Free ranging turkeys O.K.?

[birdlover]

The fall festival where I work has 2 turkeys. The owner of the place wants to let them loose when it's over. He thinks they'll hang with the peacock and/ or guineas that free range now. Will the turkeys be safe? I'm assuming size is on their side! Any feedback is most welcome. Thanks!

 

[chseeads]

They'll just face the same dangers that the peacocks or guineas do.

 

[pdpatch]

Turkeys are flock animals, so if there is a wild turkey flock it's very possible they may join the wild turkeys. Unless they were raised with the other fowl it's not likely they will hang around them. They may be around them but normally they will keep to them selves.

Tom

 

[Wanda]

Ellen - the dairy farm I use to do TNR at had 3 turkeys. One was an older male who just showed up one day and eventually disappeared. The other 2 (male/female) were born there and stayed free ranging, hung around with the chickens, til the farmer got rid of them, about 1 1/2 yrs. They liked to perch on the roof of one of the buildings at night and of course they messed all over it and that is why he didn't keep them.

Wanda

 

[birdlover]

Thanks, guys. I guess I won't add the turkeys to my "worry list".

 

[chickenannie]

If he is releasing them to the wild, that is not legal (if they mingle with wild turkeys they can bring illness and poor genetics that can hurt the wild turkey population). If he is releasing them to free-range and stay on the property, I agree with the above. Will he feed them ?

 

[birdlover]

I don't know if he will feed them. He had a group of free range sebrights that he left on their own (he didn't feed them) and they did fine for a couple of years but, bit by bit, they disappeared. These turkeys ( a bronze and a royal palm) will be released to stay on his property...116 acres.

 

[FarmerChick]

a turkey will wander more than the usual chicken.

wild turkeys travel far each day in their daily lives. so good chance they might hang around wtih the other birds, but also the big possibility they will disappear and yea, they face any loose predator situation also.

crapshoot when anything free ranges.

 

[Boggy Bottom Bantams]

Well, I raise 3 strains of wild turkeys, free range some of all of them (extra jakes) on our 130 acre farm. They never leave the 4 acre "yard" area, where all the birds are penned dispite the large # of wild, wild birds on the farm, the real wild ones actually come to the ones we own!
They will roost at night to avoid predation, are very, VERY alert, usually warn all the other birds first of something being wrong. and are not fed, much at least, they get it all on their own. I have had them that way for years now, never lost one.
So If I can do it with Wild strains, your barnyard domestics, which have been free ranged since the dawn of time, LOL, will be just fine,
No worries!
Aubrey