do female turkeys need a male turkey to lay eggs?
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OK– raise your hands if you have a pot big enough to brine three 18 lb turkeys at one time….
Question by outlaw: do female turkeys need a male turkey to lay eggs?
this is my first time raising turkeys, we have 4 female turkeys and we had 1 male turkey but it died cause dogs got it. my uncle has female turkeys too and they lay eggs without a male turkey. my turkeys are full grown (i think) and we got them since last spring. do i need to get a male turkey for them to produce eggs?
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11 Responses to do female turkeys need a male turkey to lay eggs?
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They will produce eggs…they eggs just won’t be fertilized, so no chicks.
Mistress
January 6, 2012 at 3:33 pm
No, you should get eggs OK. But they won’t hatch if not fertilized by a male.
MOM KNOWS EVERYTHING
January 6, 2012 at 4:04 pm
No turkeys don’t need males just like chickens don’t need males to lay eggs, they just won’t be fertilized. But if you want baby turkeys then yes you will need a male.
neth_dwarf2004
January 6, 2012 at 4:59 pm
Turkeys, like hens and all birds, and other species for that matter, lay eggs even without a male. In this case, the eggs are not fertilised (no babies will ever come out of them), but in order to be eaten they are the same as fertilised eggs. It is like women who ovulate every month (they produce an egg and reject it, with their periods, even if they don’t have sex).
cpinatsi
January 6, 2012 at 5:03 pm
No. But the eggs will be unfertilized and never hatch.
Surfside1
January 6, 2012 at 5:55 pm
no, you don’t. turkeys just produce eggs, in order for them to hatch into ckicks they need to be fertilized with sperm from a male. just like a woman and her menstrual cycle!
totalanimalluver
January 6, 2012 at 6:22 pm
they will produce eggs always but they will not hatch
lagget11
January 6, 2012 at 7:07 pm
Hi there down, Many birds lay infertile eggs that will not hatch. A male is needed to fertilize eggs to produce offspring. It just depends on what your needs are. Turkey females have up to a 70% of the flock need to brood. I guess it’s time to purchase another Tom. Have a great day.
firestarter
January 6, 2012 at 7:09 pm
no you don’t need the male for them to produce eggs though having the male strutting does help kick them off in the spring.Also depending on how long ago your tom died will determine if any eggs will be fertile.A female turkey can store and keep sperm within her for up to 3 months before the sperm becomes unviable in some cases it can be a bit longer.Most cases it is 3 to 4 weeks.She will draw and use the sperm as needed to fertilize her eggs.So depending on how long ago your tom died again can determine if you may have viable fertile eggs.In some cases of domestic turkeys the hens have produced offspring without a tom this is a type of asexual reproduction or also known as Parthenogenesis.though it isn’t typical it does happen.Even still it would be a good idea to replace your tom to insure you get fertile eggs.
ddstantlerstill
January 6, 2012 at 7:28 pm
They can produce eggs that are not fertilized which means there is no baby inside it like eggs u buy in a store from chickens..If a male gets involved then babies will hatch
Luis
January 6, 2012 at 7:42 pm
How can one make local incubator to hatch egg
Abdool Gimba
May 8, 2012 at 2:41 am