Missouri Home Makers' Conference. 615 



SELECTING THE BREEDERS AND RAISING YOUNG TUR- 

 KEYS. 



(Mrs. E. M. Scott, Lathrop, Mo.) 



In the selection of birds for my breeders I have found 

 several things to be considered, and I believe foremost I would 

 place strength. I mean by that good, healthy, well-matured 

 stock. Avoid inbreeding, I believe all good turkey raisers 

 will agree with me in this. Color comes principally from the 

 male bird. I use a medium-sized male with a brilliant bronze 

 color, clear white edging, with no real defect in markings — in 

 fact, the very best colored bird I can get. One cannot afford 

 to be. careless in selecting the male bird. He constitutes one- 

 half the entire flock. One, if forced to, can use a defective 

 female. The eggs marked, poults can be marked, and that way 

 tab kept on the offspring. Not so with the defective male bird. 



In selecting the females I use birds with head long and broad, 

 a long body yet full breast, a shank not short yet not too long, 

 well-spread foot and long toes, a well-poised head and bright, 

 alert eyes, well-barred wings, clear white penciling. The female 

 is never so richly bronzed on fluff or lesser coverts. I like to 

 see plenty. My ideal mating, according to my own experience, 

 is an early young tom with one or two-year-old females. I 

 have had fair success with yearling tom and early hatched 

 pullets. 



I do not yard my turkeys but give them range. During 

 the nesting season they are tolled into an inclosure that I have 

 built out in the orchard of woven wire fencing eight feet high. 

 Inside is placed barrels, real brush piles and boxes, the front 

 hidden by loosely piled brush. China eggs are placed in the 

 thus improvised hiding places. The turkeys are kept in a 

 while and turned out each morning until after nests are selected 

 and three or four eggs laid. Then they are allowed to come 

 and go at will. Some times Madam Turk takes the side of 

 contrariness and has to be kept in all day for a few days, but 

 seldom after having laid three or four eggs do they try to change 

 nests. Use discretion in gathering eggs, leaving the nest much 

 as you found it, always a nest egg. I seldom set the turkey 

 hens. For one reason, I find that if they are not tired from long 

 setting they are more attentive to their young; another, they 

 are large and sure to break eggs if disturbed in the least. 



