Toms vs. Hens?

[BunnyLover44]

Vote now!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Celie]

I have raised Holland Whites for 3 years and as poults, they fly a lot. They like roof tops and vehicles, like close neighboring cars, so you can get into trouble with the neighbors, unless you have a lot of acreage for them. This is true for every breed I know. But larger birds get heavy fast and can't fly like lighter breeds. I have just hatched out 4 Bourbon Reds and plan on a few more breeds this year. From the Bourbon Reds behavior, they appear to be all female, but they are only a few hours old! I can usually tell sex at about 3 or 4 days, but am not 100% sure until about 2 months, with my Hollands and Midgets as they are all white feathered, so I have less to go by. You don't say where you live, so I can only give you limited information, but down South, where I live, turkeys lay eggs from December until molt time in the Fall. Hens will lay eggs without a tom, but they will not hatch, so to keep them laying, you have to be relentless about gathering! That is, IF you can find the eggs! They don't know they are not fertile and will hide them, if given a chance. If you have close neighbors, I vote no turkeys, if not, tell us more about your situation, and we might be of more help!

 

[BunnyLover44]

Where do you live down south? The only reason I'm asking is because i live down south A.K.A. Orlando Flordia

 

[Hummingbird Hollow]

If you had 2 or three hens, they would be very happy together. If you had a tom he would probably get ignored most of the time and end up following the girls around trying to look important. Turkey hens really do like to hang out together.

Gobbling: I have never seen a hen gobble. The boys will do it, but only if they see something new and different or scary. I am out in the country on a dirt road, so generally they gobble if traffic passes (once or twice a day). Yesterday I was outside and my cell phone alarm went off: it plays a little tune, three times in a row. Each time the tune finished, all the toms gobbbled. It was hilarious.

Tinkle tinkle tinkle ting, tinkle ting (from my pocket)
WAWAWAWAWA (from the turkeys)
... Tinkle tinkle tinkle ting, tinkle ting WAWAWAWAWA
... Tinkle tinkle tinkle ting, tinkle ting WAWAWAWAWA

Gobbling is not quite as obnoxious a sound as a rooster crow, it doesn't carry as far. One turkey gobbling isn't much noise, but if you have several toms they will all gobble at once like a choir, when they see something alarming.

Turkeys make different noises than chickens, they do "talk to each other" and they are not totally silent. Hens make a "wonk wonk wonk" sound which means come over here or where are you... turkeys which have found something super awesome to eat or super fun to do (like standing on the roof of your car) will say "whick! whick! whick!" Boys who are having an argument will tell eachother "deedle deedle deedle" in a high squeaky voice. It doesn't sound like much to us, but I guess it sounds like fightin' words to a turkey.

Boys spend a lot of time strutting with their feathers fluffed up like a peacock, which is fun to look at.
Girls are pretty in a different way, they are graceful and slender like a canada goose.

Boys get bigger, so they are less likely to fly (over fences and escape). My girl turkeys all sleep in trees, but the boys sleep on top of the chicken coop.

If you have a girl turkey, she will lay eggs in the spring, and she may try to "escape" and find a secret place to make a nest. They like brambles and thickets for this. My hens lay march - june.

One thing to watch out for, turkeys are real grass eaters. Turkeys will eat long coarse grass that a chicken wouldn't touch. Even if you have just one turkey, make sure you have a nice big grassy yard. He or she will keep it mowed for you. And if it is rainy and muddy, keep the turkey inside for the day, if possible, because the heavy turkey weight and the narrow pointy turkey feet can turn your nice lawn into a muddy mess like a stockyard.

I have Narragansetts and I like them. They are really mellow. I've never had other turkey breeds so I don't know how they compare.

This is a funny post. I've head the phrase "let's talk turkey", but never before heard how turkeys talk. Loved the story about the cell phone.