Beginner to Turkeys

[arrowti]

We're raising turkeys for the first time, and we got our Bronze Breasted chicks yesterday morning. We're new to raising turkeys so I have a few questions about them. In particular... some of our chicks will run around and fall over, like regular chicks do, except, unlike chickens or ducklings, they can't seem to get back up! They lay on their backs sometimes kicking and sometimes not moving - the first few times I saw it I thought they were dead/dying.... but when pushed over they get right up and go back to running around.

Is that normal? All of them are acting fine, energetic, and eating and drinking.

They are quieter than chicks and ducklings also, which I guess is either a good (normal) thing, or a bad (abnormal) thing.

I will post pictures when I get some... they're simply adorable!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

The first day or two they can be prone to flipping over but usually grow out of it quickly. Just check them regularly and turn them over if necessary. Otherwise they sound healthy. Mine are two weeks old and starting to try to fly out of their 3 1/2 foot tall brooder.

 

[arrowti]

You're right! None have flipped over today and seem fine...

Then we messed everything up. Believing turkeys are like chicks, we ordered 35 and 30 of them were for other people... we just brought the last batch of turkeys that we aren't keeping to their owners, and the 5 remaining poults are extremely nervous and chirping extremely loudly (could hear them all the way across the field where the pigs were)... several were running around, trying to jump out of the box, just completely upset.

There isn't too much info about turkeys around but one article states they bond for life... do they bond for life that early?

Or do you think they're just scared because there's suddenly so few of them?

They quieted down when we talked to them so we ended up bringing a radio out to play some music... and they're now calm, quiet, eating and drinking and sleeping.

So lesson learned...

Any ideas? Do they just need time to adapt to being in a smaller group?

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Turkeys really hate anything different or changed. Yesterday I added sod clumps to the brooder and they peeped for hours before ending up in the corner in a pile. I pushed to near them than they were fine. Whenever you do something different expect the peeping and attempts to get back to what they are used to. Turkeys are nothing like chicks, but they do end up more interactive and curious about stuff and they can be taught things, mine come when called. Yours will adjust in a day or so, I'm sure all the other people you gave turkeys to have noisy turkeys too.