Had to run down to a buddy's house this morning and come around a bend and saw what I thought was a buzzard been hit in the road. I slowed down and realized it was a hen'd just been hit and she had five poults about the size of bantee chickens standing at the road edge lost calling. I ran down to my buddy's right quick and then came back up the road planning to move her out of the road to at least get the little ones away from the edge. When I got up there an old man was unloading a side-by-side onto a two track right where the turkey'd been hit. I pulled in and soon as I stepped out I could hear the poults keeing. They were loud and I was amazed he wasn't hearing them. He said, "Son, I can't hear myself fart." I told him I wanted to get the hen out of the road and if he didn't mind I'd like to go up the mountain there and try to call them up toward me. He told me I could. So I moved the hen out of the road and then I had a Jordan yelper in the truck. I grabbed that and went up the mountain. I could still hear them down by the highway. I yelped a little and kee-keed and they shut up. I waited and after a minute or so they answered closer. I did this about five minutes and they slowly started working up the mountain. Now I don't know that these birds will survive but what I do know is that, 1) they're big enough to fly, and, 2) if they can get up with another hen she's likely to let them tag along. The odds are against them, obviously, but, hell, the odds are always against a turkey and they've beat a pile of odds already just by getting the size they are. I tend to think they won't survive, but interested in hearing y'all's thought.(https://uploads.tapatalk-cdn.com/20210805/1ecaa358656e0d12a4753f3a4944c3a4.jpg)
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Since they are big enough to fly, I suppose it's possible. But they aren't very old and there are a lot of threats in their world and they haven't had time to learn all momma needed to teach.
I wonder if poults ever take up with another hen and family after being orphaned?
Chances are good at least a couple will make it. If they manage to find another hen in the next day or two they should be fine. I've seen on several occasions a hen with poults that were obviously from different broods.
Great deed done Dave. Look at it this way, you improved their chances by what you did getting them away from the road. The rest is in gods hands........
Quote from: guesswho on August 05, 2021, 11:13:52 AM
Chances are good at least a couple will make it. If they manage to find another hen in the next day or two they should be fine. I've seen on several occasions a hen with poults that were obviously from different broods.
Yeah, I've seen that same thing. Saw one hen with ten or twelve one time and some were tiny and some were almost big enough to fly. They most certainly will take up with another hen if they get the chance.
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We can only hope...as if being a Poult wasn't tough enough already...
good deed, you surly improved their chances!
I forgot to comment on the picture. Interesting the artist chose a bearded hen.
Quote from: ChesterCopperpot on August 05, 2021, 12:03:08 PM
Quote from: guesswho on August 05, 2021, 11:13:52 AM
Chances are good at least a couple will make it. If they manage to find another hen in the next day or two they should be fine. I've seen on several occasions a hen with poults that were obviously from different broods.
Yeah, I've seen that same thing. Saw one hen with ten or twelve one time and some were tiny and some were almost big enough to fly. They most certainly will take up with another hen if they get the chance.
One hen can have a brood of 15-17 from her clutch assuming maximum eggs dropped paired with total hatch success. That's not a common occasion, but possible.
I too would like to think that an old mossy headed mama hen would be like an old big nosed nanny doe and take in the orphans. Hopefully them poults make it, maybe check in on them on that mountain in a week. Just maybe you'll find that brood and hopefully another brood/mama with them come looking for their lost girl.
Quote from: guesswho on August 05, 2021, 05:18:11 PM
I forgot to comment on the picture. Interesting the artist chose a bearded hen.
You must have failed to see that this particular one was a "great American hen". Those kind always have beards,...don't you know nuthin?! ;D
I was being politically correct. Didn't want to say that was one of those transister hens.
You did a good deed, now nature is in control. We can only hope some survive.
No.