Train turkey to sleep in dog kennel?

[SarahGfa]

I have been carrying my tom turkey into the shed every evening for the last 6 months. He roosts on the deck railing next to the back door, and I have to carry him across the yard to his shed. Every. Single. Night. I also have 2 turkey hens, they learned to sleep in the shed by themselves without any help.

So, I am going to stop carrying the tom turkey into his shed each night. But we have nasty urban coyotes and he is not safe on the deck rail. I am thinking about getting this dog kennel and putting it on the deck where he sleeps now. This way he is in his chosen location, but protected by a cage. I will open it every morning and close it every night, of course. Can turkeys be trained to sleep in wire enclosures, or do they prefer to be exposed to predators?

 

[R2elk]

I have been carrying my tom turkey into the shed every evening for the last 6 months. He roosts on the deck railing next to the back door, and I have to carry him across the yard to his shed. Every. Single. Night. I also have 2 turkey hens, they learned to sleep in the shed by themselves without any help.

So, I am going to stop carrying the tom turkey into his shed each night. But we have nasty urban coyotes and he is not safe on the deck rail. I am thinking about getting this dog kennel and putting it on the deck where he sleeps now. This way he is in his chosen location, but protected by a cage. I will open it every morning and close it every night, of course. Can turkeys be trained to sleep in wire enclosures, or do they prefer to be exposed to predators?

Heritage turkeys prefer to sleep on a roost, not on the ground.

 

[SarahGfa]

Heritage turkeys prefer to sleep on a roost, not on the ground.

There are roosts in the shed. If I get the dog kennel I would put a sawhorse in there.

 

[yesterDAYNE]

They could. My turkeys sleep in a hardware cloth pen in the garage that has 4 sawhorses with 2x4s drilled across them that my turkeys roost on every night. You might still consider wrapping it in hardware cloth of some kind just in case he ends up too close to the bars somehow.

 

[SarahGfa]

They could. My turkeys sleep in a hardware cloth pen in the garage that has 4 sawhorses with 2x4s drilled across them that my turkeys roost on every night. You might still consider wrapping it in hardware cloth of some kind just in case he ends up too close to the bars somehow.

Good idea, I could build a hardware cloth pen, That would be cheaper than the dog kennel. I was worried the turkey will not tolerate being in a cage. i know they don't like feeling boxed in with solid walls, but maybe as long as they can feel the breeze it's OK

 

[SarahFrost]

My turkeys have learned to sleep in that very same dog kennel you have pictured. I brought them into the garage and put them in the pen while they were sick to separate them from the others. They didn't seem bothered by it at all. I just recently had to move and I am building them a new turkey shed. The turkeys are currently sleeping in the pen in the garage until I finish their new house. They walk into the pen on their own at night and walk out of the garage every morning . I know the pen is not ideal for three turkeys, I should have their new house done in the next couple of days. Just putting the roof on.