May 30: Baby Turkeys

This is another one of the bittersweetly delightful stories. Finding delight in painful moments is challenging, but I also think it is a good and helpful practice. Ultimately, you can't escape pain, but you can perceive pain differently, and try to find joy and delight even within those moments. 

So it had been cold and rainy for a few days. And the day before the rain began, we saw a mama turkey with NINE brand new baby turkeys. Today, we saw the mama again, soaking wet, shivering, and limping-- her left leg looked like it had been mauled-- with only three babies. And the babies were not doing well. They were also shivering cold and soaking wet, and they were having a hard time keeping up with mama. Eventually, each one of them just stopped in the yard, no longer moving, and then the mama walked away, completely neglecting the baby turks, leaving them behind to die. 

I couldn't stand it, and decided to bring them inside to get them warm and dry and attempt to rehabilitate them. I found all three (they were barely moving and basically collapsed on the ground in three different locations in the yard. The mama made no attempt to come back and get them or stop me. There was no way she was going to be able to take care of them, as she was going to be barely able to even take care of herself. We are guessing maybe a fox or other predator attacked them; killing most of the babies, injuring the mother, and leaving the other three babies with a mother no longer able to care or to protect them. Nature seems so cruel sometimes. 

But I, being a crazy human being who tries to fight against nature and bring love to all the world, including the animal world, especially to baby turkeys, brought them inside and put them under our heat lamp in a bed of pine shavings with some baby chicken food and water (we are totally set up to take care of baby turks!). One of them died within the first few hours (I think she had a badly broken leg), but the other two seemed to be making a recovery. They were both standing, with eyes wide open, peeping, and moving around a bit. They were absolutely delightful to hold and play with. I saw both of them poop, and one of them drink and eat a little. I had high hopes that at least one would make it. But right before heading to bed, I checked on them, and one of them had died. Only one turkey left, and I really hoped she would make it through the night. When I woke up in the morning, first thing I did was check on her, and she didn't make it. It was such a crazy emotional roller coaster, and so completely sad to have lost all three baby turkeys, but at least they were warm and dry and loved before they died. And the mama turkey is still around (as of 6/3/21!), still limping, but also still alive! I hope she makes it, and she can try to have more delightful babies again next year. 

With delight (tinged with sadness),

♥Jamie