NATIONAL CITY, CALIFORNIA 



and one-half early-hatched pullets, and mate them with a well-developed 

 and vigorous early-hatched cockerel. Yearling toms can be used if desired, 

 but owing to their greater weight, and clumsiness, they are liable to in- 

 jure the hens. Should a yearling or older torn be used, care should be 

 taken to pare off the spurs and file the sharp points from the nails. After 

 the third year the egg production of turkey hens begins to fall off and 

 it is advisable to replace them with younger stock. 



The most satisfactory time of year to select breeding stock is No- 

 vember or December. By purchasing early in the season, one not only has 

 a larger number to choose from but the birds are given ample time to 

 become acquainted with their new surroundings before the mating season, 

 which in the South ordinarily begins early in February, and in the North 

 about a month later. 



MANAGEMENT OF BREEDING STOCK 



Fifteen turkey hens can safely be mated to a vigorous torn. If 25 or 

 30 hens are kept, two toms should not be allowed to run with them at the 

 same time, but one should be confined one day and the other the next. 

 When two toms are allowed to run together during the mating season, 

 they fight fiercely, and the stronger does practically all the mating. 



When only a few turkeys are kept it is the usual custom to allow them 

 free range thruout the breeding and laying season. This is undoubtedly a 

 good plan, provided the nests are found and the eggs gathered daily, 

 where there is danger of their being destroyed or chilled. If many turkeys 

 are kept, however, it is usually found most convenient to use breeding 

 pens or inclosures. These should be of sufficient size to afford some ex- 

 ercise, an acre for fifteen turkey hens being none too large. By taking turns 

 in the use of three toms, as many as forty-five turkeys may be kept in one in- 

 closure, one torn being used every third day, or better yet, one can be used 

 in the morning, another in the afternoon, and a third the following morn- 

 ing. It is an excellent plan to allow the birds to roost outside the pen, 

 turning them out late in the afternoon, after they are thru laying, and 

 driving them in early the following morning. Turkeys are easily handled, 

 the work of driving them into the pen every morning requiring but a few 

 minutes if they are fed there regularly, and the exercise they get while 

 ranging outside the pen helps to keep them in good condition. 



The construction of a turkey pen is simple. Very often the family 

 orchard is utilized for this purpose. A hog-proof wire fence three feet high 

 will hold most turkeys, if the pen is large enough to keep them contented 

 and if the hens are put into the pen before they have selected nesting 

 places outside. Should any persist in flying out, the flight feathers from 

 one wing can be cut, or a paddle fastened, across the back by tying with 

 a strip of cloth under each wing, so that when the wings are raised they 

 strike against the paddle and flight is prevented. Turkey hens that have 

 made their nests before they are put into the pen will make every effort 

 to get out whenever they want to lay, and if they do not succeed they will 

 often hold the first egg or two as long as possible and then lay wherever 

 they happen to be. Within two or three days, however, they usually select a 

 nest in the pen and there lay the remainder of the litter. 



Rail, board, or stone fences are of no value for confining turkeys, 

 which easily fly on top of them and then jump down on the other side. 

 In the case of a wire fence, however, there is no place on which to alight, 

 and under ordinary circumstances they do not make the attempt. For this 

 reason steel posts are better than wooden posts for a turkey fence, unless 

 the latter are sharpened at the tops. 



FEEDING THE BREEDING STOCK 



Good breeding condition means being well fleshed, but not fat. Given 

 free range where there is ample supply of natural feed during the winter 

 and early spring, such as is usually the case in the southern portion of the 



