Hello from Hazard!
Bird brained… ever wonder what that means? Well, Item No. 672 does a lot to explain it.
It is “Rudolph’s Pickout Shield, Pat. Pend.” – an “anti picking guard” for turkeys. As Robert Rauhauser of Thomasville, Pa., who submitted the item, explains it, the safety pin goes through the bird’s nostrils and the tin shield prevents the bird from pecking his fellow turkeys.
Turkeys, and most other fowl, will peck each other to death if they don’t receive proper care. Cannibalism usually starts with a bird pecking at the feathers, comb, toes or vent of another, often weaker, bird. Once an open wound or blood is visible on a bird, that attracts more birds and before long, the victim has been pecked to death.
Today, good management practices go a long way in preventing flock cannibalism.
Donald Sopher of Grove City, Pa., was the only reader who correctly identified Item No. 672 (although Beatrice and Kenny Edwards of Delaware, Ohio, should get an A for creativity, as they guessed the item was either an antique chastity cup or an antique athletic cup).
This week’s item comes from Ralph Anstine of Alliance, Ohio. Do you know what it is?
Send your answers to: Hazard a Guess, P.O. Box 38, Salem, OH 44460; or via e-mail to: editorial@farmanddairy.com.
