The Accidental Smallholder Forum

Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: Mel on September 22, 2011, 06:22:49 pm

Title: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Mel on September 22, 2011, 06:22:49 pm
Hi everyone :wave:

Well,imagine,we have had lots of livestock thefts in the area recently and I have a couple of Norfolk Black turkeys-which I purchased yesterday. I was collecting the eggs and giving all their afternoon feed and do you think I could find these Turkeys?!

After an hour of me thinking the worst and searching the entire area to no avail something made me look up-and right enough,they were both perched in one of the plum tree's! (Rather beats a partridge!) Now to get down that section of the paddock they have to get over an eight foot gate!

Being raised on a farm which had 10,000 commercial white Turkeys every year,you know,I really did not realise that the natural birds -or non commercial can fly! :o And I thought,DOH,well why shouldn't they,they are birds! :turkey: I really cannot believe that I did not know this!..am I becoming old and senile? ;D

Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Cinderhills on September 22, 2011, 06:33:19 pm
It's amazing how they can, especially when the stags get so large you wouldn't think they could.  You learn something new everyday.  :)
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Rosemary on September 22, 2011, 07:54:13 pm
 :)
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: robert waddell on September 22, 2011, 08:07:07 pm
yes even the white ones can fly as well :farmer:
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Mel on September 22, 2011, 08:10:22 pm
Well,I had never seen one of ours fly in all those years of being raised on the farm,amazing,I just thought they were way too cumbersome to fly-or maybe to heavy!
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Mel on September 22, 2011, 08:17:02 pm
Thing is,my Buff Orps just cannot fly,they try so hard,it just tends to speed up their running-and they kind of look hilarious :D,the majority of my hens can only just leap up somewhere,except that of my pullets-which seem to prefer the tree's,I just did not expect to see an 7lb turkey up in a tree :D
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Henstock on September 24, 2011, 06:29:40 am
I was surprised when I first got turkeys that they could fly too.  :o
I never thought such big birds would be able to take off but they actually fly really well.  :thumbsup:
Looks like a squadron of B52's coming over!!! :D
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Womble on September 25, 2011, 06:43:12 pm

I got fed up of ours escaping over the electric fence, so I clipped their wings to keep them in.

Now they roost 7 feet up on top of the turkey shed, just to taunt me!  ;D
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: suziequeue on September 25, 2011, 07:10:47 pm
Hi Womble - haven;t seen you for ages.... or maybe I just haven't been paying attention  ::) ::)
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Hermit on September 25, 2011, 08:20:03 pm
My female Wild Americans fly well but the stag does not so they dont go far from him. We keep the youngsters in a run covered with an old salmon cage net ( the marquee) so they can fly about but indoors!
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: little blue on September 25, 2011, 08:30:24 pm

,they were both perched in one of the plum tree's! (Rather beats a partridge!)

that's a pear tree surely?
Turkey in a plum tree must be a different verse....  :D
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Hermit on September 25, 2011, 08:34:04 pm
Thats a good thread for xmas.......the smallholders 12 Days Of X mas. :xmas:
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: robert waddell on September 25, 2011, 09:01:08 pm
i can beat you to it but it might get pulled i will need to let rosemary give it the once over before printing ;D :farmer: ;D
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: SallyintNorth on September 25, 2011, 10:19:49 pm
i can beat you to it but it might get pulled i will need to let rosemary give it the once over before printing ;D :farmer: ;D

We're waiting.....
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: Mel on September 27, 2011, 08:34:17 am
i can beat you to it but it might get pulled i will need to let rosemary give it the once over before printing ;D :farmer: ;D

Yes Robert,I second that,we are all patiently waiting ;)
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: robert waddell on September 27, 2011, 10:28:30 am
OK  OK   just had a look at it   definitely needs the run past rosemary first before printing don't want to stretch the boundary's to far to quick  cause theres a lot more to come than this one :farmer:
Title: Re: How Ignorant am I ? Flying Turkeys!
Post by: robert waddell on October 01, 2011, 04:42:20 pm
had a word with rosemary yesterday  Dan would pull it if i printed it those that want a copy pm me i will send it to you :farmer: