Effect of Diet of Turkey Males on Fertility

AMONG the economic problems in turkey production are low fertility and hatchability. Friars et al. (1963) noted that for all turkey eggs set in the U.S. and Canada, the hatchability was in the range of 55 percent. Hale (1951) reported that infertility was due to low effectiveness of males in inseminating the females. The female's sex drive was reduced by incomplete copulation comparable to hens with which complete matings took place. Effectiveness ranged from 15 to 97% of the attempted copulations. The average interval between matings following complete copulation was 9 days (3–17) compared to incomplete copulation of 7 days (2–12). Smyth and Leighton (1953) reported total matings completed by 7 males showed a variation of 44.3 to 87.5% of matings completed with an average of 68.2%. Males with high efficiency possessed a good sense of balance, showed considerable patience and completed the matings with a minimum of . . .