Blog: The new chicks are here!
I don’t know what it is about chickens, but I truly do love this animal. That’s why I was especially discouraged when several chicken lovin’ critters invaded my coop last year to the point of complete decimation. The barn was strangely quiet all winter, and yet for many months I was determined not to get back into this game. The whole ordeal of losing my birds was just too heart rendering.
But when the Murray McMurray catalog came in the mail a few months back I just couldn’t resist and so I put in an order for a package that included 25 assorted birds, not at all certain what was going to show up.
I consider myself somewhat of an expert on raising chickens and the various breeds they come in but I had never considered Turkens, a.k.a. Transylvanian Naked Necks, as productive members of a chicken coop. A novelty for sure, but not a big producer. In fact, the origin of these strange creatures is not fully known but one thing is for sure, they are weird looking, and right now in their baby stage, they are one of those critters you can say is so ugly its cute.
You can imagination my surprise when I opened my chick order and three naked necked chickens peeked out, along with 22 of their brethern that are various colors and breeds. Research was in order and come to find out Naked Necks can survive Wisconsin winters pretty well despite their bare necks and they are a docile chicken that lays medium brown eggs. They also “brood” meaning they will sit on eggs and become mothers. (Beleive it or not not all chicken do this.)
Since the arrival of these babies, I have had lots of company from the neighbors who love to come over and visit the little birds, especially the kids. And the Naked Necks are a BIG hit. While I think they are a strange looking animal indeed, most people find them adorable with their bald neck and tuffs of feathers under their beaks.
But, I have to admit, I am glad I have chickens again, no matter what they look like. And when the eggs start coming in I’ll be even more ecstatic. But for now they provide me with lots of entertainment, some little creatures to tend again and the barn is not as hollow anymore. Life is good.
A Transylvanian Naked Neck, a.k.a Turken chick
I got an assortment of chicks so I won’t know what breeds they are until they mature.
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