Has anyone ever done this?

[MamaPoult]

HI all!! I had this crazy idea to breed my turkeys and chickens together. My jake is fertilizing all the eggs and mates the hens in a way that is very gentle. So it just kinda seems meant to be! Has anyone ever done this? My best friend got his hands on a naked neck silkie ticken so it's been done. Just wondering if anybody has done this crazy wierd idea and if so please share what you've learned!! Thanks

-Ticken crazy

 

[Debbie292d]

They are genetically incompatible. That doesn't mean they can't mate, but they can't make chicks.

 

[Debbie292d]

My best friend got his hands on a naked neck silkie ticken

I think they mean turken. A turken is 100% chicken.

 

[MamaPoult]

They are genetically incompatible. That doesn't mean they can't mate, but they can't make chicks.

hmm interesting. Thanks for the feedback he specified turkey and chicken. Maybe he got confused. Thanks again

 

[Debbie292d]

hmm interesting. Thanks for the feedback he specified turkey and chicken. Maybe he got confused. Thanks again

The name "turken" is deceiving, plus, with their naked neck, they sort of look a bit like a turkey, but nope, it's all chicken!

 

[R2elk]

HI all!! I had this crazy idea to breed my turkeys and chickens together. My jake is fertilizing all the eggs and mates the hens in a way that is very gentle. So it just kinda seems meant to be! Has anyone ever done this? My best friend got his hands on a naked neck silkie ticken so it's been done. Just wondering if anybody has done this crazy wierd idea and if so please share what you've learned!! Thanks

-Ticken crazy

Cross breeding chickens and turkeys was investigated and abandoned many years ago. If it was feasible the hybridization efforts would have continued.

I know that it is a misconception that Naked Necks (Turkens) are a cross between chickens and turkeys. This is not true. Naked Necks are and have always been 100% chicken.

I urge you to separate your turkey from your chickens before he starts killing them. This is just one more reason to not brood chicks and poults together. The imprinting causes the turkeys to lose the ability to understand that chickens are not turkeys. The adult size differences can lead to harmful consequences for the chickens when turkeys treat the chickens the same as they treat each other.

 

[R2elk]

Comparison of Chicken and Turkey Genomes

 

[R2elk]

Turkey Genetics 101

"Not surprisingly, the turkey genome is similar to that of the chicken, differing most obviously by some two dozen chromosomal inversions. The turkey genome sequence is being used to fill in some gaps in the chicken genome sequence, although at 1.8 SNPs per kilobase, turkeys have a less diverse genomes than do chickens, which have 5.5. The reason: the ancestral chicken population was much larger than the ancestral turkey population. The turkey genome has five regions of exceptional genetic uniformity, and the mitochondrial genome is also much less diverse."

 

[MamaPoult]

Ok thanks a lot @R2elk !! I will definitely think on and read your link! Thanks for your advice once again