Well, these guys will definitely NOT be ready for Christmas!! But as we neither celebrate Christmas nor think turkey can only be eaten AT Christmas, that’s okay!!!
And so a big welcome to our very late turkey poults: five so far plus a chick (another case of a different species hijacking nests!!!). There are a few more eggs under Victoria and our Brahma cross chicken (they are sharing the nest, although the chicken eggs are NOT the Brahma’s!!!) but we are not sure if any more will hatch. A few days ago we noticed that the nest was starting to smell a tadge so it may be that some have gone off...
We marvelled at how gentle Victoria is: she could just about swallow the chick whole but even with that enormous sharp beak of hers, her touch was gentle and calm.
We will leave mums, chicks and eggs alone for a day or so and then maybe see what we have left unhatched by candling the eggs and checking if any more look as though they might contain viable chicks.
Let's just hope the weather keeps settled. It has been a stunning September so far: dry and warm and perfect for our other chicks to be running around outside!!