The Brookings register. [volume] (Brookings, Brookings County, S.D.) 1903-1971, 1920-11-04

Americans. Many serve 'u4h''
Christmas and New Years also, Du'
after the holiday season IS past th'
demand for turkeys is usually small
This makes the marketing season loi
turkeys very short, running as i doe
from the middle Of November TO th'
latter part of December.
Most turkey raisers sell their bird.
alive to poultry dealers who "lth"i
dress them or ship them ally" to rty
dealers. Farmers near the city ma
kets, and particularly those in the
middle Atlantic and New England
states, often dress the turkeys and
either sell them direct 10 the con
sumer or TO city dealers. In some
! sections shortly before Thanksgiving
there is held what is known as turk y
day. On the day before this event
every turkey grower in the ~neighbor-
hood kills and dresses his turkeys,
and the following morning brings them
into town, where they are bid on ana
purchased by buyers, the birds going
to the highest bidder.
In sections where turkeys are grown
in large numbers, as in Texas, dressing
plants have been built by poultry deal
ers, who buy the birds alive and dress
them for the various city markets. In
such cases practically all the turkey
raisers sell to these dealers, who often
buyers out into the country TO
gather up a drove of several hundred
birds by stopping at each farm as
they pass, weighing whatever turkeys
the farmer may have TO sell, and add
ing them TO those already collected.
Six or eight men can drive a flock OF
| 900 turkeys ten or twelve miles a
day. As soon as possible after the
turkeys are received at the dressing
plant they are killed, dry-picked,
cooled. and packed in barrels or boxes
for shipment.
Turkeys 10 be killed and dressed on
the farm should first be deprived OF
feed for "a hours. but given plenty Of
clean water in order TO clean
the crop and intestines Of all feed.
When ready TO kill, the bird should
hung up by the feet; holding the
bird in one hand, a sharp, narrow
knife is used TO sever the veins
the throat by making a small cut
inside the mouth on the right side
Of the throat, at the base Of the skull.
After making this cut and bleeding
the knife is thrust up through
The groove in the roof Of the mouth
and into the brain at the back part
Of the skull. The bird gives q pecu-
lar sQuawk, the feathers are loOsened
a ~Quivering of the muscles, and
death is instantaneous.
In dry-picking, the feathers should
plucked Immediately, and if the
bird has been properly stuck they
out very easily. The tail and
wing feathers are removed first,
which the body feathers are
out. When the turkeys are TO
be marketed locally or are to be
but a short distance, they
are cooled TO a temperature of about
35' F. by hanging in the open air, pro
vided the weather is cool enough,
otherwise they are plunged into ice
and kept there until thoroughly
After cooling they are packed I'M
drawn in boxes or barrels. 1t is mad
yisable for the producer without proper
refrigerating facilities TO ship dressed
turkeys, as losses from improper cool
ing and from their being exposed to
weather during transit are liza
Bile to occur. Aside from this it is
profitable to ship turkeys any
great distance except in carload lots;
when this is done the turkeys are
cooled to go F., packed in boxes or
barrels, and shipped in refrigerator
cars.