ChickenCrossing.Org

they are COOL! Not thinking I'd be eating them either... wow, broody turkeys, are they as snippy as chickens can be?

I would have to have a turkey's butt as my avatar if I had those

well as promise here comes the first one. how can you tell when a hen starts to get 'BROODY'
i have five hens and six toms and though it is still a long way to go for them to starts laying i want to be prepared

the poults that the sweetgrass hatch by herself, are you hand feeding them or are they eating and drinking by themselves

according to you which one is the better choice, artificial incubation or to let nature take its own course.
have you seen her nest if so what is it make of, and at how many months do they start to mate i have six toms and four hens and i just can't wait.
                           i am a first time breeder and there is a lack of info on turkeys in my part of the world and the only vet in my area seems to have an attitude toward turkeys and have no answers to my queries, so my only source is this site CCO and hence i need all the help that i can get from you guys........... ie if that is not too much trouble. <<>>once again thanks>> Your reply is appreciated.

I would let them hatch out the babies themselves.That is if you can control where the set the nest! I had 5 turkey hens setting on one nest in corner of barn with 2 guinea hens and 2 setting in a dog house with a female muscovy duck...
  It is alot of work to incubate and hand feed to get them started.If the hen feeds them they learn quickly what to eat.
Turkeys are rather dumb and you have to force feed some or place wet feed or egg on your fingers to entice them to eat. Once they know what food is they go for it on their own.
I was really exhausted incubating and starting mine off but it was worth it... My choice would be next time to let the hen do it...
They build a nest with dried grass, leaves and then shed feathers like a chicken or duck does to line the nest.  You will not find it easily cause they cover the eggs up when they leave to forage.. My turkeys were approx. 10 months old and fully mature when they started mating...
Hens usually lay a batch in Spring and if you take them away from her she should lay again later in summer like July or Aug. They do not lay in the winter like chickens do... Hope this helps!