tom or hen?

[LuisaD]

UPDATE!!! I GOT MY FIRST EGG!!!! At least I think it's a turkey egg.. it's the right colors but she lives with all my other hens... and it's not very big but when all my chickens laid it was relatively small to begin with!!!

 

[Celie]

UPDATE!!! I GOT MY FIRST EGG!!!! At least I think it's a turkey egg.. it's the right colors but she lives with all my other hens... and it's not very big but when all my chickens laid it was relatively small to begin with!!!

That is deffinatly a Turkey's egg. If it is fertile, you probably have a pair!

 

[LuisaD]

Haven't seen them get dirty yet, but aside from color they're identical!!!!

 

[LuisaD]

UPDATE... I think all who said breeding pair are correct... This morning I caught the darker one trying to fight my chickens who are in the other coop... UH OH.. I saw his aggressive side. I call the second coop my rehab coop cause most of the birds in there got a little beat up... WIll I be able to integrate them you think...? How aggressive to turkeys get? Should I take them out of the mix for a few weeks so they can be the under dogs again?!? Let me know!!

 

[aoxa]

UPDATE... I think all who said breeding pair are correct... This morning I caught the darker one trying to fight my chickens who are in the other coop... UH OH.. I saw his aggressive side. I call the second coop my rehab coop cause most of the birds in there got a little beat up... WIll I be able to integrate them you think...? How aggressive to turkeys get? Should I take them out of the mix for a few weeks so they can be the under dogs again?!? Let me know!!

My hens are more aggressive than my tom towards the chickens right now. I'd be interested to know the answer to this especially for breeding season. Will my tom kill my chickens? I sure hope not!

 

[chicken pickin]

My hens are more aggressive than my tom towards the chickens right now. I'd be interested to know the answer to this especially for breeding season. Will my tom kill my chickens? I sure hope not!

Hmmm I hope not. My turkeys seem to love my chickens. All 5 turkeys follow the 12 chickens everywhere they go. And they back down when a chicken wants something they have lol. Mine get along fantastic.

 

[aoxa]

Hmmm I hope not. My turkeys seem to love my chickens. All 5 turkeys follow the 12 chickens everywhere they go. And they back down when a chicken wants something they have lol. Mine get along fantastic.

Well the chickens bullied the turkeys when they were poults. Bruce (hen) has a huge scar on his eyelid to prove it. Maybe they are getting even

They do love the silkies most.

 

[Frosty]

I really don't like to have tom turkeys in with the chickens unless they have a LOT of space. If the tom tries to mate with a chicken hen (and in the spring they will mate with about anything!) it will end very badly for the hen. I lost a few hens because of that before I figured out what was going on...

 

[aoxa]

I really don't like to have tom turkeys in with the chickens unless they have a LOT of space.  If the tom tries to mate with a chicken hen (and in the spring they will mate with about anything!) it will end very badly for the hen.  I lost a few hens because of that before I figured out what was going on...  

I free range. Is this going to be a huge issue? My tom has 3 turkey hens.

 

[Celie]

Free range should not be a problem, but not enough room in a coop can be. I see more roosters trying to mate with my turkey hens, rather than the other way around. It is so funny, like someone trying to ride an Ostrich, she will just stand up and walk and he falls off and walks away embarrassed. I would say it depends what breed you have as far as anyone getting hurt, since turkeys differ so much in size. I have Holland Whites which are very large, and they do fine with my chickens, but I have a large barn and free range on 5 acres. When a rooster acts up, with a turkey hen, 3 or turkey roos will back him down.