Black Head

[cluck cluck 123]

Hi, I have 18 chickens and want to get a turkey. I have heard that turkeys can get black head from chickens. Should/can I still get one? Need advice?

 

[wcah]

I would gess from what iv read it would be fine as long as the chickens are wormed EVERY 6 weeks an also the turkeys. I think too that the turkeys dont have a great imune system untill around 9 weeks old as long as they have been fed on a heigh protin feed between 20 -25%. I have just bought 10 7 week old an have lost 1 already an the vet said to could quite possibley be black head since id been walking around the chickens and then going into the turkey pen with out disinfecting my boots. So iv kept them in the barn for now, as they have had 7 days of meds, iv wormed my chickens and am now worming my turkeys, but im worried so im in the prosses of building a pen for them 90M2. But im also worried about them escapin an since they are for christmas i dont want to risk loosing any more. If they are for pets i would just worm both chickens and turkeys every 6 weeks and not mix them untill the turkeys are 10 weeks on the safe side. Also so if your ground has been hevely pooed on by the chickens you could spread some lime to neutralize the poo and replenish the ground. I hope this helps

 

[Fat Man]

Cal your Ag Extension agent or ask local producers to see if there is blackhead in your area.

 

[casportpony]

Cal your Ag Extension agent or ask local producers to see if there is blackhead in your area.

Why do people keep saying this? I have blackhead here in Gilroy, but I had no issues with it when we were 10 miles North in Morgan Hill. I really don't see how any the State could keep track of blackhead in backyard flocks, 'cause most people don't send every dead bird off for necropsy.

This thread has some good info:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/users/subscriptions/index/view/threads
AS does this one:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/t/814155/can-turkeys-share-freerangeing-with-chickens#post_11846318

-Kathy