How Much Room Do BB Turkeys Need?

[pony007]

My husband and I are thinking about raising some BBW turkeys for meat next year. Neither one of us have any experience with turkeys, but we have raised Cornish X's the last couple of years and have a layer flock of hens. Just how much space should we provide for 4 or 5 toms? We currently have a 132 square foot pen we've been using for the meat chickens, would that be big enough? Thanks

 

[R2elk]

My husband and I are thinking about raising some BBW turkeys for meat next year. Neither one of us have any experience with turkeys, but we have raised Cornish X's the last couple of years and have a layer flock of hens. Just how much space should we provide for 4 or 5 toms? We currently have a 132 square foot pen we've been using for the meat chickens, would that be big enough? Thanks

That is a little on the small side. They will do better with the more room you can give them, When I was raising BBWs, I let them free range during the day. They did very well for me.

Unlike CornishX they will not go to sleep in their food and will get up and move around. They do require a quality high protein turkey or game bird starter feed to give them a good start and help prevent leg issues.

 

[pony007]

Thanks for the info! I would love to have them free range, but we have a lot of predators that could potentially go for them. Would using a tractor be a better route? If its moved daily/every other day would it still need to be pretty sizable for best results?

 

[R2elk]

Thanks for the info! I would love to have them free range, but we have a lot of predators that could potentially go for them. Would using a tractor be a better route? If its moved daily/every other day would it still need to be pretty sizable for best results?

I have never used a "tractor" for any poultry. The trouble with a tractor besides needing moved all the time is that is is very confining.

I only free ranged during the daytime. Once the turkeys get some size on them about the only daytime predators to be concerned about are of the canine varieties.

 

[Coops Dad]

I freeranged my turkeys. I started in a converted 8'x8' shed but they ended up roosting in the tree outside the back door or under the shrubs under the tree (BR and BBB, respectively). I didn't lose a single one to predators, and I live in the country where we have hawks, owls, coyotes, bobcats and neighboring farm dogs.

Be careful; turkeys aren't like chickens. They'll bond to you and they have great personalities.

 

[Deep Roots]

A good fence and a guardian dog and you will be fine. We had an owl attack this year, but that was it. We do 1/4 acre per 40 turkeys. We finish them on pasture right around a full acre for 100 or so birds. The trick is don't wait to move them till the grass is gone. Move them after it looks like you freshly mowed. We have friends who use the electric netting with their turkeys and it works well. They move it every weekend.
One caution, they need cover in the winter depending on climate. The wind chill is what gets them. They are fine below freezing but you have to block 100% of the wind. We had some dumb hens who kept roosting 40' up in a tree till we clipped their wings and made them go in the big coop at night in the winter. During the summer they roost where ever they want in their big pasture. They will be in trees, on the water lines, the fence posts, anywhere they can fit. We have a chain up holding a tree from leaning into a fence and they roost on that too.