full display, not the half way display that hens do sometimes. The hens can even extend their tiny snoods a bit, something I did not know! It was the funniest thing! It must have been the official start of breeding season or something!

 

[the1much]

i dont have turkeys,, but i got peafowl,, and SHE struts and shows off her tail ALMOST as much as he does.

 

[chickenannie]

M@M@2four :

Well, I just found out that my white and bronze broad breasted turkeys can's mate. Marlinchaser just made me aware of this...we went in together on a shipment of turkeys. I had mentioned to him that I haven't seen them mate and he said they physically can't. They have to be artifically inseminated. I looked it up and yep, he's correct! So, I sarcastically say, "What do you use, a turkey bastor?! Sure enough....:|

Yup this is true. Isn't it sad that the industry has bred a turkey that can't even mate? Someone out there is doing a LOT of turkey artificial insemination.

The definition of a heritage turkey is that it must be able to breed naturally (without AI or human intervention). IMHO that is how it should be!​