Turkeys?

[CrealCritter]

It will give you more than just seeds to search this winter.

I've been told that they are pretty dumb as young ones. ? ? ? So maybe use your CCX tractor for them until they get a little older? By then you will be ready to add the quickie CCX flock. I'm helping you think....ok, enabling

You have an incubator?

Absolutely Young turkey are a little on the retarded side, I kid you not I had one die because it was to dumb to walk 10 feet to get out of the rain. That is if they don't have there mom to raise them. It seems their mom knows how to raise them for the most part. But here is where it gets challenging. If you do have say two hens hatching eggs some of the chicks take to one hen and the other chicks take to the other hen. After a while it become like a the Hatfield's and McCoy's with hens killing the other hens chicks then factor in the Tom taking out the jakes and soon you'll not have any chicks left. So I found it best to pull the chicks right after they hatch and put them under a red heat lamp. Deal with the retardation until it passes then intorduce the young hens into the flock with a mature Tom. The Tom's I keep together until they get to the age and want to start breading. Then I decide to I butcher all the young Tom's or do I replace my old Tom with new young Tom? A lot of thought goes into this decision. I go by personality and how well defined their markings are mainly on their tail feathers.i also look at their toes any with crook toes are butchered for meals.

I really think you'll like turkeys. The hens have quite the vocabulary and after some time you'll get to know what they are trying to tell you. A "POP" means there is something new in their area. A POP POP POP means this new thing might be dangerous. A POP POP POP POP or rapid repeating of multiple POPs means yep it's dangerous, like snake. A KEY KEY KEY sound means they are out of water or they are hungry. A Thump or Drum sound means they are happy. Like when you bring them water and or food or when you go and check up on them. They also make a PURRRR sound when they are coming into mating season.

You kind of learn some of this if you hunting for wild turkeys. Mainly the Key Key Key because that's what sound the box calls make.

 

[Finnie]

Absolutely Young turkey are a little on the retarded side, I kid you not I had one die because it was to dumb to walk 10 feet to get out of the rain. That is if they don't have there mom to raise them. It seems their mom knows how to raise them for the most part. But here is where it gets challenging. If you do have say two hens hatching eggs some of the chicks take to one hen and the other chicks take to the other hen. After a while it become like a the Hatfield's and McCoy's with hens killing the other hens chicks then factor in the Tom taking out the jakes and soon you'll not have any chicks left. So I found it best to pull the chicks right after they hatch and put them under a red heat lamp. Deal with the retardation until it passes then intorduce the young hens into the flock with a mature Tom. The Tom's I keep together until they get to the age and want to start breading. Then I decide to I butcher all the young Tom's or do I replace my old Tom with new young Tom? A lot of thought goes into this decision. I go by personality and how well defined their markings are mainly on their tail feathers.i also look at their toes any with crook toes are butchered for meals.

I really think you'll like turkeys. The hens have quite the vocabulary and after some time you'll get to know what they are trying to tell you. A "POP" means there is something new in their area. A POP POP POP means this new thing might be dangerous. A POP POP POP POP or rapid repeating of multiple POPs means yep it's dangerous, like snake. A KEY KEY KEY sound means they are out of water or they are hungry. A Thump or Drum sound means they are happy. Like when you bring them water and or food or when you go and check up on them. They also make a PURRRR sound when they are coming into mating season.

They also make a sound exactly like a flock of sandhill cranes flying in the sky. That indicates there is a bird of prey in the sky. The first time I heard it, I thought it was cranes, and I began searching the sky, because you know, you can hear a flock of cranes long before you can spot them. But no cranes, and then I saw that it was my turkey hens making the noise, and looking upward. Followed their line of sight, and there was a hawk WAY up there. I learned over the years, when they make that noise, there is ALWAYS a hawk. It might be so high up that it’s only a speck, or it might be in front of the sun so I can’t see it. But it will be there somewhere. It always amazes me how they can look almost straight at the sun and see a hawk up there.

 

[CrealCritter]

They also make a sound exactly like a flock of sandhill cranes flying in the sky. That indicates there is a bird of prey in the sky. The first time I heard it, I thought it was cranes, and I began searching the sky, because you know, you can hear a flock of cranes long before you can spot them. But no cranes, and then I saw that it was my turkey hens making the noise, and looking upward. Followed their line of sight, and there was a hawk WAY up there. I learned over the years, when they make that noise, there is ALWAYS a hawk. It might be so high up that it’s only a speck, or it might be in front of the sun so I can’t see it. But it will be there somewhere. It always amazes me how they can look almost straight at the sun and see a hawk up there.

Yep your right about the crane sound. We have hawks, eagles and turkey buzzards. They make that sound when they see them circling. It's funny to watch them bend their neck and look up with just a single eye and like you said a little speck to us but they seem to know what it is.

I leaned about the POP sounds by trial end error. I threw a acorn in their yard. The hens circled it making a single POP sound. When they figured out it was ok they stopped circling and went about being turkey hens. Then I tried a toad and they first made the single POP when it jumped they made three POPs. Then sitting on the porch they were doing a rapid multiple POPs I went out there and sure enough they had surrounded a snake.

The Tom's are way less vocal. The sound of them displaying like a BUMP and their wing feathers dragging the ground. Then of course the Gobble Gobble Gobble for any new loud noise.

 

[baymule]

Finnie, what kind of turkeys did you have?

 

[Rammy]

And just where did this turkey learn this behavior? :Lol 10lbs and no turkey hens. he probably thought he was a chicken and the hens were his to mate. Yes I've had Tom's mount chickens. Chickens are little hussies, they just lay there.

Seriously if your going to keep just a Tom, keep him separate for any other fowl or at the very least get him two turkey hens, the more turkey hens the better. Never keep two turkey Tom's together with turkey hens even in sight of the Tom's. One morning you'll wake up to one dead Tom. Because they will fight to the death for the right to breed the hens. Which is what a suspect happened in your case.

Doesnt matter now. He tasted real good.

 

[Mini Horses]

Love the lesson on turkey language!!

All animals have their own language -- verbal and body -- it is important to know. Enables you to handle safely and use their keys to help you. Plus experience with raising sure helps anyone just getting into any animal. Behaviors are key to successful handling.

 

[Mini Horses]

https://mickeyandannsfarmette.com

@baymule here's a place about 15 miles from me....in nowhere land! ....and they do a lot of farm sales. Started little, got bigger. If you look at section where you select inventory available you get prices. So, a lot of work but $15 for a lb of shelled limas is beyond my allowance. they do quite well! Anyway, check out the food from nowhere get. I can grow a lot of squash for that. Heck I'd be able to retire to do it. What we will pay and what we can sell for is way different.

Notice they added turkey about 6 yr ago.

 

[CrealCritter]

Another thing you'll like about heritage turkeys Bay, is they don't practice "Scorched Earth" like chickens do. Turkeys mainly eat seeds and bugs when on the pasture. Whereas a chickens will eat everything including the roots.

 

[baymule]

If I want to move turkeys from one pasture to another and then back home for the night, do they drive or will they follow? It would be nice to put them in the garden in the fall so they could eat the danged grasshoppers. I have a small coop in the garden (want to tear it down) and have chickens in it now. They and the sheep have really enjoyed themselves on my weeds, seeds, grasshoppers and other bugs.

What about acorns? We have lots of oak trees. This year there hasn't been much in the way of acorns, but most years, there is plenty.

 

[frustratedearthmother]

If I want to move turkeys from one pasture to another and then back home for the night, do they drive or will they follow?

You're gonna need another dog! One of those herding type of critters!