Turkeys For 2013

[Arielle]

I have written in my notes: Valbazen .5cc dose per bird/repeat in 10 days (standard size fowl)

Sometimes easier to give it to them on a piece of bread instead of in the mouth.

Thanks . . .Thats what I have too for info-- good to have notes confirmed. So the best I can do is triple the dose for the hens and 3-4x for the males. WE just finished all the chickens and ducks--I haven't told my family they will be doing this again in 10 days!!! lol Better to wait until then though
the kids had great fun loading syringes and injecting the cubes of bread . . . . much easier if the birds are accustomed to eating bread-- those that have never been offered bread didn't touch it. We did those by syringe.

BTW, I have been looking at the dogs on line at the local Pyr rescue-- and with a heavy heart I have decided that an adult pyrs is not the best and safest option for my family and chickens. I just really don't know how any of these dogs were treated and in reality they have nice homes while they are in foster care. Finding the right dog, within our budget, is a challenge in practicing patience.

 

[gardengoats11]

Made Turkey pot pie using the recipe (posted by uphilljill - I think). If you have any left over turkey still, I would suggest this recipe. I was wonderful. I made a pot pie and a noodle casserole from the recipe as it makes enough for 2 pot pies. Yum!

 

[uphilljill]

 

[Sydney Acres]

Hi everyone,
I've raised chickens for about 15 years, but this summer ordered 10 assorted heritage turkey poults from Sandhill Preservation Center. Three died the first day (the shipment got delayed one day en route), but the other seven are now 6 months old. There are two Slate Blue toms, one Slate Blue hen, two Spanish Black hens, one Bronze hen (heritage bronze, not BBB), and one Royal Palm hen. My original plan in buying an assortment was to decide which breed I preferred, keep a tom and 3-5 hens, and then start breeding for meat.

Well, culling is going to be harder than I thought. I thought chickens were wonderful, but these turkeys are amazing. I have never seen such personalities. I could see myself becoming a serious breeder, but I have to be careful. They're so much fun that I want to keep them all. The last thing I need is to end up on an episode of "Animals Hoarders."

So before I jump in head first, I need a good reference guide, specific to heritage breeds. I've done very well with these seven so far, but I don't really know what I'm doing. Is there a good book that someone can recommend that covers all the details -- what to feed at specific stages of life, when do they start laying eggs, how long do they lay eggs (seasonal like wild birds, or year round like layer hens, or variable depending on the breed, like dual purpose chicken breeds?), what is the ideal tom to hen ratio, how are brooding hens managed, how long do they continue to reproduce, how long do they live if well managed and not slaughtered, etc, etc.?? I strictly free range my birds, and have no interest in raising birds as an intensive agricultural business, so most of my questions are not answered in traditional livestock textbooks. And the heritage breeds are so different than the broad breasted birds that much of the available "turkey" information may not even be accurate for the heritage birds. I feel totally clueless!! Any help would be appreciated.

--April

 

[Arielle]

Hi everyone,
I've raised chickens for about 15 years, but this summer ordered 10 assorted heritage turkey poults from Sandhill Preservation Center. Three died the first day (the shipment got delayed one day en route), but the other seven are now 6 months old. There are two Slate Blue toms, one Slate Blue hen, two Spanish Black hens, one Bronze hen (heritage bronze, not BBB), and one Royal Palm hen. My original plan in buying an assortment was to decide which breed I preferred, keep a tom and 3-5 hens, and then start breeding for meat.

Well, culling is going to be harder than I thought. I thought chickens were wonderful, but these turkeys are amazing. I have never seen such personalities. I could see myself becoming a serious breeder, but I have to be careful. They're so much fun that I want to keep them all. The last thing I need is to end up on an episode of "Animals Hoarders."

So before I jump in head first, I need a good reference guide, specific to heritage breeds. I've done very well with these seven so far, but I don't really know what I'm doing. Is there a good book that someone can recommend that covers all the details -- what to feed at specific stages of life, when do they start laying eggs, how long do they lay eggs (seasonal like wild birds, or year round like layer hens, or variable depending on the breed, like dual purpose chicken breeds?), what is the ideal tom to hen ratio, how are brooding hens managed, how long do they continue to reproduce, how long do they live if well managed and not slaughtered, etc, etc.?? I strictly free range my birds, and have no interest in raising birds as an intensive agricultural business, so most of my questions are not answered in traditional livestock textbooks. And the heritage breeds are so different than the broad breasted birds that much of the available "turkey" information may not even be accurate for the heritage birds. I feel totally clueless!! Any help would be appreciated.

--April

Hi April!!

FYI-- this thread will be closing at the end of the month, and we will be jumping to the TUrkeys for 2014 thread-- just don't want you to get left behind . . . .

I only have a few breeds and none of the breeds you listed so I"ll refrain from breed info. I leep all my breeding stock penned. . . .but do let the babies free range. Just wait until they land on yourcar or start to fall off and scramble putting nice big scratches in the paint job. lol Or have a dog that thinks he should round up the creatures but doesn't have a clue . . .

I had 2 tom to 6 hens in one pen and did well; and 1 tom with 2-3 hens. Lots of info here if you are willing to read from the begininng post #1. Remember the tom doesn't need to "visit " a girl every day for her to be fertilized-- she carries the extra with her.

Welcome to TURKEYS!!

 

[Arielle]

We are eating turkey pie for dinner tonight--mixed veg, roasted turkey and gravy, topped with onions saauted in butter, and the butter mixed into the mashed potatos. SHowed son how to make it--"this is good" . Will see if second son thinks the same thing. I depended on garlic salt and thyme to up the flavor a bit.

 

[desertmarcy]

Hi everyone,
I've raised chickens for about 15 years, but this summer ordered 10 assorted heritage turkey poults from Sandhill Preservation Center. Three died the first day (the shipment got delayed one day en route), but the other seven are now 6 months old. There are two Slate Blue toms, one Slate Blue hen, two Spanish Black hens, one Bronze hen (heritage bronze, not BBB), and one Royal Palm hen. My original plan in buying an assortment was to decide which breed I preferred, keep a tom and 3-5 hens, and then start breeding for meat.

Well, culling is going to be harder than I thought. I thought chickens were wonderful, but these turkeys are amazing. I have never seen such personalities. I could see myself becoming a serious breeder, but I have to be careful. They're so much fun that I want to keep them all. The last thing I need is to end up on an episode of "Animals Hoarders."

So before I jump in head first, I need a good reference guide, specific to heritage breeds. I've done very well with these seven so far, but I don't really know what I'm doing. Is there a good book that someone can recommend that covers all the details -- what to feed at specific stages of life, when do they start laying eggs, how long do they lay eggs (seasonal like wild birds, or year round like layer hens, or variable depending on the breed, like dual purpose chicken breeds?), what is the ideal tom to hen ratio, how are brooding hens managed, how long do they continue to reproduce, how long do they live if well managed and not slaughtered, etc, etc.?? I strictly free range my birds, and have no interest in raising birds as an intensive agricultural business, so most of my questions are not answered in traditional livestock textbooks. And the heritage breeds are so different than the broad breasted birds that much of the available "turkey" information may not even be accurate for the heritage birds. I feel totally clueless!! Any help would be appreciated.

--April

I was advised by a poultry judge and heritage turkey breeder that the best book is Marsden and Martin's "Turkey Management". It is an old book, first published in 1939 with at least 5 editions printed after that. Considered the bible for anybody serious about heritage turkeys. It is not always easy to find used, but keep your eyes open and search the internet. I finally found my copy from Amazon.com of all places.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote: Thank you so much Desertmarcy. I have done a quick internet search this morning and found several options for the book. In addition to buying a used book over the internet, there is also the first edition online from Cornell (http://chla.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=chla;cc=chla;type=simple;rgn=full%20text;q1=turkey%20management;view=reslist;subview=detail;sort=occur;start=1;size=25;didno=3317008), and the physical book is available in several university libraries. I will be contacting my local library when they open this morning to see if they can have the book shipped to them for lending out by a bookshare program. I don't know if such a program is set up locally, but it was available where I lived previously. Otherwise, I may have to drive down to the university to set up a library account with them.. Given that the book is so expensive (for a used book, prices ranged from $75-200) and so large (the first edition is over 700 pages, and I think the 6th edition is over 900 pages), I'd like to look at it before deciding to buy it.

There were some people from various sites that said they had heard that certain editions were better than others, but that they weren't sure of which ones were superior or in what way. One person commented that there was little or no information about Beltsville Whites in the earlier editions, but that was the only specific thing I could find. Does anyone here know any details about which edition is best, and why? There is a wide price range, but I don't want to get the cheapest one if it's not useful.

 

[desertmarcy]

Thank you so much Desertmarcy. I have done a quick internet search this morning and found several options for the book. In addition to buying a used book over the internet, there is also the first edition online from Cornell (http://chla.library.cornell.edu/cgi/t/text/text-idx?c=chla;cc=chla;type=simple;rgn=full%20text;q1=turkey%20management;view=reslist;subview=detail;sort=occur;start=1;size=25;didno=3317008), and the physical book is available in several university libraries. I will be contacting my local library when they open this morning to see if they can have the book shipped to them for lending out by a bookshare program. I don't know if such a program is set up locally, but it was available where I lived previously. Otherwise, I may have to drive down to the university to set up a library account with them.. Given that the book is so expensive (for a used book, prices ranged from $75-200) and so large (the first edition is over 700 pages, and I think the 6th edition is over 900 pages), I'd like to look at it before deciding to buy it.

There were some people from various sites that said they had heard that certain editions were better than others, but that they weren't sure of which ones were superior or in what way. One person commented that there was little or no information about Beltsville Whites in the earlier editions, but that was the only specific thing I could find. Does anyone here know any details about which edition is best, and why? There is a wide price range, but I don't want to get the cheapest one if it's not useful.

I bought the Fifth Ed. It is 774 pg, incl. index and I got it for $54 including shipping. The judge who recommended it to me had said 5th ed. or later, I am assuming because of the new information added. This edition does talk about the Beltsville Small Whites. He also told me his poultry book seller sells it for around $40 when they have a copy. I could never find one that cheap, so when I saw this one listed on Amazon, I went ahead and bought it. There is definitely a wide range of price for this book, some are outrageous. So it pays to be patient and just keep a look out. The Amazon listed said it was paperback, but it was not---it was hardback, which is what I wanted. Yes, you can read it on line for free, but I find that very tedious. I am only a short way into this book, so can't yet tell you if I've got my money's worth LOL.

 

[Sydney Acres]

Quote: Wow, that's a fabulous price. I'd snap it up if I could find a fifth edition for that much.
I've contacted my local library, and they can get me copies of both the 5th and 6th editions through interlibrary loan. It'll take 4-8 weeks to receive, and I'll have anywhere from 1-3 weeks to look them over (the library that owns the books determines how long they'll let me keep them, so won't know until they arrive). This way I can decide if I want to buy a copy, and which edition. Thank you so much for the lead.