Well folks here it is. We're starting to enter the new age of computer gadgets with this, our own website. JD's Birds is a small rural "company" mostly my mind right now. Of coarse we have lots and lots of Birds. It is a full time job to care for all the different types of feathered fowls that reside on our 1.03 acres of Arizona dirt. My goal is to make this blog as interesting and informative as possible  for those who want to learn how to raise and rear poultry for themselves. Raising and hatching turkeys at our altitude of 7000 feet here in Eagar, AZ seeems to be a little tricky to say the least. Our hatch rate on turkeys this past year was  terrible. But the pheasants eggs  that we incubated  hatched off with hardly any problems. I think this year I'll rig up an oxygen tube and pump more O2 into the incubators to try to get the hatch rate to improve? If you are going to raise  poulty for eggs and meat you need to understand that having them requires  alot of time, energy, space, and money. I'd recommend  ordering your day old chicks from the Mt. Healthy Hatcheries www.mthealthy.com.  You'll get the best, healthiest & liveliest little chicks in the mail. Ours made it her to the middle of nowhere overnight. We've ordered from them at many times this past year and have always gotten all that we ordered and the prettiest, liveliest little thngs then you could imagine.  You'll need to make a brooder of sorts (plastic storage tubs), a heat lamp and small waterers (put marbles in the water trays so they don't drown) and feeders. I put quarter inch galvanized wire in the bottom of the container so the chicks can traction. This is very important for if you just use newspaper alot of them will get splayed leg and not survive.  Use a thermometer and adjust the height of the lamp to get 100 deg.   at wire level and always remember to keep fresh luke warm water in front of them at all times . When I first receive  the new babies I always dip their beaks in warm water as I take them out of the box from the hatchery and stick them under the 125 watt red heat lamp. Another little trick is that I mix a tiny bit of sugar in the water (the first day) We also use a little Grow gel  mixed with water and put it on top of their food. An old paper egg carton flattened out works as a feeder for a few days. A box 18in. x 24in.  will hold 35  baby chicks for a couple of weeks until you can build a regular brooder cage to raise them in. Be sure to always look for " poopy butt"  chick and clean them daily or they'll  die from being unable to past their waste. If you want tame lovable birds you'll have to hold them and pet them everyday as you're  raising them. They especailly love green treats like  broccoli ,alfalfa, or fresh pulled weeds from the yard. Word to the wise, if a plant weeps a white  milky sap when you pick it then it's poisonous so don't give it to them.  My birds just love regular weeds that I pull-up for them.  Be sure to breakup the stems  into small  pieces. You can take them out into the sunlight on warm days after 3 weeks or so and let them scratch in the dirt for a few hours. If you talk to them and call to them to "come here"  while giving them a treat they'll figure it out  real soon and come every time you show up, making it real easy to put them up at night later if you let them free range.  You should always keep them in a pen away from any threats such as dogs ,cats , etc. while they're little or you'll be mad when your chicks get eaten. Turkey poults are very smart and can be taught to come with voice commands , they're also very inquisitive and try to help you do things and are oblivious to the danger of things such as power tools, hand saws , etc. They're like kids - they want to do anything you do. They all love attention and will willingly come to you and sit in your lap to be petted  for hours. You'd be surprised at the amount of love such Birds will return to you  if  you raise them with a hands on approach.  Next blog will be how to build your own brooder and coop . JD