odd tom behavior

[bumpershoot]

I have a tom and a hen turkey that reside with my flock of ducks and chickens. Friday I had a hen with a hurt wing from an unknown source. Next day I find her in the chicken yard beat to pieces. Feathers stripped and comb shredded. She looked like she had been in a bar brawl. Needless to say, she died of her wounds. Today i walked in on the tom turkey shaking that bejeebus out of a different hen and killing her. I pulled him and have him in a dog crate in the garage because I plan on processing him tomorrow am. Still, I am trying to figure out what is up with him. I have never had a turkey attack a hen before. At least, not in the past 6 years of owning the two together. Any input would be useful. If he were just being a jerk I would put him in his own pen, but killing other birds is just too odd. Plus, I can't take the chance that he'll kill my flock of baby birds that have yet to be introduced into the main flock. Why would a tom kill chicken hens?

 

[JonathanL23]

Is the tom a wild breed? i got 3 female hens that were hatched from wild turkey eggs they were 2 years old when i bought them and they killed my rooster badly beat up a chicken/hen a few times. so believe what your saying is true and he's probably just a jerk. just like people theirs always a idiot out of a group. i also had a rooster beat up hens for no reason. So i got rid of him bought a new rooster and hes the nicest guy puts bread in his mouth and drops it in front of his hens LOL.

 

[bumpershoot]

Not a wild turkey, no.

The whole thing is perplexing.

 

[callieisspooky]

I'm so glad you posted this. I'm fairly sure that's exactly what my tom did to my hens - shake them by the neck, and I found two dead hens with broken necks and stripped of large patches of feathers (though I thought maybe the crows were responsible for the feathers). In my tom's case, he was a late hatcher who never successfully figured out how to breed (even though he's heritage bronze and should be able to breed), and is so frustrated that he's tried to mount other chickens, often getting rough with them and with the female turkeys, too. So it may have something to do with breeding season. Have a yummy turkey dinner.