HOUSE AND GARDEN 
November, 1914 
2 86 
The Bronze is one of the most popular breeds and averages about thirty-five pounds 
stretch her neck and walk about; also a small, slatted yard for the 
little ones. The floor must be both clean and dry; and, while it 
may be of boards, the natural, dry earth is the best. To avoid 
dampness, fatal to young turkeys, set the coop where the drain¬ 
age is good, and dig a small trench about it, filling it with cinders 
■or gravel, which will take care of any heavy rainfall. Don't cod¬ 
dle the poults; on the other hand, don't neglect them; the middle 
course is the safe one. When the mother and her brood have 
been moved (24 to 8 hours after hatching) to the brooding coop, 
leave them alone until they begin to move about a little, and as 
soon as they show an inclination, let the poults out on the grass 
(when dry) to run about and exercise. As they progress, give 
them a plentiful supply of food and keep a vigilant eye for lice. 
In fact, it will be wise to rub a few drops of olive oil on the head 
and under the throat of each poult while moving them to the 
■coop; direct exposure to the sun’s rays will seriously injure the 
youngsters, and, if already weakened by lice, the chances are they 
will all die. A dry place in their yards should be provided for 
them to run about on by spreading a load of coarse sand near the 
coop, which should be gone over daily with a fine rake so as to 
keep it thoroughly dry. 
In feeding, copy nature as far as possible. In their wild state 
the turkey’s food consisted of seeds, insects and worms, and, as 
the mother turkey had to provide for her entire brood, each re¬ 
ceived but a very small portion at a time. Thus the raiser will 
do well to start in by feeding finely cracked wheat and corn, to¬ 
gether with a very small amount of the best granulated meat 
scraps, a little finely broken charcoal and some fine grit, or some 
of the regular commercial chick food may be substituted. For the 
first few days food should be given every two hours on a clean 
board, and green food in the form of lettuce leaves, tender grass 
or chopped onion tops, should be provided. Be careful not to 
overfeed; let a little and often be the rule. Many of our most 
successful turkey raisers advocate hand-feeding the little poults 
for a few days, claiming that the labor is more than repaid by 
the splendid start they get, to say nothing of the advantages de¬ 
rived from having the poults grow up gentle and fearless. After 
the poults are ten days old the number of meals may be cut to 
four, and gradually to three, and finally, when a month to six 
weeks old, to two feeds — morning and night. By this time the 
poults and their mother may be given their liberty and taught to 
come to the barn or any suitable place for their feed, which 
should consist of whole wheat, hulled oats, cracked corn and 
millet, in addition to their other feed. In wet weather, hunt up 
the flock wherever they may be, and be sure they get their two 
rations; this is important, as the rain reduces the supply of in¬ 
sects, and the wet and tangled grass retards their movements, so 
that they cannot get sufficient food. If these simple directions 
are followed, the beginner may count on raising most of the 
poults. 
The diseases to which turkeys are most liable are five in num¬ 
ber : gapes, caused by a small worm attaching itself to the wind¬ 
pipe and strangling the little turkeys, the remedy for which is to 
keep moving the coop onto fresh ground every few days, while 
each spring the land where the brood coops stood should be given 
a thin coating of slaked lime before the frost leaves the ground, 
and left until the soil has dried out, when it 
should be scraped off, together with a half inch 
of top soil, carted, away and buried. Black¬ 
head and cholera are usually fatal diseases, the 
symptoms of the former being diarrhoea, 
marked and constant, resulting from internal 
inflammation and weakness, for which the only 
successful remedy is to have strong, healthy 
stock, free from inbreeding. The symptoms of 
cholera are also diarrhoea. The 
ailing birds in both cases 
should be removed at once and 
kept in a pen by themselves, 
where they may be given from 
5 to 20 drops (depending on 
age) of Sun 
Cholera M i x- 
ture. Boiled rice 
and a little 
(Continued on 
page 3D) 
No Thangsgiving 
is complete with¬ 
out him 
