Couple questions

[Apyl]

Ok so I tried to search and search but I cant find a straight answer. Around what age can you tell what sex Narragansett turkey poult ?
Also can I give turkeys kitchen scraps like I can for my chickens? Is there specific foods that are toxic to turkeys? Oh and I', assuming they need grit too ?


Here are some pics of my poults, just in case they can be sexed by pics First 2 pics are one poult, the other 2 pics are the second poult.

 

[Apyl]

Oh and I was told to not put them outside on the ground until 13 weeks old, but I've seen pics on BYC of poults as young as mine out in the grass. So is there really an age I need to wait for ? Also I do have chickens, have had them for a little over a year. My property however has never been lived on before us so we are the first to have poulty on this soil. Does that make a difference as to when I can let them go outside ?

 

[Lagerdogger]

The sexing will take about 8 to 12 weeks. There are many traits you can look at. this site is full of answers to the same question. Try searching for how to sex a turkey or something similar.

13 weeks is a long time to wait to geet your birds out of the brooder and on to the ground. 6 weeks is quoted fairly often, and 8 weeks comes up a lot. As I just commented on another post, hens let their poults run around on the ground almost immediately. So who knows, really. I'm sure people have tried putting them out at different ages and had different experiences. I put all mine from the brooder to the turkey fortress at 6 weeks. I have never had any disease related mortality once in the pasture. I have had one case of wry neck and a couple cases of temporary sluggishness, but not immediately. Most birds are absolutely fine.

I'm sure someone will say I am way to careless with my poults (people already have), but its worked for me, and its cold up here when i put them out. They huddle together at night to keep warm sometimes, but they make it.

 

[Big Dan]

I have poults that are 6 weeks and they have been out since week 3 and they are doing great they Even made it through a snow storm that we got over 2 feet of snow. Heat lamp of course. I just put mine out when they seemed more interested in wanting to spread their wings. All mine are healthy and growing great!