Heritage Turkeys
All of our turkeys are Heritage breeds. We enjoy them for their aesthetic appeal, personalities, foraging ability, and their overall flock contribution. They do alert to real and perceived threats, but not often enough that one can consistently depend solely on them to protect their other livestock. Still, we have found them to be a wonderful addition to our homestead and a great source of entertainment.
In the turkey world, the different colors are called varieties rather than breeds. The domesticated Heritage, or standard, turkeys are descended from the wild turkeys that still roam freely, albeit more sparsely, in a lot of areas throughout our nation. Like their wild cousins, Heritage turkeys are hardy, have a long lifespan, are excellent foragers, and are able to reproduce naturally. Commercial broad breasted turkeys have been scientifically engineered (for lack of a better term) to be faster-growing and yield more meat. As a result, they aren’t designed to live long, are subject to numerous health issues, are less adept foragers, and are physically unable to reproduce without assistance. Commercial turkeys yield more white breast meat whereas Heritage turkeys yield more dark meat.
I’ve downsized my turkey flock considerably and the varieties we will be offering for the 2023 season are Mottled Black and Royal Palm. Poults are available from spring through late summer.
I am able to offer sexed poults, but they won’t be available until they are about two months old, which is around the time I can accurately ascertain their gender. This does increase their cost. See pricing page for more info.
Feel free to contact me with any questions or concerns you may have about adding turkeys to your homestead. I have a basic understanding of turkey genetics, can assist in choosing stock that fits your desired parameters, and I love talking turkey.
I use several different methods to ascertain the gender of turkeys at a very early age. One of the key techniques I use is behavioral observation and the other is anatomical. I will update prospective owners as to any uncertainty I may have and ask to keep them longer. By the time they go to their new homes, I am confident as to my decision. However, nature can be tricky and there are no guarantees. If a mistake is made on my end, I will replace the bird with a suitable (same age, same variety) substitute if/when one is available or refund your money.
Jack
Jack is the flock patriarch and the favorite of most visitors. He is a Royal Palm and our very first turkey on the homestead. Other turkeys have come and gone, but Jack will only be leaving us on his terms. He is a huge flirt, often showing up on full display and following guests (and us!) around the property. He was named after President Abraham Lincoln’s son’s pet turkey. Because Lincoln is the president responsible for recognizing Thanksgiving as a national holiday, I thought naming our first turkey “Jack” was a fitting tribute. Incidentally, Jack’s particular variety is named after a town 45 minutes from where I grew up.
Variety Spotlight
We had lost our Sweetgrass tom right in the middle of the 2021 breeding season. Since we have two separate turkey breeding flocks, we had to decide whether or not we should replace him or keep it simple and just have one breeding flock.
We had a very limited batch of Sweetgrass that year and I thought if we hatched a male, I could implement line breeding and breed him back to his mother. That way, I could be certain of his genetic background and it would also be easier than trying to track down a Sweetgrass tom (which can be somewhat rare in these parts).
As luck would have it, we ended up with one boy. We still hadn’t made up our minds about how many flocks we wanted, but I held onto him just in case. A friend suggested we name him Nigel and the name instantly stuck. It was exciting to watch him turn into a young tom and see his colors pop out brightly. He has always been friendly, but now he’s starting to strut around the yard with Jack, our Royal Palm tom. He even has a favorite hen!
You know what they say about not naming animals so you don’t form an emotional attachment? Well, as it turns out, we decided that we will continue to have Sweetgrass because Nigel is here to stay.
