Turkey Talk for 2014

Date sort Score sort
My big blue tom rules the coop. My turkeys are in with my layers. Right now there are 11 turkeys of various ages in with about 30 chickens of various ages. 5 are roosters of breeding age or close (1 more is coming out tomorrow to go home with my son & we processed 4 last weekend...there were 9 mature roos in the pen). If the roos begin to squabble my tom will literally walk over & stomp on them until they either squirm free & run to hide or stop squirming & get quiet so the tom lets them up. My boys learned very quickly to stay out of the tom's way. My tom's only Achilles Heel is the hens. If he begins strutting & prancing too much it only takes a peck on the rear or a quick yank on a fuzzy butt feather to deflate him instantly...lol I watched huge buzzards fly over the last few days & have also seen the same thing when a hawk goes over. My big tom & the 2-3 oldest roos make a strange warning noise & all hens & young males scramble into the coop as fast as they can. The tom & roos srand with theie heads high watching the sky, wings puffed to make themselves look bigger & keep making the warning noise until the menace flies away. I have never seen a predatory bird even try to grab 1 of my birds. I tbink Big Benny's size deters them. I get the same effect in my waterfowl pen. The pair of geese & the 2 big ancona drakes give the warning & stand guard while the calls & annie hens run for cover.
 
chickadoodles said:
I am so sorry your BBB turkey was such a problem for you. This is the first year I have raised some myself and I have three left so far. The hen is the sweetest! And the two boys kind of stand back and wait for treats.

I have raised a few turkey breeds since I started a couple years ago and the sweetest ones I have had are the Naragansett and Midget White. Right now I have Standard Bronze and Bourbon Reds and they are also very nice calm and sweet but for some reason I have a few bourbon's that like to bite my fingers. I kind of think they are telling me they want a treat as I usually hand feed them treats. So that is my fault.

Here's a hug
hugs.gif
and I hope you find some that you can enjoy! There are so many breeds out there. Good luck!
Click to expand...

I have a young jake and jenny that bite my fingers. I don't feed them out of my hands. I think they are just overly snoopy about everything. I'm trying to decide which tom I'll cull when they are older. Up Snood is the biter. He's bigger and constantly following me around, getting into trouble. Down Snood is a bit smaller and minds his business more.

My last tom gave his life to protect his hens.
 
Quailsong said:
Folks, I need a really big hug.

I'm now down to 1 BBB turkey from 2, due to one needing to be culled early due to just...being far too curious & in your face. He constantly pestered my other birds, nearly took out my eye (multiple times, thankfully I wore goggles after the first incident), would knock over or step on the other birds (chickens/ducks), and unfortunately killed a few of my quail who escaped their pen during a storm.

Please tell me that there are calmer turkeys out there, one's not so focused on food all the time. I know heritage are better for that, but I just...ugh, just need a hug, really.

Help to ease the pain by telling me how nice your midget whites or beltsvilles are & how peaceful they are with your chickens. Give me some hope for having turkeys again next Spring 2015, please! Or even just a hug. Did I mention I need one?:hit
Click to expand...


Big hugs!!!! Heritage breeds are the way to go!! Broad breasted are good if you need to grow out a meat bird quickly but if you can help it get heritage breeds next time. Do some research on te different heritage breeds, BYC is a great place to start!! In the Reviews section you can find some reviews on breeds and their personalities and quirks. Some seem to be more personable than others. I've only had Narrangansetts and they were super sweet. We had to put them all down due to mycoplasma unfortunately. We have put in an order with Porters Turkeys for next spring with different breeds. This year was our first experience with turkeys and we LOVED them!! They were so much better than our Orpington chickens as far as personality. They were very inquisitive and sweet. Don't give up!! Our experience with Turkeys was awesome and we miss them very much!! Can't wait to get our new babies next year =)
 
gevshiba said:
Quote: I have lost enough toms and roosters to realize I need to keep a back up now or it will set you back a year in your breeding program if something happens.
You are probably right about the turkey just being snoopy one of mine just cant resist trying a taste. lol
Sorry you lost one but that is what they are suppose to do.
big_smile.png
Click to expand...
 
gevshiba said:
I have a young jake and jenny that bite my fingers. I don't feed them out of my hands. I think they are just overly snoopy about everything. I'm trying to decide which tom I'll cull when they are older. Up Snood is the biter. He's bigger and constantly following me around, getting into trouble. Down Snood is a bit smaller and minds his business more.

My last tom gave his life to protect his hens.
Click to expand...

Yes that is what he is doing. asking for treats. They are smart like chickens but much bigger. I had one that wanted to be held all the time and he would pick on my legs. He wasn't mean just to friendly The one that I have now thinks he's a chicken, and does everything the chickens do.
 

Similar threads

Stonelakemomma3
Treats for turkey poults
Replies
1
Views
343
R2elk
R2elk
ElfenLied89
    • Like
Girl or boy?
Replies
6
Views
413
Molpet
Molpet
Ashb0429
Turkey Behavior
Replies
3
Views
361
R2elk
R2elk
Berd Man
Turkeys and Electric Netting
Replies
9
Views
286
Berd Man
Berd Man
Mo_fawaazzz
    • Like
Did not have to teach my turkeys to free range
2
Replies
13
Views
884
Mo_fawaazzz
Mo_fawaazzz

New posts New threads Active threads

Back
Top Bottom