Chickadoodles, if the lady you got him from thought he was a Royal Palm, there is a good chance he isn't even a MW, he could be a Beltsville Small White or even a White Holland. On another poultry forum, Brian Decker, APA judge and breeder of Beltsville Small Whites, had this to say about the MW:
~~As with many things written by the ALBC there are huge inaccuracies in their description of the Midget White and it's story. The are only marginally smaller that a Beltsville Small White and not near as broad in the breast. They can never become a Standard variety in the APA because there is very little difference between the two. I had Midget Whites straight from eggs supplied by the University of Wisconsin in the late 90's. In my opinion they are not as good a market turkey as a Beltsville. If one has them and wants to show you would show them as Beltsvilles and if they are in good condition one may well win the class with them. Midgets were research turkeys. When I received my Midget eggs from Ron Keen from the UW he stated that they were on an all in all out program and had at that time had 27 generations in 27 years. He stated that about all they culled for was too big or too small. Brian Decker APA/ABA judge Read more:
http://showbirdbid.proboards.com/thread/2948/midget-whites#ixzz2mBJNxnOm\
also he said:
~~I believe there are many fewer pure Beltsville's than there are pure Midgets if you are talking DNA. In the APA we have a Small White turkey called a Beltsville Small White that is in our Standard and as long as your turkey meets the Beltsville APA standard for type and color in the exhibition hall it is as pure as snow. They can never get Midget Whites into the standard because there is almost no discernible difference. I can talk with a little experience since I had Midgets in the 90's that I hatched from eggs sent to me from the University of Wisconsin. I now breed Beltsville's that as far as I can determine are pure Beltsville's that originated from the Beltsville flock that was at the University of Ontario in ca. The difference is very small. I believe the Belts have slightly better bodies than the Midgets had and being a born again carnivore that means something to me. If people want to show a Small White Turkey in a show with an APA sanction they SHOULD just write Beltsville Small White on their turkey entry blank Brian Decker Read more:
http://showbirdbid.proboards.com/thread/2948/midget-whites#ixzz2mBK5y5Y9
~~The ALBC blurb about Midgets is full of inaccuracies. One, the Midgets that I hatched from eggs straight from the research flock at the University of Wisconsin weren't near as small as the weights that are attributed to them. They weren't bred to be a Bantam Turkey they were bred to be a research turkey and smaller size meant less cost to the University. At the time I got the eggs Ron Keen stated that the culling of each years young birds kept for breeders was basically rejecting those that were too big or too Small. Secondly we always need to read in our APA Standard the front of the book as well as the specifics under the breed. 2010 APA Standard page 30 where it states "under standard" Read C. there is no cut for underweight in Belts. On page 33 under the heading "weights" it states that the twenty % under weight disqualification rule doesn't apply to Belts. Also in the first column on page 30 under " C breaking ties" it states in number 4 and 5 when talking about breaking ties It states that in Belts the smaller specimen wins. In 1997 at the Combined APA/ABA National at Columbus Ohio I won a prize for Best White Turkey. I was showing a Midget young tom that I had entered as a Beltsville Small White. If you want to show your Midgets it is the only way unless you want to show them as a NON Standard Breed and then they only compete against Midgets and can't be judged for Best and Reserve Turkey. Brian Decker Read more:
http://showbirdbid.proboards.com/thread/2948/midget-whites#ixzz2mBKXBsY4
