I had been raising turkeys on and off for 20 years. The Broad Breasted White or Bronze were the only birds familiar to me. I wanted the November feast to be of my own production, from the bird to the yams. I came pretty close too. I just couldn't get those coffee beans to grow. I also provided a few birds for the neighborhood that almost paid the feed bill. It was enough to rationalize that my organic treat was virtually without cost.

Tom's heritage hybrid breeding pen.

Those production varieties certainly had their issues, the least of which was size. They just got too big. Forty pound toms had to be cut in half or dictate a very large roasting bag. Most of my customers didn't want to pay for or deal with a holiday bird that large. Too often, we found ourselves facing the age-old problem of what to do with all that left over meat. Turkey surprise in mid December just isn't a surprise anymore. Of course there are ways to curb some of these problems but they are influenced by when the "little guy" can get poults and when you can get that "fresh" turkey processed for the big day.

Considering medicated feed was imperative for the new and improved industrial sized broad breasted turkey. (Which, to my understanding, is due to a genetic deficiency in their immune systems.) They were far from cheap to raise.

Searching for a "New" Breed

The fact that you could not naturally breed these oversize monster turkeys was why I finally went looking for a "new" breed. What I hadn't realized was I was looking for an "old" breed, a heritage breed, a breed of turkey that had worked well for decades before we got so greedy with weight gain and so technologically sterile in our reproduction concepts.

I found my answers in a Bourbon Red tom turkey named Bubba. Bubba became a farm mascot and an ambassador of education to the local elementary school. I also gained a lifetime memory from this majestic bird. For those of us who have had poultry around us our whole lives, individual birds come and go in the blink of an eye. There is however the unique fowl that leaves us something special in their short time with us. Bubba was one of those special birds.

I came across Bubba the Bourbon Red and his two girls at a relative's farm. He had gotten them as an after thought with his big whites for raising his own turkeys the following year. I'm not sure if it was their lack of size in comparison to the broad breasted or the fact that they made his sun porch their roost but I was able to acquire them from him with no regrets.

This nest box is used successfully by Tom's turkey hens.

There was newness to this venture that I was to share with Bubba and family. I had only recently acquired my very own farm at the age of 42 and was looking for a way to have my hobby at least pay for itself. Bubba and his harem settled in nicely and soon began to nest. Turkey hens seem to like a nest site that is open with just a hint of cover. I would use a box about 12" x 18" and angle a pine bow over the top. I have also used a half barrel with a front board and covered it in the same way. I let them clutch some eggs to see if they were truly able to reproduce on their own. I was apprehensive and was anxious to assist in incubation and or brooding, not trusting a mere turkey with the chores of motherhood.

It was a long 28 days of incubation and typically Bubba was unconcerned about hen business. He would greet everyone that came to my farm in full display and with a melodious gobble. Bubba never pushed or pecked a soul; he was always a gentleman and a credit to his breed. He would follow me wherever I went, waiting patiently outside of buildings till I would come out and once again lead his parade. I remember thinking Bubba must have had a dependency; he appeared to be a strut-aholic.

That first brood was small, only five chicks but a huge success for me. Now I could generate this historic bird from my own breeders and not be hostage to the local feed store. I let mother hen turkey raise her babies, confined of course for at least four weeks. We are still talking domestic turkeys here and they are notorious for being ...well...turkeys! Once released they did well foraging, hardly interested in my high protein feed when compared to grasshoppers. I figured I was going to raise the cheapest Thanksgiving dinner since the Pilgrims.

One Sunday morning I heard regular horn blasts coming from the road, I dismissed it at first as friends saying hello. As the salutes continued and I realized I don't know that many people, I looked out the window to see my mother turkey and half grown brood perched on the guard rail...on the wrong side of the road. Needless to say that evening we had to confine the adventurers, no more free lunches, it was going to be turkey grower from now on.

The toms ended up dressing out a good 20 pounds and the hens that I didn't keep were lucky to make 15 pounds. What could not be denied was we had a truly home grown turkey with the flavor of a mature bird.

Bubba Goes to School

Bubba the Bourbon Red in school. The article's author, Tom, is the teacher - the one with the mustache.

What about Bubba, the bird that started it all? Bubba's big claim to fame was his visit to elementary school. I am a biology teacher by profession. I made a connection with our elementary school to bring Bubba in for the Wednesday before Thanksgiving-kind of a "show and gobble." I put a big doghouse on my little Nissan truck and loaded up my ambassador of education and brought him to school. Bubba was a big boy by this time. There was no way for me to carry him from room to room so, I put him on the floor and he did what he did best, the barnyard parade...strut and gobble. He marched into any room that welcomed him, fanning and gobbling.

Bubba got his name in the paper that year, and I dare say a stay of execution for future Thanksgivings. This infamous bird lived on for several more years helping me convince other backyard poultry enthusiasts of the practicality and versatility of his breed.

I have enjoyed the Heritage turkeys for more than 14 years now, thanks to Bubba. I still call every tom turkey I keep by that name. They are a wonderful addition to my backyard poultry flock. I have found the Bourbon Reds, Black Spanish and Narragansetts to be hardy and peaceful breeds, with significant productivity and the natural ability to produce a Thanksgiving delicacy that you will not soon forget. Thanks Bubba!

In addition to Tom's article Backyard Poultry Magazine has a second article on the history and varieties of turkeys. To learn more about turkeys and many more poultry-related topics, subscribe to Backyard Poultry Magazine today.