Turkey Talk for 2014

[Sydney Acres]

Just popped in to say hi it's taken me this long to read through the entire thread lol.
I'm so jealous of anyone whose hens are already laying. It's too cold here in Atlantic Canada for my girls to think about laying just yet. But they do squat down for the tom. Frankly I think they need the practice

Great picture! Nothing better than seeing turkeys running and playing and flying first thing in the morning.

 

[Sydney Acres]

When I got chicks, I lasted a few weeks before getting more (though that was not my fault. I was actually rescuing them). And a few weeks after that I adopted 4 Red Sexlink hens. I just couldn't wait for the eggs! LOL! So, now I am anxiously awaiting my turkeys, and wondering if I shouldn't drive down to Reyvaughn's, and steal a few.

Seriously, how am I supposed to wait?! Especially since the BR I ordered for the 20th won't be available until "sometime" in April, and I don't even know when?

I get to play with a BBW (I have yet to decide between a chick and another poult for company) for a while. I guess that will be something.
What are some thoughts on BBB? Aside from the dark pinfeathers, how do those that have had them think they compare? I understand the BB guys are too clumsy to impregnate a hen, b ut I can still get a BR tom to fertilize a BB hen's eggs, right?

Disclaimer. I am not stealing anyone's turkeys. I am not going to let a huge BBW limp around just so I can have her mate. If she is too heavy, she will be going to camp. Freezer camp, not fat camp. And if this stuff was covered between pages 20 and 129. I have not read those pages yet. I am sorry for asking an old question again.

Yes, you can have a BR tom mate with a BB hen easier than the other way around, but it will still be more complicated than using a heritage breed hen. Mating may be uncomfortable for her because of her size, and her legs could be more easily injured while flexed in the squatting position (they're already a bit fragile, and the tom's extra weight could be too much torque). The fertility may not be as high because she may not be able to maneuver into the cloacal kiss quite as easily as a heritage hen. Because of her shorter life span, she won't be able to produce eggs as long as a heritage hen, and she may have problems laying eggs if she gets too fat, which is a very difficult thing to prevent as they age. (A short time ago on this thread someone posted a picture of her BBW hen that had prolapsed trying to lay an egg. I think she was less than a year old, and estimated at 45 lbs. The hen died.).

So, you ordered a single BR poult, or was it an older bird? Or did I get it wrong and you're getting more than one infant at a time, but just haven't decided on chick vs poult for the additional babies? It is much easier to brood poults together with chicks because the chicks are hatched out knowing how to eat, drink, dustbathe, etc., whereas the poults need to be taught these things. Without a turkey hen, it is easiest to have a chick teach the poults. I would recommend getting a minimum of 3-4 babies at one time, since no one will be alone if one dies.

 

[chickadoodles]

Quote: The Narragansett turkey is the result of a cross between a domestic and wild bird, they are fertile.



If anyone is interested in reading a about Breeding Turkey this is a very good read.

Selecting Your Best Turkey for Breeding
By Frank R. Reese, Jr., Marjorie Bender, D. Phillip Sponsnbert, Danny Williamson, and Jeanette Berager

Chapter1- The Definition and History of the Heritage Turkey

"All domesticated turkeys descend from wild turkey indigenous to North and South America. They are quintessential American poultry."



http://albc-usa.org/documents/MasterBreeder/turkeys_combined.pdf

 

[Reyvaughn]

When I got chicks, I lasted a few weeks before getting more (though that was not my fault. I was actually rescuing them). And a few weeks after that I adopted 4 Red Sexlink hens. I just couldn't wait for the eggs! LOL! So, now I am anxiously awaiting my turkeys, and wondering if I shouldn't drive down to Reyvaughn's, and steal a few.

Seriously, how am I supposed to wait?! Especially since the BR I ordered for the 20th won't be available until "sometime" in April, and I don't even know when?

I get to play with a BBW (I have yet to decide between a chick and another poult for company) for a while. I guess that will be something.
What are some thoughts on BBB? Aside from the dark pinfeathers, how do those that have had them think they compare? I understand the BB guys are too clumsy to impregnate a hen, b ut I can still get a BR tom to fertilize a BB hen's eggs, right?

Disclaimer. I am not stealing anyone's turkeys. I am not going to let a huge BBW limp around just so I can have her mate. If she is too heavy, she will be going to camp. Freezer camp, not fat camp. And if this stuff was covered between pages 20 and 129. I have not read those pages yet. I am sorry for asking an old question again.

I will be selling eggs - not sure what I will hatch since I am not going to incubate them. The hens will have to sit on them themselves. Or shove a turkey egg under an bantam Cochin or 2...
I have not had a BBW, but I attempted to raise 12 BBBs last year. OF the 12, only 5 made it past 1 month old. The two hens had serious leg issues and only got to around 5-6lbs. They were losing weight because of their twisted legs and felt it was kinder to just process them and use them for soup. The three boys I had left were great boys. I kept them on a low protein diet to try and stop leg issues, and in the 5 months I had them, they were between 20-25lbs. I free ranged them from the day they were fully feathered until the day they were processed as well. Yes, I had to pull some dark pinfeathers, but they were very nice once dressed. I did hear, no idea how true it is, that the BBBs do have more leg issues than the whites. It could have been just the BBBs from the hatchery I got them from, though.

I have 20 mixed BBBs and BBWs coming at the end of this month from a different hatchery than I got from last year (MotorcycleChick, since you are a PA resident, the BBBs I got last year came from Hoffman Hatchery in Gratz, PA). This year's birds are coming from Meyer. They were much cheaper than Hoffman!

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote: Thank you so much for posting this link. This pdf is great. It's only 28 pages total. The first portion is the history of breed preservation, which may not interest everyone, but the middle and end are very practical and useful. It answers quite a bit of the questions that I and other newcomers have had about turkeys, so would be a good read even for people who aren't interested in breeding.

 

[Sydney Acres]

I can't remember who it was, but a huge thank you to the person who suggested I find a copy of Turkey Management by Marsden and Martin. I've looked around casually for it, but could only find the earlier editions, and they were all in the $100-200 range (you had suggested the 5th or 6th edition, and said it could be found for around $40 if I was patient). I had planned to go to my public library to request it be sent by interlibrary loan, but never got around to it. Then last week I found a used 6th edition on Amazon for $40, plus $3.99 shipping, and snapped it up. It's 999 pages, and is the last edition of the book, published in 1955. The interior is in perfect shape. The cover has had some injuries, but nothing that can't be stabilized with clear packing tape and an old fashioned book cover, made out of a thick brown paper bag like we were taught to do in junior high school. It may not be fancy, but it is 100% functional, and has a wealth of information about the way turkeys were raised, before BBBs and BBWs took over.

 

[TeaChick]

A pic from today

Pretty, except for that white stuff.

What breed? (I imagine you've probably mentioned before, but I'm learning).

The birds are convinced spring is here, even though the temperatures continue to fluctuate, from 70s one day to 30s the next.
Two of my hens in the vine thicket nest in my neighbors yard across the street. Every night, I gather the eggs and chase any lingering hens back home.

My favorite boy. A shame the hens don't like him, I'd love a ton of babies just like him. I'll keep him as a backup though.

The boy that gets all the ladies. He's pretty handsome too, but he doesn't have the rainbow of colors that the other has. The drumming these two make all day, every day, is loud enough to be heard inside the house. People who come over always ask, what is that strange 'poof' sound every so often? A lot of people don't seem to know that turkeys also make this sound, they don't just gobble and yelp. They have a whole language, as I've discovered!


I just put 13 eggs in my ancient, homemade wooden incubator, it was given to me 8 years ago (and it was old then! The person who gave it to me, a teacher, said he found it in storage and was pretty sure it was an incubator, but wasn't positive). It hatches eggs better than my little giant for sure. The outside window is cracked and duct taped and the blue paint on the outside is chipping, but it still faithfully keeps temperature. Humidity is 'controlled' by a little tupperware bowl underneath the wire that I fill up when it evaporates. I have 8 also under several broody silkies. The first 2 are due pretty soon.

They are beautiful. I don't know why, but I prefer the white one.
It seems to be more and more often the case that the older things work better (or are at least more repair-able).

 

[Reyvaughn]

I GOT MY FIRST TURKEY EGG TODAY!
It was froze... If they are fertile, they will be Narragansett crosses. I hope my boy is doing something to correct that!

 

[chicken pickin]

Pretty, except for that white stuff.

What breed? (I imagine you've probably mentioned before, but I'm learning).

I don't like the white stuff either...

They are Bourbon Reds.

 

[TeaChick]

When I got chicks, I lasted a few weeks before getting more (though that was not my fault. I was actually rescuing them). And a few weeks after that I adopted 4 Red Sexlink hens. I just couldn't wait for the eggs! LOL! So, now I am anxiously awaiting my turkeys, and wondering if I shouldn't drive down to Reyvaughn's, and steal a few.

I'm in!!!

Seriously, how am I supposed to wait?! Especially since the BR I ordered for the 20th won't be available until "sometime" in April, and I don't even know when?

I get to play with a BBW (I have yet to decide between a chick and another poult for company) for a while. I guess that will be something.
What are some thoughts on BBB? Aside from the dark pinfeathers, how do those that have had them think they compare? I understand the BB guys are too clumsy to impregnate a hen, b ut I can still get a BR tom to fertilize a BB hen's eggs, right?

Disclaimer. I am not stealing anyone's turkeys.

Bummer! I was looking forward to the road trip, and the turkeys!!!! Few things can beat instant gratification!!!

I am not going to let a huge BBW limp around just so I can have her mate. If she is too heavy, she will be going to camp. Freezer camp, not fat camp. And if this stuff was covered between pages 20 and 129. I have not read those pages yet. I am sorry for asking an old question again.