The pigs have decided: National turkey free day

When it's laying season I pen the turkeys into these calf domes.

Each calf dome is 5' tall, about 7' in diameter. We use them as portable shelters for pasture farrowing, covers for sacks of feed, confining laying turkeys and (gasp) even their intended purpose of bottle feeding calves.

put a 30 gallon garbage can with some hay in it as a nesting box (turkey hens are big animals, and a 30 gallon can is about the right size), and string this recycled construction fence across the entrance. You don't need much of a barrier to keep turkeys in. The orange fencing is mostly a visual barrier.

The orange fencing is also known as pig dental floss. They love it. So yesterday three of the smallest pigs I've got slipped out of their electric fence, and over to the turkey domes, and proceeded to let every single turkey loose. They pulled the orange fencing off the front and out came the turkeys.

This was such a success in the eyes of the pigs that they decided a roadtrip was in order. So these same small pig terrorists chewed the power cord off the electric fence, and then proceeded to lead the entire herd out of the pasture and onto the road. And then down the road. And then over the bridge. All in all, about a mile down the road.

So when I got to the farm, I was stopped at my gate by a neighbor who'd seen the pigs down the road, and the dogs and I herded them back over to the property, only to discover when I got there that all 70 turkeys were out. So I spent 4 hours chasing and netting turkeys, fixing the fence, netting more turkeys, herding pigs back in, and so on.

Moral of this story: Good fences, particularly perimeter fencing, is worth its weight in gold. Guess what my next project will be.

The turkey easter-egg hunt

This has been a really cold, snowy winter. The turkeys don't really take cover from this sort of weather. They just sit there and get covered with snow. It seems to be ok -- I don't lose any. I think that it's mostly because they've got all the food that they can eat, and good feathers, but I have to wonder sometimes. They've got plenty of places they can go and get out of the snow; under trailers or buildings or vehicles, but they'd rather stand around in big groups and gobble at each other.

While I was throwing bales of hay to the cows and sheep, I noticed this bourbon red hen walking down the driveway. I noted that, and finished throwing the hay. Then I collected the eggs from the chickens, and put them into the truck. All of the eggs that are laid on the farm are fertile, and we incubate the ones we don't eat.

So I get a little mystery. I followed her tracks down the driveway, into some long grass.

And there her egg is, still warm from being laid. I waited a while to allow her to lay her egg before I tracked her down. Now that I know where her nest is I'll put a couple of golf balls into it, and collect the turkey eggs as she lays them. If you take all the eggs out and leave nothing she'll notice and pick another nesting spot.

While I'm out here, I notice another turkey track. So I follow this one to a bunch of grass not too far from the first one.


And find another perfect turkey egg. I guess it's time to pen them for the laying season, can't depend on snow every day.