50 



LESSONS IN POULTRY KEEPING — SECOND SERIES. 



obtained, and sat iiidoDrs ami lelL Ihe turkeys to shift for themselves when the weather w as, Ijad. 

 AVhen left to themselves uiih oppDrtunity to range freely turkeys will usually leave their 

 roostingplaoe in the raoriiingand inakequite a widecircuitof the fields and meadows, terminat- 

 ing late in the day at the point from which they set out. I well remember how when a boy I 

 u^ed to go occasionally to the farm of a relative who reared every year a flock of 100 to 150 

 turkeys. There were several boys in the family, all then quite small, whose duty it was to take 

 turns in guarding and herding the turkeys to prevent their scattering and stragglers being lost. 

 It did not require constant attention, but the turkeys were rarely left alone lor more than an 

 hour at a time when out of sight of the dwelling. With this constant attention the losses were 

 very small, and at the end of the season the addition to the family income resulting from the 

 sale of the turkeys was quite a substantial amount.' 



The opportunity for someone whose time is not required for other work to give this intei- 

 mittpnt but regular care to the turke\ s is almost invariably a feature of successful turkey grow- 



Turksy Roost in Shelter of Barn. 



ing. Their roving habits make them especially open to attacks of their enemies, and unless 

 they are watched quite closely, all that they represent may be lost in a very short lime. For 

 this reason it is generally more satisfactory in the end to grow a flock large enough to make the 

 wiitching worth while, than to grow a smaller number and let them take their chances. 



Turkeys are salable throughout the year, but the best demand and best prices are lor 

 "Thanksgiving turkeys." In some of the eastern markets there has grown up within a few 

 \e ir~ a demand for " turkey broilers," that i.-, young turkeys weighing three or four pounds 

 euidi. These are wanted during the summer months, and the prices paid for them are good 

 enough to make many growers prefer to market them then rather than take the risk of carry- 

 ing them until fall. In eastern localities where turkeys have been long grown on the same 

 ground, los-tea from disease are often heavy, and the most troublesome diseases develop after 

 the turkeys are a third to a half grown. The grower who anticipates trouble may sell his 

 young turkeys as fast as fit lor Itrollers, but those who expect to carry them through with 

 slight loss generally prefer to hold them for the winter market. 



The turkey grower generally sells all that are ready at Thanksgiving. When the fall has been 



