Considering turkeys????

[WildWyandott110]

Heyo.
I'm thinking about getting turkeys (Broad-breasted White???) this spring, (Turklings? Chicks?) and was wondering about any differences I should know about from meat chickens, which I have previously raised and eaten.
Some of my questions:
1- Do turkeys need separate housing from chickens/chicks?
2- How cold hardy are turkeys, and what breeds would y'all suggest for a taiga-esque biome?
3- Do turkeys need different food than chickens?
4- How fast do turkeys grow compared to meat chickens? Are they cost-effective?
5- Are turkeys aggressive? Any temperament issues?

Thanks in advance!

 

[R2elk]

Heyo.
I'm thinking about getting turkeys (Broad-breasted White???) this spring, (Turklings? Chicks?) and was wondering about any differences I should know about from meat chickens, which I have previously raised and eaten.
Some of my questions:
1- Do turkeys need separate housing from chickens/chicks?
2- How cold hardy are turkeys, and what breeds would y'all suggest for a taiga-esque biome?
3- Do turkeys need different food than chickens?
4- How fast do turkeys grow compared to meat chickens? Are they cost-effective?
5- Are turkeys aggressive? Any temperament issues?

Thanks in advance!

Young turkeys are poults.

1- Depends on whether or not Blackhead is present in your area. If blackhead is present the turkeys need to be housed separately from chickens. If blackhead is not present some people have success housing turkeys and chickens together and others do not have success for numerous reasons.

2- Turkeys are very cold hardy. There is only one breed of domestic turkeys and the breed is Turkey. There are many varieties of turkeys. You can check out many of the varieties of turkeys at Porter's Rare Heritage Turkeys.

3- Adult turkeys can be fed the same feed as adult chickens as long as it is a quality feed. Poults should be fed a high protein turkey/gamebird starter due to their higher protein requirements and the other nutrients such as niacin and methionine which are at a higher percentage in turkey starters than they are in chicken starters.

4- Broad Breasted turkeys grow very fast and can be table ready in four to six months. Heritage turkeys are much slower growing and many do not harvest heritage turkeys until they are over a year old.

5- Depending on the individual and how they were raised can determine whether or not a turkey will be aggressive.

If you are planning on raising self sustaining turkeys, heritage turkeys are capable of breeding on their own. Broad Breasted turkeys are typically raised with the use of artificial insemination.

You can also read the threads in the Turkeys - Sticky Topics Index.

 

[WildWyandott110]

Thanks! This is really helpful! I'll look into this.

 

[dunnmom]

My mom used one of her constantly broody Orpingtons to hatch turkey poults for my cousin. She said the poults were so sweet and friendly, that she was sad to see them go out to the farm. Just an anectdote, no useful information.

 

[WildWyandott110]

My mom used one of her constantly broody Orpingtons to hatch turkey poults for my cousin. She said the poults were so sweet and friendly, that she was sad to see them go out to the farm. Just an anectdote, no useful information.

Quite clever to use the broody hens.

 

[dunnmom]

Quite clever to use the broody hens.

I thought so, too. Same hen also hatched guineas. She was a good mama, nurturing and protective of whatever she hatched. Too bad my mom had to rehome her because the other hens were horribly mean to her.

 

[WildWyandott110]

Aww. What a shame. I personally have a soft spot for Orps.

 

[SunshineMary]

Turkeys are delightful; if you can free-range them, they will follow you around outside like dogs, chirping and "barking" little comments to you. We raised BBWs and BBBs several years ago and now raise midget whites, and they are a never-ending source of amusement.

We have not found turkeys (even so far our breeding tom) to be aggressive toward people. They can be rather peckish with each other though; poults are terrible for pecking each other to the point of causing wounds. I found this to be true of both BBs and MWs.

If you raise BBs and free-feed, plan to slaughter at 3 months for a small turkey (10-15 lbs), 4 months for a medium (15-20 lbs), 5 months for large (20-30 lbs), and 6 months for enormous (30-40 lbs).

 

[WildWyandott110]

Turkeys are delightful; if you can free-range them, they will follow you around outside like dogs, chirping and "barking" little comments to you. We raised BBWs and BBBs several years ago and now raise midget whites, and they are a never-ending source of amusement.

We have not found turkeys (even so far our breeding tom) to be aggressive toward people. They can be rather peckish with each other though; poults are terrible for pecking each other to the point of causing wounds. I found this to be true of both BBs and MWs.

If you raise BBs and free-feed, plan to slaughter at 3 months for a small turkey (10-15 lbs), 4 months for a medium (15-20 lbs), 5 months for large (20-30 lbs), and 6 months for enormous (30-40 lbs).

Beautiful! Very helpful! TYSM!