THE POULTRY BOOK. 
275 
have found answer best consists of equal portions of oatmeal and the crumbs of 
white bread, mixed with a little boiling water, a light-boiled egg, and a con- 
siderable quantity of the leaves of the dandelion chopped small. This mixture 
should be given very frequently, in small quantities, on a clean floor. The reason 
why I have recommended the leaves of the dandelion before parsley, nettles, &c., 
is conclusive. A person I had in my service (with abilities and acquirements 
far beyond her sphere), had observed that turkeys, when running about, always 
devoured with avidity the leaves of this plant ; and she accordingly determined to 
try the experiment of mixing it with the food for the turkey- chicks ; and such was 
her success, that during the whole time (five years) she was with us she never lost 
one chick ; and, moreover, when they w^ere disposed of, they were not only equal 
but superior to all others in the market. She was most assiduous in her duties, 
never allowing them to be exposed to a single drop of rain if it were possible to 
prevent it, until she was pretty certain they were old enough to bear it. About 
twice a week she gave them buttermilk to drink (always giving it them in very 
shallow vessels) ; at other times she gave them water. She also fed them partly on 
curds, than which nothing can be better: they should be made fresh every day. She 
gradually discontinued the use of oatmeal and the crumbs, by substituting for 
them, at first, a small quantity of barley meal, and increasing it until the chicks 
were eight or nine weeks old, at which age the oatmeal w^as left off. When a 
week old, the chopped eggs w^ere discontinued, A boiled potato, moderately 
warm, should occasionally be given. 
Undoubtedly the greatest obstacle to the profitable rearing of turkeys in our 
climate is dampness. It is, therefore, of tjie utmost importance to have the house 
in which they are kept thoroughly dry — never allow them to go out when it rains, 
or when there is any dew. These rules must be strictly enforced until the chicks 
are nine or ten weeks old, at which age their backs will be found sufficiently w^ell 
covered with feathers to withstand a shower of rain : still at this age they should 
not be too much exposed. Intense sunshine should all this time be guarded 
against. 
“ Some turkey cocks trample the chicks to death, while others are proud of 
their offspring ; it is therefore necessary to watch the movements of the cock when 
first introduced to his family ; and should a want of paternal affection be 
displayed, he must be punished, as he justly deserves, v/ith confinement or 
banishment. I have v/aited until I have knov/n the opposite propensities 
displayed by different turkey cocks in a state of domestication, before I have 
taken into consideration the situation of the hatching nests. Should the turkey 
cock not be ill-disposed, then the nests may be made in tlie turkey-house, while he 
is allowed to roost in it as usual ; but should his character not be of the best sort, 
then he must be either excluded from the house, or the nests must be made in 
some other situation. With regard to the arrangement of the house appropriated 
to the turkeys, so much depends on the general construction of the farm buildings, 
that it is very difficult to give an opinion suitable to all circumstances. Should 
