128 MRS. BASLEY'S WESTERN POULTRY BOOK 



two get stepped on, or the door blows on one, or the puppy wor- 

 ries another. None die from disease. 



I do not pretend to say that mine is the only way, but I do say 

 that not only do I succeed in raising turkeys, but those who have 

 followed my directions were as successful as I have been, and those 

 that met with failure did not follow my plans. I have been criti- 

 cized as too fussy and particular about little details, but I think it 

 pays to take good care of the little things for a few weeks, for tur- 

 keys are delicate only when they are little, and if properly cared 

 for they will be strong and hardy when they mature. 



Grandmother's Recipe 



At my grandmother's the recipe for feeding little turkeys was as 

 follows : "Leave them in the nest twenty-four hours or until the 

 mother turkey brings them off; then give them only coarse sand, 

 and water to drink. Meanwhile put some fresh eggs in cold water 

 to boil ; let them boil for half an hour ; then chop them up, egg- 

 shells and all, quite fine ; add an equal amount of dry bread crumbs, 

 and always, always, some green food chopped up finely." 



Lettuce, dandelion or dock were the green foods at grandmoth- 

 er's, and the explanation given me was that if they are fed without 

 having green at every meal, they soon become constipated, then get 

 sick and die. The secret of her success was the tender green food 

 and the grit, a pinch of coarse sand being sprinkled over the food 

 of each meal. As the little turkeys grew, a little cracked wheat and 

 later whole wheat was added to their food. That was the only 

 grain given. This was grandmother's recipe for raising turkeys. 



The way I feed and have fed for years is as follows : When the 

 little turkeys are twenty-four hours old I put freshly-laid eggs into 

 cold water and boil them for half an hour ; chop them up fine, shell 

 and all ; add equal parts of bread crumbs ; feed dry, taking away 

 what they leave, feeding the mother separately. 



The next day I feed the same, adding very finely chopped lettuce 

 or dandelion leaves or green young mustard leaves and tender 

 young onion tops. This is their breakfast and supper. For dinner 

 they have a little curd made from clabber milk, cottage cheese 

 some call it. In a few days I add cracked or whole wheat to their 

 supper, and if I am short of bread crumbs I add rolled breakfast 

 oats to the egg and bread crumbs I always chop up an onion a 

 day with the egg, and bread crumbs unless the onion tops are 

 very young and tender. Onions are an excellent tonic for the liver 

 and kidneys, and prevent worms and .cure colds ; so I use onions 

 freely both for turkeys and chickens. In a few days I commence 

 to add wheat to their food and at two weeks of age I gradually 

 arrive at giving them wheat and rolled oats for breakfast; in the 

 middle of the forenoon a head of lettuce to tear up and eat ; at noon 

 cottage cheese, and about four or five o'clock their supper of egg, 

 bread crumbs or rolled oats, lettuce and always the chopped up 

 onion. 



