Turkeys For 2013

[LeslieDJoyce]

I'm planning on raising some turkeys next year 2014. Right now i'm doing real good with a flock of 50 chickens. My question are what are the best meat turkeys? How long do you raise them? Should i hatch them like I do my chickens?

The industry standard birds are Broad Breasted White ... they grow big and fast and don't "keep" well because of it.

Another breed, Broad Breasted Bronze, is the same except the feathers are closer to the cartoon image of turkey ... dark.

The white birds "dress" better, so says the industry. That's why the BBW are preferred. I think perhaps the BBB get a little bigger.

Those birds don't fly much, if at all. They are just too large.

Heritage breeds are smaller, grow more slowly, and you can "keep" them. There are several attractive options of heritage breeds.

There are pros and cons of both types. It really depends on how big of a bird you want, how quickly you want it to get that big, if you can deal with flying birds that might want to roost on top of vehicles ... and if you plan to sell turkeys, it is a good idea to know your customer preferences.

 

[Arielle]

I made the trip yesterday to the processor- took 4 males. 2 from AUg 2012 hatch ( AUburns) and 2 crosses ( spring 2013).

THe auburns. I stood looking down at the boys while they were relaxed to look at the width of the bird then I checked out the meatiness in the breast area. I picked one of the bigger auburns because his breast area was lighter than one of the smaller boys. THat leaves me 2 toms and a spare. Still need a hen though!!

 

[piglett]

I made the trip yesterday to the processor- took 4 males. 2 from AUg 2012 hatch ( AUburns) and 2 crosses ( spring 2013).

THe auburns. I stood looking down at the boys while they were relaxed to look at the width of the bird then I checked out the meatiness in the breast area. I picked one of the bigger auburns because his breast area was lighter than one of the smaller boys. THat leaves me 2 toms and a spare. Still need a hen though!!

we have a pair of bronze in a pen out behind one of the coops
i want to put a metal roof over it for them before we get a bunch of snow
i think i'll also add a heavy tarp on the back side for a wind break
the warmer they are the less food they should eat

 

[Chad Cool]

Do you hatch turkey eggs or buy already hatchted?

 

[yinepu]

Quote:
You can also pinion the wings of day old poults. It does make for an "odd wing" at butchering (and on the table). But it does solve the issue of them flying. It also makes them a bit easier for predators to pick them off. So you just have to weigh the pros with the cons of pinioning.

Since we don't sell ours and don't care about a missing wing tip we will start pinioning ours. It will help keep them away from the closest neighbor's "junkyard" (and his dog).. . His dog ended up with one of our Thanksgiving birds who decided to take a flight across the pasture the other day when the storms moved in. Since he was just a few days from butchering you can imagine the feast the dog had!

plus we pinion our muscovys, so it's no big deal for us... but it is an option to consider if you want to free range but limit flying.

 

[yinepu]

Do you hatch turkey eggs or buy already hatchted?

I do both!

 

[LeslieDJoyce]

You can also pinion the wings of day old poults. It does make for an "odd wing" at butchering (and on the table). But it does solve the issue of them flying. It also makes them a bit easier for predators to pick them off. So you just have to weigh the pros with the cons of pinioning.

Since we don't sell ours and don't care about a missing wing tip we will start pinioning ours. It will help keep them away from the closest neighbor's "junkyard" (and his dog).. . His dog ended up with one of our Thanksgiving birds who decided to take a flight across the pasture the other day when the storms moved in. Since he was just a few days from butchering you can imagine the feast the dog had!

plus we pinion our muscovys, so it's no big deal for us... but it is an option to consider if you want to free range but limit flying.

I have to admit I've never heard of this! I know clipping doesn't work ... at least not on the few chickens I've been desperate enough to try it on. I'm very interested in muscovy ducks, but so far have avoided ducks that fly. I'd love to keep turkeys ... they are so personable ... but haven't thought too far into heritage breeds as I've got other priorities and was worried about the flight.

I'll have to look into pinioning. Thanks!

 

[yinepu]

Quote:
for muscovys, pinioning one wing is one of the "requirements" listed by the federal government to mark them as being domestic (the laws are still in limbo as far as I know). Other methods of marking them are by tattooing the webbing of the feet and solid leg bands. Since pinioning day olds is easy, we opted for that

 

[kuntrygirl]

 

[chicken pickin]

LOL