Talking Turkey

Like everyday, morning and night, I've just come in from feeding animals.  Sometimes, depending on weather, I dread going out, but once there it is a joy.

So, tonight, I'll tell you about feeding the turkeys.  I started off by calling them.  They were hanging around outside David's office window where they spend a lot of each day peering in at him and tapping on his window.  One of our turkey hens was hand-raised and she is pretty sure that she should be an inside bird.  She loves seeds given to her by hand and has made our other two hens look forward to the treat, too.  We have been going up to the window and herding them down to their pen.  They have to go in since there are coyotes and other things in the night that would love a turkey treat!  

Once we get them headed in the right direction, they usually go to the pen without a lot of complications -- unless we wait until it is truly dusk.  Then they are perched and if they move they want to go toward light -- which isn't in the direction of their pen.  So, I try hard to get out to them before dusk!!  My latest idea was that, because they love the seeds I give them, we would reward them when they go to their pen.  Last night my hand raised hen came at a turkey trot to meet me at the barn, where I keep the treat, and follow me to the pen; the other hens came running, too.

Tonight, they glanced in my direction, but they didn't move.  It was warmer out today and the snow had melted, but now it is starting to freeze and it is slick.  They are uphill from me and I'm not too happy that I'll have to slip and slide up the hill to herd them.  I decided I'd go ahead to their pen, calling as I walked.  Just about the time I was going to give up, my little hen came running with the other two on her heels.  Whew!  Saved again by a turkey!  Sarah, the hand-fed one, looked at me expectantly and I gave her a treat.  She's a wonderful turkey ambassador!

(In a moment of true confession -- I wrote the blog last night and didn't have a camera.  So I thought I'd get a video tonight.  I opened the garage and there they were waiting for me.  So, they followed me down to the barn and I ended up dropping some seeds to distract them long enough for me to get ahead of them -- I love turkeys!)