I have a command I chatter in the evenings and the turkeys respond by going to the open gate on the pen. They are an active bird that lay very few large to extra-large off-white eggs. I believe you'll be pleasantly surprised by your turkeys, they are inquisitive and more responsive than chickens, they also can be herded like geese and ducks which makes it easier to put them to bed at night. Blue Slate Turkeys are primarily used for exhibition and meat/egg production. I am awaiting the arrival of regal reds, recessive slates and chocolate poults in a few weeks. I currently breed and show slates, bronze, auburn, holland white, black and self blue. I have ordered some of these recessive slates this spring as they are very rare and only a small number exist in the U.S. There is another variant of the slate gene that was first observed in the 1930's and showed up in a flock of bronze turkeys, the birds were evenly colored slate but had the barred markings of the bronze in the wings and pencilling in the tail feathers. I prefer to breed slate to slate to get all three color varieties. The slates I have now are very large, toms are about 33 lbs and beautifully colored. I began raising slates about 40 years ago, still have pictures of me with them at age 12, and never had issues with temperament. It makes it much easier on the hens during breeding season. If planning to raise your own turkeys from them, I try to keep at least 4 to 5 hens for one tom. In the 1900's they were very popular and regularly. Their first mention in literature was in the 1800's, and they were recognised as a standard breed by the American Poultry Association in 1874. The Blue Slate turkey makes an excellent forager and backyard/farm turkey. Past breeding is thought to be derived from the Spanish Black turkey of USA and the Norfolk Black in England. I do not recommend having just a couple of turkeys unless you are keeping a pair of hens as pets. The Slate, or Blue Slate as it is also known, has an unclear origin which is surprising given the striking looks and delightful nature of these turkeys. Buy Blue Slate Turkeys is a rare breed of turkey of the heritage turkey and admitted into the American Standard of Perfection in 1874. Turkeys all have their own individual personalities. The exception is the Royal Palm which being a smaller bird, flies very well and tends to be a little more aloof. Slate is a dominant gene and only requires the presence of one gene for the slate color to be displayed.Īll of the heritage turkeys are pretty much the same as far as temperament and behavior. This is because the Blue Slates are heterozygous for the Slate gene (Dd). The 3 possibilities when breeding a Blue Slate to a Blue Slate are Blue Slate, Self Blue and Black. I switched to using a Self Blue (aka Lavender) tom to get away from hatching out any black turkeys. They reproduced for me much better than my Bourbon Reds ever did. Colors: The Slate Blue should be either an ashy blue with black spots or a solid, lighter blue with no spots. Click to expand.I raised Blue Slates for years. Like other heritage turkeys, the Blue Slate will be ready to process around 28 weeks.
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