Turkeys For 2013

[erinszoo]

12 fully hatched (had to help one a little that got stuck ... always the big ones seem to get stuck) and 2 more pipped and zipping. I had 2 quit in the last two days and there are 3 more that are a few days behind the others. They are still moving so that's good. I'm not sure what we are doing right exactly to have gotten good hatches lately but I'm glad we have. We got a new bator at Christmas which helps keep the temp and humidity more stable than we could in our homemade ones but even so we had them all developing just fine before, we just couldn't get them to hatch. The only real change has been that we are keeping them with the air sacks up until they are fully zipped by placing them in egg cartons when we take them out of the turner instead of just laying them down in the tray. We're still ending up with a couple in each batch that seem to quit the day we take them out of the turner. Guess that's just the way of it sometimes.

 

[1MrsMagoo]

Mine have started laying I will probably try to hatch them in the incubator this year.

I won't get off topic and talk about geese, since this is our turkey thread.

But have to ask, have you hatched goose eggs in an incubator before. I'm studying and reading and I have a HEADACHE !!!!!!!!!!!

I hatch goose eggs in the incubator. Go to the stickies on the duck thread and find Pete55's Waterfowl Incubation guide. Follow that and you can't get it wrong. I hatched 9 of 11 I set last year from my pair. I have 17 in the bator right now and am showing growth on six of them!

 

[1MrsMagoo]

Did my turkeys join the union and go on strike? I have 5 hens out of 13, that were laying until a week ago, then turkey eggs went down to 3 a day, yesterday only 2 eggs and so far today only one. I take all the eggs for incubating, so 3 of the hens are sitting on stolen chicken eggs! The original 2 turkeys 2 and 3 years old now, haven't even started to lay yet, and they started laying last year in February. Is anyone out there having this same thing happen, or should I go on an egg hunt? Every time I am outside, I can count all 13 hens, so if they are sneaking off, it's not for long! Sometimes, when it is raining, they will wonder over to the next door neighbors to eat some bugs over there, since they have eaten ALL of ours, which he doesn't mind, they keep the mosquitoes down, but they all come home after they have full bellies and everyone is accounted for. Last year, one of my two hens, then, wondered off and laid eggs in a neighbor's tractor shed, but she stayed gone most of the day, until I had to go every evening and get her and the egg. It really does not seam like they are laying anywhere, just stopped????????

Well, we certainly can't have the turkeys organizing and forming a union: We couldn't afford to raise them once we fix their standard of living!
Anyway, I FINALLY had one of my hens start laying again on the 13th after a TWO week strike. The kicker is, that it isn't even one of the two hens that were laying before the strike started. I caught the girl depositing her egg and it is one of my younger hens. I can tell she is the only one laying since she has the lightest egg color and least amount of speckles on the shell.

I guess I just have to wait and hope that they all start laying again pretty soon.

 

[Sally8]

Noo union for my turkeys either! lol Once the hen hatches the eggs, do I need to remove them so they won't get stomped? Never had a hen set on eggs before so I'm unsure. I'm so proud of Rosie. I've never had a turkey, let alone have her be so consistent sitting on eggs. Love you Rosie!

 

[Sally8]

Noo union for my turkeys either! lol Once the hen hatches the eggs, do I need to remove them so they won't get stomped? Never had a hen set on eggs before so I'm unsure. I'm so proud of Rosie. I've never had a turkey, let alone have her be so consistent sitting on eggs. Love you Rosie!

 

[Sally8]

sorry, posted twice!

 

[Sally8]

Actually posted 3x. Happened yesterday too. sorry

 

[Sally8]

I GIVE UP DON'T KNOW WHAT'S GOING ON!!!

 

[kuntrygirl]

Mine have started laying I will probably try to hatch them in the incubator this year.


I won't get off topic and talk about geese, since this is our turkey thread. But have to ask, have you hatched goose eggs in an incubator before. I'm studying and reading and I have a HEADACHE !!!!!!!!!!!

I really think they make it more complicated than it is. I used a Styrofoam incubator without a turner, I bought the goose egg turner for my hovabator but my goose eggs were too heavy for it and it just sat there trying with all it's might to turn and never could. The temp is a little different and be sure to cool them once a day for 20 minutes. Turn when you leave for work in the morning, when you get home and when you go to bed. If I remember correctly we have similar work schedules. You will want to up the humidity in the bator to 70 for lock down. On my first attempt at incubating anything I had a 100 percent hatch. I can't remember the incubating humidity but I think it is around 40 percent.

This is why I'm nervous. The cooling, misting and high temps is making me crazy just thinking about hatching. When you say that the temp is a little different, what do you mean? I will have mine in auto turners and they will turn all day, so do I still need to do the 3 times a day turn as you mentioned?

Thank you for commenting on our similar work schedules and giving me tips and pointers. That helps A LOT!

I have printed out Pete's Guide and have been studying it for about a week.

 

[kuntrygirl]

Did my turkeys join the union and go on strike? I have 5 hens out of 13, that were laying until a week ago, then turkey eggs went down to 3 a day, yesterday only 2 eggs and so far today only one. I take all the eggs for incubating, so 3 of the hens are sitting on stolen chicken eggs! The original 2 turkeys 2 and 3 years old now, haven't even started to lay yet, and they started laying last year in February. Is anyone out there having this same thing happen, or should I go on an egg hunt? Every time I am outside, I can count all 13 hens, so if they are sneaking off, it's not for long! Sometimes, when it is raining, they will wonder over to the next door neighbors to eat some bugs over there, since they have eaten ALL of ours, which he doesn't mind, they keep the mosquitoes down, but they all come home after they have full bellies and everyone is accounted for. Last year, one of my two hens, then, wondered off and laid eggs in a neighbor's tractor shed, but she stayed gone most of the day, until I had to go every evening and get her and the egg. It really does not seam like they are laying anywhere, just stopped????????

Oh say it ain't so. Are they on strike!??????

I'm not having problems in my neck of the woods. I suggest an Easter Egg Hunt at this time. Put on your camouflage pants and shirt and boots and hat and put some of that black stuff under each eye like they do on TV and "Let The Games Begin".