POULTRY RAISING TURKEYS 363 



putting her to laying again. Those who only have a few hens and wish to 

 raise a great many poults should keep the turkey hen laying and rear the poults 

 with domestic hens. 



Pairing. It is best not to allow more than one male turkey at a time to 

 run with a flock of breeding hens as extra males only disturb each other when 

 pairing. The pairing with the male should be complete. If it is not, the whole 

 clutch of eggs will be infertile. Immediately upon pairing with the male the 

 hen sets out to find a nest in which to lay her eggs. If the eggs are infertile 

 her work is all for nothing. This shows the importance of having the male full 

 of vigor at pairing time. 



Care of Eggs. One should watch the hen-turkey very closely to see when 

 she lays her eggs. The eggs should be gathered regularly and carefully. They 

 should be kept in a cool place and turned daily. If the eggs are left out in 

 changeable weather they may lose their vitality. When the eggs are taken from 

 the nest, eggs of some other kind, preferably large-sized china eggs, should be 

 placed under the hen to keep her from becoming dissatisfied and changing her 

 nesting place. 



Turkey Nests. 



If a turkey-hen is not watched she will naturally find a nest in the most out- 

 of-the-way place she can find, such as under a pile of logs or wood, or in a heap 

 of brush. Here she will lay her eggs and in case they are neither chilled nor 

 carried away by wild animals, she will hatch them into vigorous poults herself. 

 She will then take them into the fields as far away from the accustomed paths 

 of man as possible and here she will feed and rear her brood after her own in- 

 clination. When autumn comes she will come forth with a flock of large, vig- 

 orous, young turkeys. They will be robust in development, vigorous in health, 

 and bright in plumage. Some of the largest turkey raisers in the country desire 

 their hens to seek their nests and rear their young in the above fashion. This is 

 the ideal way where there is plenty of range and the farm is so situated that the 

 hens can be given their freedom without danger to the eggs and brood. On 

 small range the hiding of nests should be carefully guarded against. 



To Prevent Wandering. Watch the hen closely to determine her nesting 

 place. If she selects a place that is not protected, it is well to provide a coop or 

 box, with an opening for her to go in and out, to protect her eggs from the 

 weather during the four weeks of incubation in case she is going to hatch 

 them herself. Just before time for the eggs to hatch a slat frame can be placed 

 over the hen to keep her from wandering off with the newly hatched poults. 

 Instead of the frame it might be all right to simply nail a couple of slats across 

 the opening of her coop. This plan will increase the size of flocks as the 

 young poults can be watched and given better care. 



Preparing Nests. Nests should be secreted in the places that the hens 

 would be most likely to pick for themselves such as thick brush or a secluded 

 fence corner. The places are easy to locate after the first season because hen 

 turkeys almost invariably select a place to lay near their previous season's nest. 

 An empty barrel is a fine thing to use for the purpose. Holes should be made in 



