I have two bourbon red hens (and an inordinate number of toms, but that's another saga.)
One of them managed to raise two poults this summer. She kept them away from the rest of the turkeys for months -- keeping mostly to the safely electrified goat pasture and run-in shed, clever girl. She seemed to be worried about their safety around the other turkeys; no worries about the chickens. They eventually slipped the lead and joined the flock on their own.
The second hen had two clutch failures during the normal breeding season.
Then I found her brooding an unprotected nest in mid-November. I moved her and the eggs inside; they hatched a week before Thanksgiving. Only two poults survived. She is raising them in the rabbit pen.
Now hen #1 is trying to brood. She has stopped laying, but has camped under the nest boxes and keeps enticing chickens to provide her with eggs. I caught her the other day with a wing over a chicken who was laying an egg for her.
I'd really like the silly turkey hens to be in condition to breed and brood at an appropriate time this spring.
1) What is the best way to break up a turkey broody?
2) When can the 1 1/2 month old poults join the flock?
One of them managed to raise two poults this summer. She kept them away from the rest of the turkeys for months -- keeping mostly to the safely electrified goat pasture and run-in shed, clever girl. She seemed to be worried about their safety around the other turkeys; no worries about the chickens. They eventually slipped the lead and joined the flock on their own.
The second hen had two clutch failures during the normal breeding season.
Then I found her brooding an unprotected nest in mid-November. I moved her and the eggs inside; they hatched a week before Thanksgiving. Only two poults survived. She is raising them in the rabbit pen.
Now hen #1 is trying to brood. She has stopped laying, but has camped under the nest boxes and keeps enticing chickens to provide her with eggs. I caught her the other day with a wing over a chicken who was laying an egg for her.
I'd really like the silly turkey hens to be in condition to breed and brood at an appropriate time this spring.
1) What is the best way to break up a turkey broody?
2) When can the 1 1/2 month old poults join the flock?
