First Time Turkeys

[RidgebackRanch]

I have some answers to my previous questions.

No a skunk may not smell where it is living.

Lesa, a trap staked down directly in front of the hole and traps on either side with all gaps blocked off with bricks did the trick.

I was surprised at how large the animal was compared to the hole, lots of fur and less body than i thought. Since I am leaving town for a couple of days it has already been taken care of so my DW does not have to deal with the nasty details to start her Monday.

Now the perimeter of the coop can be dealt with properly to prevent this in the future. The strange part is that there was no sign of the skunk digging and looking for food any where and the trash has always been secure. Nature can be sneaky sometimes.

Thanks for the advice, you all saved me a lot of time and effort and a possible round of dog baths.

Thank you all very much!

 

[MontyJ]

Ya got it! Great news! So how did you move the trap without getting sprayed?

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

good that you got it!

skunks don't seem to be smelly unless they are attacked or have sprayed your foundation for some reason. i think this happens when they spray something they couldn't fully see near a home. the stink just lingers for days till it gets neutralized by the rain or washed off another way. i know the skunks were attracted to our yard looking for grubs but also enjoyed our wild strawberries. i used to find those nibbled away all the time. seems they could eat any variety of small animals-rodents, frogs, lizards, snakes, insects/larvae, worms, and even eat lots of plants.

 

[RidgebackRanch]

Hi Monty I had to shoot it in the trap because it was staked down. Unfortunately it sprayed then but only on the ground so that means the coop area will be a little ripe for a few days.

We're just thrilled that it's over. The next step is to install hardware cloth around the base of the coop to prevent future encounters.

Also since it was still technically Mothers Day I removed it from the trap and buried it so my wonderful DW would not have to while I'm on the road, there's plenty to do around here when one of us is gone and this task is really kind of nasty.

 

[MontyJ]

Well, at least you got it. The stink will go away in a few days. I can think of things that do smell worse...badly bow shot deer that died on the back hillside comes to mind... (no, I didn't shoot it, don't know who did).

 

[RidgebackRanch]

Here are some recent pictures of our turkeys. They are now 17 weeks old and are getting along just fine with 7 "retired" hens. I added the kiddie pool a few weeks ago and the turkeys just LOVE to stand in it and poop in it. Because of that it gets washed out everyday otherwise it's just nasty.

Can anybody tell if these are hens or toms? I have looked all over the internet and still have no solid answers. Here's a hint none of them have ever gobbled yet, just lots of "barking".

Also we put up lots of shade fabric to keep the area cool this summer and recently added bird netting over the whole run after one of them figured out that they can fly over the fence.

They have been a joy to raise and have taught us even more about raising poultry. If anybody has ever thought about raising turkeys I would say give it a try.

 

[Chickie'sMomaInNH]

look like hens to me! the snoods get really long on the boys and their heads would start showing blue at the at that age. you'd also start seeing the boys displaying to any girls.

 

[lesa]

How interesting! I am glad you found them easy to raise... definitely on my to do list! They look great- I am surprised they enjoy the water. When do you plan to butcher them?

 

[MontyJ]

Hmmm...this has got me thinking...

 

[dewdropsinwv]

Hmmm...this has got me thinking...

Oh no!!!!!!!!!!!!! Here we go again.... I'm in trouble again. :/