Came home with a baby turkey, help!!

[needhelp13]

While out today my son saw the baby turkeys for sale at runnings, long story short his dad got one for him. I have no idea how to care for them!! Any help would be greatly appreciated. Tips tricks, anything.

 

[feedman77]

Have you raised chicken chicks. Turkeys are about the same.

Have a brooder cage/pen use a light to keep temp 95 to 100.

Depending on the turkey variety you got. Start with 27 percent protein gamebird feed.

I would call feedstore see what kind of turkeys they were selling. Some carry heritage but most are carrying broad breasted variety.

If price of turkey was less than 10 dollars probably broad breasted. Most heritage are about 15 each.

Basics keep him warm, watered, and fed. And he should be fine. Turkeys are flock birds so he might need a playmate.

 

[needhelp13]

We set up his cage and he just doesn't seem to be doing all that well, there's food and water but he's not going for it, any ideas? And I've got the heat lamp going for him but he just doesn't seem to be doing to good.

 

[CocoTurkey]

Look up how to care for them. You shouldn't have bought them if you didn't know how to care for them. There's too much you need to know for a person to type.

 

[R2elk]

We set up his cage and he just doesn't seem to be doing all that well, there's food and water but he's not going for it, any ideas? And I've got the heat lamp going for him but he just doesn't seem to be doing to good.

This was to be expected. Turkey poults don't do well as singles or even in small groups. If nothing else get a chick and put in with it so the chick can teach it to eat and drink. Dip the poult's beak in the water to try to get it drinking. Sprinkle some of the food over the bedding.

It is necessary for the first week to provide heat measured at the bedding surface to be 90°F. The area needs to be big enough that the poult can move in and out of the heated zone as its comfort level dictates. This temperature should be lowered by 5°F each week until the poult is doing well at whatever the ambient temperature is. Too high a temperature and you can "cook" the poult, too low a temperature and you will give the poult a chill from which it will not recover.

 

[seminolewind]

If you type Turkeys into "search", you can come up with a lot of info. You need too much info to post it all here. Good Luck!

 

[CocoTurkey]

I would advise getting two more when you get the essentials set up, even one more would be fine. They are fairly social creatures.

 

[copper2]

I raised mine on chick feed only had one die,
Might want to get a baby chick or turkey to live with him