how much should I feed my turkey if he's on a diet

[mlcrossland]

my turkey chirp is overweight and I'm wanting to put him on a diet how much should I feed him
and how often should I feed him.I'm worried that he won't live as long as he supposed to because he's so overweight.

 

[jackietheturkeylover]

do NOT feed him corn or "meat bird food" (the stuff you can't really tell what it is because its all ground up)
because of this same reason I give my birds wild bird seed (stuff you see at your grocery store) usually containing rye, sunflower seeds, and millet. once a day is usually good with two or three cups. is he with other birds? 16oz if he's with other birds

 

[Deleon98]

Im going to keep my two BBB turkeys with my chickens free ranging. Id like to know some more diet tips bc i dont want them to get obese and die too early. Theyre pets and i didnt really know that they were strictly meat birds.

 

[FarmerMac]

Im going to keep my two BBB turkeys with my chickens free ranging. Id like to know some more diet tips bc i dont want them to get obese and die too early. Theyre pets and i didnt really know that they were strictly meat birds.

Keep in mind that BBB have been designed for meat and will get big and fat. I have raise BBB and Heritage turkeys for a while and the BBB once they mature, start to have problems walking due to their weight. I let mine free range with the chickens and have notice that they don't go as far as when they were younger. My advice is if you want a pet turkey, get a heritage turkey, they don't get as heavy as the BBB and have no problem free ranging or getting onto the roost in their pen.

 

[pdx2phx]

We are in the same boat - we have chickens and heritage turkeys as pets and were given a 1+ year old very big BBB tom. I have picked him up and would guess 35+ibs. He walks, slowly, but was kept in a small pen and is pretty beat up from laying on the ground. He's a sweetie and we're hoping to slim him down to help with longevity and walking, etc. He is currently separate from all of the other birds.

Does he need 20% protein? We feed our chickens and heritage a mix of Purina Layena/Flock Raiser, but I can always feed him seed instead. Do you only feed wild bird seed or offer both in limited amounts ?

 

[R2elk]

We are in the same boat - we have chickens and heritage turkeys as pets and were given a 1+ year old very big BBB tom. I have picked him up and would guess 35+ibs. He walks, slowly, but was kept in a small pen and is pretty beat up from laying on the ground. He's a sweetie and we're hoping to slim him down to help with longevity and walking, etc. He is currently separate from all of the other birds.

Does he need 20% protein? We feed our chickens and heritage a mix of Purina Layena/Flock Raiser, but I can always feed him seed instead. Do you only feed wild bird seed or offer both in limited amounts ?

A quality 16% protein feed will work. Do not feed wild bird seed or sunflower seeds as their percent protein is too low and their fat content is too high. That is not a healthy diet for any kind of turkey.

Free ranging, the availability of greens and exercise will be helpful.

 

[pdx2phx]

Quote: Thank you!

We will focus on the feed, greens and keeping him moving. Our heritage turkeys are still young/growing - do you think the same 16% protein feed will work for them once they're adults? I'm never quite sure if the feed available (i.e. Flock Raiser 18 - 20%) is good for pets, or if it is more geared toward fattening up a bird. We're not interested in that, so I do want to make sure we're feeding the right food for their health in the long run....

 

[R2elk]

Thank you!

We will focus on the feed, greens and keeping him moving. Our heritage turkeys are still young/growing - do you think the same 16% protein feed will work for them once they're adults? I'm never quite sure if the feed available (i.e. Flock Raiser 18 - 20%) is good for pets, or if it is more geared toward fattening up a bird. We're not interested in that, so I do want to make sure we're feeding the right food for their health in the long run....

Once my heritage turkeys are adults, they get the same 16% layer pellets that my chickens get since they all eat out of the same feeder. My area is low in Calcium content so the layer feed is not a problem for the males. If you live in an area where Calcium is readily available (lots of limestone around) you may not want to feed males the layer feed.

All of my poultry have free range available to supplement any feed that I give them and lots of room for exercise.

Good luck.

 

[pdx2phx]

Quote: thank you for the information - I really appreciate it!

 

[mlcrossland]

Thanks for the information he is a lot healthier and I think he feels better too.