Turkeys and Electric Netting

[Chicken Heel]

Have seen the same with the PFR on occasion. Besides the cheeseburgers , another reason I make the trek to Hurdle Mills is that their feeds to tend to be from recent dates. And I have never seen a single bug in any of their feeds which may be related to their fresheness.

Question for Molpet and/or R2elk: My jakes don't fluff up and strut when I am feeding and watering them, or stirring up the bedding in the coop. If anyone else is with me, they do. Does that mean they think I am the Alpha? And it appears that I have 6 hens and 6 jakes which makes me happy.

 

[R2elk]

Question for Molpet and/or R2elk: My jakes don't fluff up and strut when I am feeding and watering them, or stirring up the bedding in the coop. If anyone else is with me, they do. Does that mean they think I am the Alpha? And it appears that I have 6 hens and 6 jakes which makes me happy.

You are the boss and not to be challenged. Someone new shows up and they show off for them.

Mine will do the same in the brooder or in the grow out pen. As adults they avoid people, especially strangers. I suspect that it may have to do with "new people = someone is leaving".

 

[Molpet]

Question for Molpet and/or R2elk: My jakes don't fluff up and strut when I am feeding and watering them, or stirring up the bedding in the coop. If anyone else is with me, they do. Does that mean they think I am the Alpha? And it appears that I have 6 hens and 6 jakes which makes me happy.

My current toms will strut at hens. If I approach, as soon as they realize I'm near enough to be a problem, they deflate and move away. The jakes don't strut if a tom or myself are in sight. Come breeding season this spring the jakes left will try to move up the pecking order.... which makes it easier to catch and invite to dinner.
When my cousin came by, with grass they swept up on a hayrack pulled by a tractor, they all run. They are used to my tractor bring cut grass so it's not the tractor but stranger danger.

 

[Chicken Heel]

I appreciate the answers R2elk and Molpet. As a first timer raising turkeys, sounds like I did a pretty good job of not having them imprint on me and thinking I was just another turkey. I greatly appreciate all the advice and feedback from you two and others on this thread.

 

[Berd Man]

To continue the discussion on poultry imprinting and later behavior as sub-adults/adults…

I’m sure there’s a spectrum of behavior, I really think these are fairly intelligent birds. Surely there are some individual exceptions… not every hand raised turkey is an aggressive and dangerous turkey.

On the other hand, when people have a problem Tom, usually it’s a human imprinted bird…

I have noticed that the turkeys don’t strut and flare up merely because of my presence. But if I make a loud noise, sneeze perhaps, it usually causes the jakes to erupt in a chorus of gobbles. They will often strut afterwards, battle one another, and wing escort hens lol

If I approach, they “deflate” but will sometimes re-engage one another in strutting displays in my presence. Sometimes they angle the tail my direction and give me a pass by with a spit /drum noise… I have no idea what this means, but if Tom’s do that stuff to get mates …I’m guessing he wants to, you know…

I’ll say this, I wouldn’t take a nap in the turkey yard or anything like that. I’d be quick tying boots too

 

[Chicken Heel]

I also believe turkeys are intelligent based on my brief experience with them and I am really enjoying them. Keep asking myself why I waited so long (I'm 63) to try my hand with them. I have had chickens for most of my life. I believe it was my dad that spooked me about them. He said that whenever he tried to raise them as a boy, that they would do fine for a few weeks and then die. I now know that they most likely died from coccidia overload. And I now live on the homeplace property where he was reared so I like to think he is smiling down on me as I take care of mine.

 

[Berd Man]

Just wanted to post some photos up here…

~19 weeks old now. My choice of what jake to keep is now apparent… he’s got way more caruncle material on the wattle, the hens think he’s all that. He knows it too….

Last one is my sweetest jenny. The other girls don’t really interact with me unless it’s food related. This one follows me like the jakes and wants to be petted. If you don’t pet her she scratches your foot until you do.

 

[Berd Man]

And then there were two. The 5 Narragansett/ Golden Narragansett brothers were fighting too much and I could not stand the looks of their bloody and swollen faces… some were quivering after hours long battles that spanned the entire property…a testament to their tenacity I suppose.

I ended up keeping the most docile two toms of the bunch. I am going to call the golden Narragansett, “Chief” and the Narragansett, “Sergeant”.

Hopefully they will be permanent residents here and do a good job giving the hens fertile turkey eggs next year for us to hatch. We have 5 Narragansett / Golden Narragansett hens and I am growing out a few mixed crosses that are 8 weeks old. I plan to keep several hens from that group so that everyone will be more comfortable next spring during breeding season.

I’m going to be gearing up for winter now, my first winter with turkeys. I have a few heated waterers, plenty of dry hay/bedding, and I got the feed barrels stocked.

Winter is hard for me because as soon as snow covers the bottom few strands of wire on the electric netting I use, the fence loses its charge significantly at best and completely at worst. I have to be much more vigilant about predators / dogs. I know the turkeys won’t stray far, so that is good at least.

What are some things you all do prep for winter with your turkeys?

 

[Chicken Heel]

And then there were two. The 5 Narragansett/ Golden Narragansett brothers were fighting too much and I could not stand the looks of their bloody and swollen faces… some were quivering after hours long battles that spanned the entire property…a testament to their tenacity I suppose.

I ended up keeping the most docile two toms of the bunch. I am going to call the golden Narragansett, “Chief” and the Narragansett, “Sergeant”.
View attachment 3970254
Hopefully they will be permanent residents here and do a good job giving the hens fertile turkey eggs next year for us to hatch. We have 5 Narragansett / Golden Narragansett hens and I am growing out a few mixed crosses that are 8 weeks old. I plan to keep several hens from that group so that everyone will be more comfortable next spring during breeding season.
View attachment 3970267
I’m going to be gearing up for winter now, my first winter with turkeys. I have a few heated waterers, plenty of dry hay/bedding, and I got the feed barrels stocked.

Winter is hard for me because as soon as snow covers the bottom few strands of wire on the electric netting I use, the fence loses its charge significantly at best and completely at worst. I have to be much more vigilant about predators / dogs. I know the turkeys won’t stray far, so that is good at least.

What are some things you all do prep for winter with your turkeys?

Love the photos. I'm also gearing up for my first winter with my 12 (4 Jakes and 8 Hens) that were 19 weeks of age as of yesterday. But our winters along the central VA/NC border are not too bad. My biggest worry right now are hounds and deer hunters that are hunting with them. In VA, the hunters are allowed to go on private property to retrieve their dogs while the dogs have been known to kill livestock, especially poultry.

 

[Berd Man]

Love the photos. I'm also gearing up for my first winter with my 12 (4 Jakes and 8 Hens) that were 19 weeks of age as of yesterday. But our winters along the central VA/NC border are not too bad. My biggest worry right now are hounds and deer hunters that are hunting with them. In VA, the hunters are allowed to go on private property to retrieve their dogs while the dogs have been known to kill livestock, especially poultry.

That seems so irresponsible to hunt in that manner... Nothing against hunting but dogs running at large on other peoples land is a recipe for confrontation. I know of people that would probably disappear those dogs for killing livestock