Troublesome Turkeys

November 24, 2005

JOEL DAVIDSON\Frontiersman

MAT-SU - The U.S. Department of Agriculture estimates Americans will raise 256 million turkeys before the year is out. If tradition holds, 45 million of those gobblers will rest in peace on Thanksgiving tables.

Moving turkeys from the incubator to the dinner table, however, is harder than most people ever imagine. That's especially true for smaller-scale operations like those in Mat-Su, where turkeys are freer to roam and their climate harder to control.

No one in the Valley raises more turkeys than Wasilla resident Anthony Schmidt. This year, his Triple-D Farm and Hatchery sold close to 300 Thanksgiving turkeys and the demand was so high that many people were turned away.

Raising a bird that Benjamin Franklin once nominated for the country's official mascot is no walk in the park, though. Compared to chickens, geese, ducks and other poultry, Schmidt said turkeys are the hardest.

&#8220They're just stupid and they get sick real easy,” he said. &#8220A chicken gets a little cold and he just goes right through it, but if a turkey gets one, down he goes.”

Fellow Mat-Su turkey grower Sandi Nelson echoed the same concerns. Nelson and her husband opened Poultry Board Mt. Morning Farm last year. They raised hundreds of chickens, geese, ducks and other poultry this year but Nelson said the dimwitted, ornery and sickly natured turkeys were the most trouble.

&#8220They aren't smart enough to get out of the rain and cold,” she said. &#8220We were choppin' ice one time and one swallowed a chunk of ice, had a heart attack and died - they're not the smartest birds, that's for sure.”

They also have a mean streak.

&#8220Turkeys will peck at you and stuff and scratch the back of your legs,” Nelson explained. &#8220I guess that's why a lot of people don't get into raising them.”

Veteran Wasilla chicken farmer Art Carney gave turkey farming a brief attempt but abandoned the idea after a failed attempt with just one turkey.

&#8220Somebody gave me one and I didn't like it,” Carney said. &#8220It pecked me and it was so damn dumb that when I was driving down the driveway, I slowed way down and I still ran over it anyway.”

Despite their many shortcomings, turkeys continue as popular staples during the holiday seasons.

In three days - Thanksgiving, Christmas and Easter - Americans consume nearly 90 million of the birds, according to the University of Illinois Extension. Most of those come from the frozen-food sections of major grocery outlets, but those who buy from local farmers are in for a treat, Schmidt said.

&#8220My turkeys are fresh, locally raised with no hormones or antibiotics,” he said. &#8220They've also never been frozen, so they have a lot more juice in them.”

Nelson's turkeys are also chemical-free and raised on the free range, eating grain and grasses. Unlike Triple-D farm, though, where Schmidt will butcher and clean turkeys, Nelson's birds are all sold live and kicking.

In spite of all the turkey troubles, she said the birds sold well this year and she plans to triple her gobbler numbers next year. With the average American consuming nearly 14 pounds of turkey a year, it's a headache she's willing to fight for.

Contact Joel Davidson at 352-2266 or joel.davidson@frontiersman.com.