New babies

(typed on Thursday, April 4) The turkey poults (baby turkey chicks) arrived today.  The company called yesterday and left a voice-mail that the order I'd placed (my request was that they not be delivered any sooner than NEXT WEEK and later would be better) was ready and would be shipped out that day (yesterday).  There was no way to argue the point, because it was simply a notification that the poults were ready early and they were being shipped.  Augh! The post office called this afternoon, and I rushed right over to get them before cold temperatures set in for the evening.  With the heater in the car blasting 90 degrees towards their little box, they had a bumpy but warm ride home. The temperature in their box at home (in the upstairs bathtub, inside a cardboard box with paper towels on the bottom) is inconsistent, but getting better.   By bedtime it should be set just right (by way of a lightbulb hung above them inside the box, which can be too hot if too close or too cold if too far)  Each of the 16 turkey poults got its beak dipped into the water dish, to make sure they all had a sip and that they knew where to get more. There were 2 which I thought might not make it (they were huddled in a corner, kind of sitting on their rumps instead of standing on their feet).  I gave them extra attention to make sure they didn't get piled on. A mashed up hard-boiled egg was their first meal. They liked the store-bought crunchy bits of feed better. All 16 seem to be scampering around and peeping loudly now, which doesn't bode well for Jeremy, whose room is right next to the poult-nursery (aka:  bathroom) Some seem to be the blue-slate breed, which our vicious tom turkey was last year.  Others are colors that I'm not sure about, but they are all supposed to be "heritage" breeds. A friend will take at least 6, another friend might take a few, some poults may still die.  They are more fragile than chicken chicks, believe it or not. So we should end up with 6 or 8, which will move out to share the bunny barn (formerly the Barnevelder coop) with the rabbits.  They'll have their own fenced in outside run, and will have a curtain hung between bunny cages and turkey living area, to keep down the dust.  I guess the good thing about arriving today is that they get a full week more of growing before becoming Thanksgiving dinner.  If we end up with a nice breeding pair, they might get a reprieve and stay for the winter, like the ducks and geese were able to do. Update on the geese who were determined to hatch eggs:  One gave up about 2 weeks ago.  She had 20 eggs underneath her downy nest cover, and at least half of those were sloshy (rotten) and the other half had never started developing (too early to be fertilized).  I was very glad to be tossing the rotten ones out before any of them cracked inside the barn! The other goose mama was on 4 eggs, and now it's down to 3.  She may have stolen the developing eggs from the other goose (the other one left the nest a lot, and I'd watch as the remaining one would pick through the eggs and roll the ones she wanted into her own nest!)  But....she is looking pathetic, and her voice is hoarse.  She needs to start eating and drinking again, so, if I can catch her off the nest, I'll do a quick check of the remaining 3 eggs and just take them if they aren't going to hatch. Lesson learned:  Don't let the geese start to sit on eggs so early in the future! Time to check on the peeps upstairs...... Friday update:  No turkey casualties overnight.  All are eating, drinking, and.....messing. Cute, sort of.  Chicken chicks are cuter.    Laura http://dykstrasfarm.blogspot.com/