Heritage & Exhibition Turkey Thread

[Haunted55]

If he is drinking water willingly, that is good....i would continue trying to give him the vits and healthy bread with oil, probiotics/yogurt to help with stomach flora.....if you have other poultry feed or cob/scratch or food scraps see if that interests him......if with other birds, does he follow them if you scatter feed? If you have other livestock and keep on hand *Red Cell or *Goat Nutra drench, i have diluted it in my poultry water for extra nutrients/iron on a limited basis. Drinking without eating is ok for a short while but will need calories to keep warm and survive. If you have other turkeys to check difference, does he feel warmer as if feverish????

Do you notice any difference in his neck that could be a swelling or if held and you gently touch his neck do you feel anything or is there a point where he reacts as if sore?

Is he where you can monitor his poop, color and amount without stressing him? Think that the Yellow coloration could be toxin related? So as long as he continues to drink maybe could flush out of system????

Just some thoughts.....

X 2! And, did you look up the type of cactus? Some cactus plants are not fit for man nor beast. The poop is awful yellow to me. It may be that this feed is high in corn but it could also be something else. Give him the bread with the oil, if you can get him to eat it. Look up the cactus and see what type it is. This may just be stomach upset from something in the plant or it may be something more serious. I don't know this feed so I can't comment on it. The other tom that died, did he also eat the cactus? Did he come from the same place you got this one from?

I just read your post again to make sure I didn't miss anything. You say he walks by the food, I am assuming you have female turkeys, do they eat it? Have you tried a different feed? Like Purina Flock Raiser? Or any other feed for that matter? Can you try some scrambled eggs? If I have one feeling poorly, I will offer them Quacker oats soaked in warm water, a touch of molasses and 3-4 eggs, raw, mixed in. They will usually go wild over it and eat it right away. It is possible that there is something wrong with the feed. Does it have any clumps in it? Does it have a moldy or musty smell? I'm not saying it does, I'm just trying to cover all of the bases here so nothing is missed.

 

[aguilera]

Other than him not eating on his own he seems perfectly fine. All my other turkeys eat when I feed them except him. About 2 months ago one of my turkeys passed away. I didnt notice soon enough that he wasn't eating because I had their food in their feeder so they can eat as much as they wanted. I gave him antibiotics, electrolites, and hand fed him for 2 days before he passed away. The only reason I noticed something was wrong was because he started to walk around kinda sad with his wings almost dragging to the ground. So now I feed them in the morning and after noon so I can see how they are doing.

 

[aguilera]

X 2! And, did you look up the type of cactus? Some cactus plants are not fit for man nor beast. The poop is awful yellow to me. It may be that this feed is high in corn but it could also be something else. Give him the bread with the oil, if you can get him to eat it. Look up the cactus and see what type it is. This may just be stomach upset from something in the plant or it may be something more serious. I don't know this feed so I can't comment on it. The other tom that died, did he also eat the cactus? Did he come from the same place you got this one from?

I just read your post again to make sure I didn't miss anything. You say he walks by the food, I am assuming you have female turkeys, do they eat it? Have you tried a different feed? Like Purina Flock Raiser? Or any other feed for that matter? Can you try some scrambled eggs? If I have one feeling poorly, I will offer them Quacker oats soaked in warm water, a touch of molasses and 3-4 eggs, raw, mixed in. They will usually go wild over it and eat it right away. It is possible that there is something wrong with the feed. Does it have any clumps in it? Does it have a moldy or musty smell? I'm not saying it does, I'm just trying to cover all of the bases here so nothing is missed.

This is the cactus the tom that passed away ate. he is in the background too. this cactus i eat when it has fresh ones growing, Its the one they sell at the stores. This new tom ate the same cactus but from a diferent one on the other side. I have the cactus with my dogs and they are separated from my turkeys with a chain linked fence. After the 1st turkey got sick I locked the gate. But this new turkey hoped over. The 1st turkey I raised as a baby from a hatchery that I ordered last year. This new turkey I bought him from avbirds.com.
This is the only feed I give them. Its the most expensive one too. Its mixed with all kinds of stuff. There is no clumps or mold in their food. I keep it in a water proof container.
Thank you (and everyone else too) for helping me and giving me ideas!

 

[elizmartin]

Keep us posted, hope whatever it is clears out soon....There are alot of foods that we can eat that are detrimental to our pets....onions, chocolate, raisins - dogs, Avacados and birds and read once that somewhere monkeys eat a food that would kill humans so never know.

 

[Haunted55]

Keep us posted, hope whatever it is clears out soon....There are alot of foods that we can eat that are detrimental to our pets....onions, chocolate, raisins - dogs, Avacados and birds and read once that somewhere monkeys eat a food that would kill humans so never know.

I agree. I have tried looking the cactus up from the picture but am not that familiar with them to be able to say for sure if I have the right one. My advice? See if you have an Extension office where you live or a state Vet. and see if they can give you information on plants in your area and how it would effect your turkey. If the first died after eating it and now the second one isn't eating......I think you have an answer. Try the oiled bread and then see if you can entice him with yogurt. The oiled bread for moving anything stuck and then the yogurt to soothe any irritation inside. I am so sorry that I can't offer you more. What about crushed ice with vitamins and electrolites? Can you try that? If you can get him to eat scrambled eggs or something, it will help move whatever it is out and make his stomach work again. How long has he gone without eating now?

 

[aguilera]

I think it's been 5 days now. But for the last 3 days I've been hand feeding him.

 

[Haunted55]

I think it's been 5 days now. But for the last 3 days I've been hand feeding him.

Oh good! So he is getting something. How is he doing now? Is he still up and moving, eyes clear, no discharge? If you can, see if you can get him to take some grit. This will help with anything that may have been ingested that shouldn't have been.

 

[ashandvine]

This might sounds strange but given the 'cleansing' nature of DE that might not be bad either. Oil and bread, DE and maybe pumpkin if he will eat it as that also has a lot of fiber to clean him out. I think rather than watching what he is eating you might want to feel his crop and watch his stools. If he is acting fine then I wouldn't stress. Its been several days. Make sure he has grit to break up things in his crop which is the first place something might be stuck. Did you try looking in the throat. Really, if he isn't dead yet he isn't likely to be. How long before your last one passed after eating the cactus??

 

[aguilera]

This might sounds strange but given the 'cleansing' nature of DE that might not be bad either. Oil and bread, DE and maybe pumpkin if he will eat it as that also has a lot of fiber to clean him out. I think rather than watching what he is eating you might want to feel his crop and watch his stools. If he is acting fine then I wouldn't stress. Its been several days. Make sure he has grit to break up things in his crop which is the first place something might be stuck. Did you try looking in the throat. Really, if he isn't dead yet he isn't likely to be. How long before your last one passed after eating the cactus??

Around a week. When I noticed that he wasnt eating and I finally hand fed him, he didn't weigh much at all. By then he was just walking arond all sad with his wing feathers just dragging on the floor. He wouldn't roost on top any more either and would sleep on the ground. He sort of reminded me of a penguin the way he would walk sort of up right sometimes.

 

[aguilera]

Oh good! So he is getting something. How is he doing now? Is he still up and moving, eyes clear, no discharge? If you can, see if you can get him to take some grit. This will help with anything that may have been ingested that shouldn't have been.

Thats a good idea, it didnt even occur to me to do this. Do you think if I use sand it will be the same as using grit?