Hen Or Tom??

[machoman]

My neighbor gave me this turkey, along with a Spanish Black Tom. He said this one ( photo attached ) is a Tom and will be two years old in April. A friend stopped by who's raised turkeys before and proclaimed this one a Hen. This is my neighbor's first time raising turkeys and he had 14, one other absolute hen. What are your thoughts?

Behavior wise, I've never seen the red one puffed, or hear a gobble, there's no spurs, and this photo represents how it looks all the time. The Spanish Black circles the red one and puffs sometimes and they seem bonded. She makes a lot of noise, however, constantly doing high pitched little squacks. They two managed to get back into my neighbor's yard and the black male puffed and displayed and promptly had his butt kicked, the red one just followed the black one around, unpuffed, but doing the usual squacking.


Thanks!

 

[frank53061]

BIG Time Hen!!!!

 

[machoman]

Thanks Frank,

I haven't seen any eggs at all, could this just be because it's cold outside? Also, he/she has a beard, but I've read that some hens have them, would you agree?

 

[jandlpoultry]

Hen. I have two hens with breads, and mine will even strut.

 

[Lagerdogger]

oooo! I'm not so sure. It has some hen characteristics and some male characteristics. The feathers up the back of the neck is usually hennish, but in cold winters, toms do grow extra neck feathers. The dark edges of the breast feathers suggest tom. The behaviors are rather feminine. So are the lack of well-defined caruncles. Its not laying eggs, which is tom-like, but that depends on how far north you live. In Minnesota, we don't get eggs until about March 10. The beard is pretty strong for a hen beard.

Someone else just posted about a bird that had male and female characteristics. This may be a similar case.

 

[frank53061]

My neighbor gave me this turkey, along with a Spanish Black Tom. He said this one ( photo attached ) is a Tom and will be two years old in April. A friend stopped by who's raised turkeys before and proclaimed this one a Hen. This is my neighbor's first time raising turkeys and he had 14, one other absolute hen. What are your thoughts?

Behavior wise, I've never seen the red one puffed, or hear a gobble, there's no spurs, and this photo represents how it looks all the time. The Spanish Black circles the red one and puffs sometimes and they seem bonded. She makes a lot of noise, however, constantly doing high pitched little squacks. They two managed to get back into my neighbor's yard and the black male puffed and displayed and promptly had his butt kicked, the red one just followed the black one around, unpuffed, but doing the usual squacking.


Thanks!

I still think its a Hen there are not near enough Carnacles and the snood is way to short and I have heard of Females with beards before I had a Aunt once.
The age of bird a lot of time can be guessed by the lenght of the beard the rule of thumb I have read is approx, 2 inches per year old.
Of coarse I live in Arkansas and we have had teens and twenty's temps but none of my toms have feathers on there necks that's not to say it docent happen Else were.

 

[machoman]

We're in NC and today it's 60, but it's a warm front. Average day time temperature here is about 45-50 and night time 25-35. I've had her since Thanksgiving, no eggs. It's possible it's from stress? My neighbor has a hen and maybe he assumed the eggs were all from the other hen, perhaps.

Our Tom turkey is now gone, and she's still acting the same, no puffing...display of feathers or anything. I thought perhaps she was a submissive male and expected puffing after he left.

 

[kuntrygirl]

Looks like one of my hens. Kinda like a lady with a mustache and beard thing going on.. LOL

 

[shane11]

Where do you li

...

I still think its a Hen there are not near enough Carnacles and the snood is way to short and I have heard of Females with beards before I had a Aunt once.
The age of bird a lot of time can be guessed by the lenght of the beard the rule of thumb I have read is approx, 2 inches per year old.
Of coarse I live in Arkansas and we have had teens and twenty's temps but none of my toms have feathers on there necks that's not to say it docent happen Else were.
Where do you live in Arkansas? Are you selling a black Spanish Tom?