Bonding with a turkey (neighborhood, live, delivery)

[Acadianlion]

I have been adopt by a turkey.

Last winter we had a large flock of turkeys show up in the front yard every day, or nearly every day. We threw scratch feed out for them to forage, and it was great fun seeing them and photographing all 35 or so of them.

Later in the spring they all disappeared, until one day a single tom appeared in the front yard. We threw out some feed for him, and ever since then he appears every morning and hangs around all day long. I go out in the early morning and "chat" with him. His name is Terrence.

The cats ignore him and he ignores them. I also throw out the old day old cat food, and Purina, our personal sea gull always comes in for breakfast, along with a half dozen neighborhood crows. My wife keeps all the bird feeders full, so we have a lot of birds around.

About a month and a half ago, when I went out to get in my truck to leave, Terrence was in the driveway. As soon as I got into the truck he started to squawk and yell, and when I started the engine, he began to yell in great ferocious yawks and flaps his wings.

When I started out the driveway, he flaped his wings, yelled, and ran pell mell up the driveway after the truck. He rab all the way to the dirt road that the driveway runs onto and then stoped. That pattern is repeated almost every morning, or whenever I leave the property and he is around.

He doesn't chase anyone else. My wife driving out doesn't matter, and when the UPS delivery guy was here a few days ago, he didn't say anything.

But when I leave Terrence the Turkey suffers severe separation anxieties!

[mainebrokerman]

great story!!

thanx for sharing

[CoastalMaine]

Maybe you need to let him sit in the passenger seat!!! Take him for a swing through town on your errands! Aflac's got nothin' on Terrence!!!! Great stuff Acadian!!!

[cebdark]

That's hilarious.

[msina]

Gee I wonder if I can make a pet out of on of our flock?

[cebdark]

Originally Posted by Acadianlion

But when I leave Terrence the Turkey suffers severe separation anxieties!

Well have no fear: Pretty soon the pharmaceutical companies will probably come up with a Prozac-equivalent for poultry....

Hmmm...Proturk? Placidpolt? Turkulizer? Okay, I'll stop...

[CalieCat]

Will we get to see a picture of Terrence??!

[Maine Writer]

Great story!! I've heard of quite a few partridge being people friendly but never a wild turkey. That's great!

Originally Posted by msina

Gee I wonder if I can make a pet out of on of our flock?

Let me know before you go out to gobble. I want to be there to take pictures.

[Northern Maine Land Man]

We have a guy in town who feeds geese. There was a mother Canadian goose who showed up with three goslings. Then Mom disappeared and two of the goslings disappeared over time. The one remaining was a young gander. He didn't bond with my friend. He bonded with my friend's red Jeep. Maybe it's because the food was in the back of the Jeep, but when my friend took off in the Jeep the goose followed - in flight - six feet off the ground where he could watch my friend in the rear view mirror. The only other low flight experience my friend had was in a Loach so he named the goose Loach. That goose would fly down the road behind the Jeep to the post office. He would pace back and forth on the lawn and then fly following the food Jeep home.

Loach eventually realized he could fly above treetop level and went south with a flock of geese. I wonder if he saw an identical Jeep along the way and took up following that one.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by Acadianlion

I have been adopt by a turkey.

Last winter we had a large flock of turkeys show up in the front yard every day, or nearly every day. We threw scratch feed out for them to forage, and it was great fun seeing them and photographing all 35 or so of them.

Later in the spring they all disappeared, until one day a single tom appeared in the front yard. We threw out some feed for him, and ever since then he appears every morning and hangs around all day long. I go out in the early morning and "chat" with him. His name is Terrence.

The cats ignore him and he ignores them. I also throw out the old day old cat food, and Purina, our personal sea gull always comes in for breakfast, along with a half dozen neighborhood crows. My wife keeps all the bird feeders full, so we have a lot of birds around.

About a month and a half ago, when I went out to get in my truck to leave, Terrence was in the driveway. As soon as I got into the truck he started to squawk and yell, and when I started the engine, he began to yell in great ferocious yawks and flaps his wings.

When I started out the driveway, he flaped his wings, yelled, and ran pell mell up the driveway after the truck. He rab all the way to the dirt road that the driveway runs onto and then stoped. That pattern is repeated almost every morning, or whenever I leave the property and he is around.

He doesn't chase anyone else. My wife driving out doesn't matter, and when the UPS delivery guy was here a few days ago, he didn't say anything.

But when I leave Terrence the Turkey suffers severe separation anxieties!

Shoot it and eat it!