Embryotic Development of Turkey

Understanding how turkey poults develop inside their egg can help immensely on your turkey raising journey. If you are fascinated with the incredibly quick development of poultry like I am, you will enjoy this article of how a turkey poult develops inside the egg.

This is a portion of the video from the "Discovery Channel's "HowStuffWorks". To view the full video click here.

The development of a turkey poult takes 28 days to develop. Chicks take 21 days. This is an incredibly fast and fascinating process.

Commercial Breeds -vs- Heritage Breeds

Commercial breeds like the Broad Breasted White Turkey are modified for size - they are so large, they are unable to mate naturally - artificial insemination is the only way to reproduce these birds.

Heritage breed turkey are able to mate naturally, however they do not fill out as large as the commercial hybrids.

Are the eggs fertilized?

If your hen is sitting on a clutch of eggs, it is helpful to know if they're fertilized or not. A hen will sit on a clutch of eggs until they hatch, and if they don't hatch she may sit on them for far too long. We typically sacrifice one egg, crack it open to inspect for the "bullseye" circle on the yolk. It can be hard to see, so look closely in good lighting.

You will need to quickly decide to leave the eggs for the hen to hatch or collect them so they don't hatch. We recommend washing and refrigerating the eggs if you choose not to leave them for the hen.

Reference Poster from Zoo Central International

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Our goal is to raise our animals ethically and offer them the best lives possible. We choose to learn from our mistakes, document them for our future reference, and who knows, maybe our mistakes or farm hacks can help others in their farming journey!

~ Cariboo Blue Farm