Turkeys...Something to Think About.

You have a homestead. Got the chickens, the bees, maybe some goats and a nice garden. And now, you are thinking about getting some turkeys, maybe a heritage breed.

Here are some things to consider...the negative parts.

#1 Turkeys can be mean, especially the males. If you have children who will be taking care of the birds, make sure your turkeys are not aggressive toward people. When I was a child, I had to feed the turkeys, and went into the pen carrying a pole to keep the male turkey from attacking me. And, several years ago, the last set of turkeys we had here at our homestead included a tom that had a thing for viciously attacking blue feed bags. Not such a great situation if you happened to be holding one of the 'blue enemies'!

#2 Turkeys eat A LOT of food! A lotta lot. They can forage if you choose to free range, and that will help. They also poop a lot, and that can make a mess.

#3 If you get one turkey and keep it with the chickens, it won't know it is a turkey, and a male may claim the chickens for his own. This can be a problem during breeding season, as a turkey is A LOT bigger than the chicken hens. Some friends of ours lost their favorite chicken hen when their tom turkey bred her to death. And...he was a heritage breed, a Bourbon Red. I have also heard that turkeys kept with chickens are more prone to disease, though I have not seen this first hand.

#4 Turkey eggs can be difficult to hatch. The heritage breeds seem to be ok at it, but watch that momma turkey! She can get crabby, possessive, and mean about her nest and poults! In an incubator, hatch rates weren't so great for me.

These are some things to consider before deciding to keep turkeys. They are beautiful birds, and taste wonderful. But, they do require significantly more room and more feed, and are a little more difficult to keep than chickens. The sight of a turkey taking a dust bath is pretty amazing! Just make sure before you bring them home, you really are ready and know what to expect.

And...I will also add. You can't cook a heritage breed turkey the same as a store bought one. Heritage breeds require a lower temp, and a slow, long roasting process. Then...it will be one of the best turkeys you have ever eaten!