Dirty Turkeys is it safe to give them a bath?

Hi all, I was burning some old leftover wood from building the Turkey barn, and the turkeys (free range) got into the ashes the next day. What a mess, they look like pigeons rather than young turkeys. I felt so bad about not dumping the ashes first thing in the morning, chores children and all... Does anyone know if it would be safe to put them in a warm bucket and wash the ashes off their feathers?




Ash covered Turkeys!

I don't see why you can't people who show poultry will give them bathes. and yesterday my 4-Hers how were doing poultry projects came out and practiced this with my chickens. Any way what you do is get three tubs of warm water. put soap in the first one. after you get this part do put you bird in the 1st one. You will want to hold his wings until they calm down or you will be just as wet. YOu also going to make sure that their heads stay above water. ( the kids had a hard time remebering that. ) wash them gently, going the same directions as their feathers lay. After you get all of the ash off put them in the 2nd tub of water and work out most of the soap in this one, after they get a good rinse in this one then you move them into the 3rd tub and then here you simply give them qa goood and final rinse, that way you know you got all the soap off. towel dry by pushing the water off of them pushing the water from front to back going the same way the feathers do. If you really want to shine them up put a little vasiline on the beaks, and legs, feet, and maybe even their heads. then put them in a clean and draft free place and your done.

Hi! I answered you on your other thread about them. They do, indeed, look gray but I'd leave them be. They'll eventually whiten up again. JMHO

Ellen

Hi Ellen, Yeah i just read that! Oh well, now you can see them! LOL! Thanks again for the responses.

Birds like to dust bath in wood ashes. It is an old time farmer trick to give poultry ashes to roll in. Ashes are a natural bug preventer, kills off the fleas, ticks and mites the bird may be harboring. I even have a beagle that is very prone to fleas and he LOVES to roll in ashes. It is supposed to be soothing to their skin. I dump ashes in the bird runs often, the chickens, turkeys and guineas love to bath in them.

Richard in TN

Wow I did not know that, I may let them have a good roll in the ashes every once and a while!

Thanks for your response!

R Knauber said:

Birds like to dust bath in wood ashes. It is an old time farmer trick to give poultry ashes to roll in. Ashes are a natural bug preventer, kills off the fleas, ticks and mites the bird may be harboring. I even have a beagle that is very prone to fleas and he LOVES to roll in ashes. It is supposed to be soothing to their skin. I dump ashes in the bird runs often, the chickens, turkeys and guineas love to bath in them.

Richard in TN

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That is exactly what I was going to say about ashes. I mix them into my dust bath, top soil/sand/diatomaceous earth, mix. We have clay for the most part so I have to build baths in shallow tubs for my birds.

That was there bath they have dry dust baths not wet water baths. Like others said they love and need to have dust baths to help with bugs.

R Knauber said:

Birds like to dust bath in wood ashes. It is an old time farmer trick to give poultry ashes to roll in. Ashes are a natural bug preventer, kills off the fleas, ticks and mites the bird may be harboring. I even have a beagle that is very prone to fleas and he LOVES to roll in ashes. It is supposed to be soothing to their skin. I dump ashes in the bird runs often, the chickens, turkeys and guineas love to bath in them.

Richard in TN

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That. I burn wood in my shop for heat and dump the ashes in the chicken run for them to dust bathe in. Only time my chooks get an actual bath is when it rains and they play in that. That said mine aint pets or lap birds. I'm not picking them up and petting on them so I don't care if they are dirty.

My chickens and turkeys all use the remnants of our burn pile as their dust bath. Yeah, they're various shades of gray at the end but their color comes back soon enough after they shake off and eventually preen the oils back into their feathers.