Winthrop has a turkey problem

[Ridgeratt]

Winthrop city council is petitioning the wdfw to control the population

https://towncloud-core-prod.s3.us-west-2.amazonaws.com/uploads/winthrop-wa/meetings/agenda_packet/pdf_packet/2/regular-town-council-meeting_2026-02-18_233021_combined.pdf

[lewy]

Seems like a great opportunity to get the sportsman/youth involved

[Ridgeratt]

This could be a great side hussle for turkey jerky as a roadside business.

Let Johnny set up his blind in the mini mart lot.

[Longfield1]

I’d go up there with my bow and clean house for free. They wouldn’t even have to pay me.

[vandeman17]

Part of the problem is there are a lot of vacation houses up there where the people owning them complain about the turkeys in their yards but don't want them killed.... 

[Mtnwalker]

The spandex crowd loves to protect wildlife right up until it inconveniences them personally  imagine the burden they must endure whilst venturing from their vacation chalets

[MADMAX]

I’ve had great success on state land in the valley
Once you figure out their daily movements
Not hard to pattern

[Kingofthemountain83]

Seen about a hundred coming back from deer last year... Four different groups... All on private land...

[Ridgeratt]

You can find pasture maggots pretty much in any open field this time of year. Even in the residential areas of Spokane. I have close to that many in my pastures in the Springtime.  Behind St. Lukes there are lots of birds in the parking lots.

[Kingofthemountain83]

LOL! Best thing I've read in a while... Scroll down to the last 2 pages and read the story of why they want the turkeys gone...      $1500 for for a new window, carpet cleaning, and furniture sounds really cheap to me... Must've been old school single pane... Disrupting the firework show would be classic! I'd vote to keep the turkeys around for the entertainment factor alone! If I lived there and start a petition to keep them... The way it reads the WDFW will be in charge of the removal... No hunting will be taking place...

I've never seen these town turkeys... Haven't spent a bunch of time in Winthrop but deer hunt here and have "vacationed" quite a bit over the years...

[ghosthunter]

Seen lots of turkeys from Winthrop to Benson Creek. All on private. It cracks me up when they hang around the vet office near the bridge.

Let the little buggers multiple.

[brokentrail]

Willing to waive their trapping ban because now it impacts them....

[2MANY]

Trap and relocate.
WDFW is lame.

[full choke]

The spandex crowd loves to protect wildlife right up until it inconveniences them personally  imagine the burden they must endure whilst venturing from their vacation chalets

Sounds quite a bit like the Martha's Vineyard crowd. Wonder what they have in common?

[Loup Loup]

It doesn’t say if they’ve gone to the Turkey advisory group yet.
They’ve obviously tryed flash bang deterrents, but have they used flaudery, guard dogs, or Range riders yet.
I think they have a few more hoops to jump through before they can ignore their own trapping ban and remove the poor turkeys.
Even though turkeys are an invasive species maybe they shouldn’t ice skate in turkey habitat. Maybe they shouldn’t even live in turkey habitat. At the least they should put bars on their windows to protect the poor turkeys.

[hunter399]

They eat dirt , nothing wrong with that....

[Dick in the Dirt]

Relocate to the Seattle area. Easy way to help feed the homeless.

[timberfaller]

I see a lot of turkey's in the Methow every week!!

Read the MVN every week an get a  feeling!!

[high_hunter]

They live in prime turkey & deer habitat and traditional range lands. 
Not that surprising that they are in / around town; being that cloae to wildlife is part of the appeal.  Seems like some silly complaints to me and I agree they should try additional deterrent method.   Otherwise allow limited specialty youth/disabled hunts or lastly trap & relocate onto surrounding public lands.

Hh

[Birdguy]

It doesn’t say if they’ve gone to the Turkey advisory group yet.
They’ve obviously tryed flash bang deterrents, but have they used flaudery, guard dogs, or Range riders yet.
I think they have a few more hoops to jump through before they can ignore their own trapping ban and remove the poor turkeys.
Even though turkeys are an invasive species maybe they shouldn’t ice skate in turkey habitat. Maybe they shouldn’t even live in turkey habitat. At the least they should put bars on their windows to protect the poor turkeys.

  Love that!!
Also, about 15 or so years ago the WDFW doubled the cost of the turkey tag to develop a turkey management plan. They certainly took the money and still are but there was never an honest attempt made at an actual management plan. It would be something to actually have a plan to manage our wildlife!

[Russ McDonald]

It doesn’t say if they’ve gone to the Turkey advisory group yet.
They’ve obviously tryed flash bang deterrents, but have they used flaudery, guard dogs, or Range riders yet.
I think they have a few more hoops to jump through before they can ignore their own trapping ban and remove the poor turkeys.
Even though turkeys are an invasive species maybe they shouldn’t ice skate in turkey habitat. Maybe they shouldn’t even live in turkey habitat. At the least they should put bars on their windows to protect the poor turkeys.

  Love that!!
Also, about 15 or so years ago the WDFW doubled the cost of the turkey tag to develop a turkey management plan. They certainly took the money and still are but there was never an honest attempt made at an actual management plan. It would be something to actually have a plan to manage our wildlife!

There is no turkey plan anymore.  It all got combined in to a wild life management plan for everything.  You want to know how they most likely came into town and few ventured in and resident who thought they were cool started feeding them.  When that is done 2 turns into 20 real quick.  The only way they are going to get rid of them is relocate but the state doesn't seem to have a very good record of doing that.  Trap them and move them into a place with more then enough turkeys.  To create more of a nuisance.  Yup let youth, first time hunters, disabled to hunt them.  We will see what comes of this.   

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[MADMAX]

There’s an absolute ton of them that run around down at the Silverline resort near the lake
Stayed down there one year recently with my buds deer hunting
The turkeys are pretty smart about midmorning when everybody out, one morning we were still sitting there. We came in early for biscuits and gravy The turkeys came by and they raided every single campspot of everything that was left out on the picnic tables. I was laughing my butt off and I threw a leftover biscuit from the biscuits and gravy and watched that bunch of turkeys chase that one turkey with the biscuit all over that campground look like a dang horse race of turkeys. It was hilarious.