1921.] 



Breeding and Rearing of Turkeys. 



1131 



small number of hens is not economical, in addition to which 

 it is sometimes detrimental to the hens, and frequently an 

 inferior specimen is used in order to avoid the cost of purchasing 

 a more suitable stag bird. Probably this practice is due to the 

 difficulty in securing hatching eggs at a reasonable price; on 

 the other hand there is a failure in many instances to recognise 

 the true value of the hatching egg from carefully selected stock. 

 The difficulty has been overcome to some extent in Ireland by the 

 provision of stud turkeys, and in Scotland by the establishment 

 of stations for the supply of hatching eggs, and has resulted in 

 the breeding of a hardier stock, and a reduction in mortality from 

 the specially selected stock which are secured for the purpose of 

 these schemes. The breeding of turkeys is most profitably 

 carried out by the general farmer who is in a position, if desired, 

 to rear a large flock from his breeding stock. The small holder 

 or specialist poultry farmer, with more intensive methods 

 of utilising the land at his disposal, cannot provide the space 

 and conditions so desirable for a flock of breeding turkeys; the 

 actual breeding can therefore be far better carried out upon 

 farms where unlimited range and natural cover is available for 

 the birds during the greater part of the year. The sale of 

 hatching eggs offers a very profitable field for the farmer. 



A turkey stag should be mated to at least 10 hens, and 

 frequently a flock of 15-20 hens can be run with a vigorous' 

 bird. A breeding flock of this size is seldom a practical proposi- 

 tion to the small holder or to anyone rearing turkeys in small 

 numbers, unless a trade in hatching eggs is intended. Rearers 

 of small flocks of turkeys would be generally better advised to 

 purchase eggs for hatching, if these are obtainable in the 

 locality at a reasonable price, than to keep adult stock them- 

 selves for breeding purposes, unless they are able to arrange 

 to keep two or three hens and take them to stud, but the first 

 is the better alternative in most cases. 



Management. — Careful attention is required in the selection 

 and management of the breeding stock, and there is no doubt 

 that much of the delicacy and losses in the young turkeys is 

 due to carelessness in the selection and treatment of the parent 

 birds. The turkey is an intermittent feeder and dependent 

 upon food from natural sources to a greater extent than the 

 fowl, and as a result the condition of the breeding flock is 

 liable to suffer considerably on a limited range, or to anything 

 approaching poultry soured land. The breeding flock should 

 be kept as far as possible under open air conditions. It is 



