Local Turkeys?

[Nalu]

I know there are wild turkeys up in Volcano, but was wondering if anyone knows if anyone farmed them here on island. I know you can get lambs, beef, chicken etc..local. Thanks for any info! Aloha, Angela

[Hotzcatz]

Not any chicken farms anymore are there? Sheep and cows eat grass and don't have to have feed brought in, chickens and turkeys if they are being commercially raised for meat are usually fed some sort of feed which is now too expensive to bring in. There also isn't an official slaughterhouse for poultry is there? I think there is something on Oahu, though, or at least there used to be.

[Nalu]

Thanks Hotcatz,
I thought of you when posting this question. I knew there were no big productions here, but I was kind of hoping to stumble upon some small family farm scenario. I remember a while back when I got my chickens I had wanted to get ducks and turkeys too, but they were unable to bring them in to Hawaii, you had to find someone who already had them local. Angela

[Hotzcatz]

Turkey poults may be able to be shipped in, although I haven't checked. I know ducks of any kind are not allowed to be imported. Chickens we have. Got thirty of them just hatched earlier this week, need any chicks for $5 each?

[tada]

I think about raising turkeys on the Hilo side. You see a lot more wild turkeys poking around on the Kohala side. Maybe they don't thrive in the rainy places- just my theory.

Other people want to make friends- I just want to make money.
James Cramer

[gtill]

Saw a bunch of turkeys in the fields past Pohakuloa down and to Kamuela. They looked healthy but as dry as it is they're thin and can be tough.Raised and fed they do real well and are excellent. Season was open this month.

[pslamont]

Turkeys are dumb. They wouldn't do well on the east side because of the rain. They are known to curiously stare at the sky with their mouths open and DROWN IN A RAIN STORM. Turkeys are often raised under cover for this reason. That said, if you catch a mating pair bring them on over and we can hatch out some eggs for ya!

Pam

[losfelizguy]

How did the wild turkeys end up in Kohala or the Big Island? Grew up there (Kohala)and don't recall running into any turkeys.....except

hey there

[Carey]

Like all of the game birds (including the doves) that now call Hawaii home, wild turkeys were brought to Hawaii for game hunting. The state & Various game bird clubs maintain bird watering stations throughout the Kohlalas on down to Waikaloa...

Turkeys do survive in some of the wetter areas of the island, but are also more likely to be in cover than out in the open (there is far less cover & easy food sources over in the Waikaloa areas & they are much more visible.

There are many very interesting research papers on the game birds.... have read a few, George Cox also has written at least one book that has a lot of good research on the game animals introduced here...