turkeys are not the brightest, are they?! LOL

[bkvail]

We have two chicks and 4 turkey poults about a month old that are down in our shop in a 8'x8' enclosure that we built that we can disassemble and move outside when it's time...... which will probably be pretty soon by this weather lately! Anyhow, yesterday, hubby was downstairs watching them (our house is on a daylight basement, the shop is the first floor) and he yelled at me to come down quick........ I got down there and a turkey was running around frantically with the end of a feather sticking out of his mouth! I went in the pen, and grabbed him and pulled it out - it was not easy to pull out either! It was about an 8'' long feather, and he had only about 2'' sticking out of his mouth! Dumb turkey! Hubby said he watched him pick it up and swallow it - I figured maybe he was cleaning himself and accidentally swallowed it, but NO - he picked it up and swallowed it, dumb turkey! Glad someone was watching when he did it, that's for sure!

 

[jenjscott]

LOL You're right, turkeyes don't have the best reputation for intelligence.

 

[dutchhollow]

I was putting a tree stand together in the front yard last fall and had to keep chasing them away, they kept trying to pick up the nuts and bolts, I would move them (In a plastic bag) somewhere, but try to keep them in reach, and they would move around and go to picking at them again! I am sure they would have swollowed them if they could have got at them!

 

[Whispering Winds]

My uncle ran an elevator years ago, and he and another man went in together on a turkey project. There must have been over a 1000 of them. One time when it rained, a bunch of them jumped into a 55 gallon drum they had for some reason, and they either drowned or smothered. Aunt Dixie would honk her car horn and you should have heard them, they went crazy and gobbled their heads off. But if you look at the size of their heads compared to the size of their bodies. . sort of gives us an idea of their brain capacity.

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

Yeah turkeys are a little slow,compared to other poultry. But they are smart in their own right. Just slow not dumb

 

[ScoobyRoo]

Quote:
Thanks for the positive note Harp. We have 3 poults and DH is hatching out 13 turkey eggs and I have wondered???????? So, we need to be patient and understanding to these beautiful creatures? Hopefully we will have fun with them.

 

[Mary Of Exeter]

Funny how domestic turkey are pretty slow, and yet wild turkey are pretty smart. I guess the wild guys HAVE to be somewhat smart to survive, but you would think our domestics would have inherited a little bit of those brains

 

[brewmiss96]

I've only raised 2 turkeys, but both my girls were curious as all heck. I wouldn't have called them dumb, just wanting to know what you were doing, and if they could eat it.

 

[LoveMyBirds]

Quote:
Yeah, that's the answer, ... they are very curious and what's for lunch, baby..

How about your finger, ok,, I'll try your shirt button then...

And you forgot about them being hard-headed... (Stubborn)..

Here let me move you into this building and you make your nest here.... Ms Turkey says.. I don't think so, liked my outdoor fresh air spot much better thank you, Now open this gate up...