In need of Information

[kmartinez]

Okay so I hatched my little tykes they are in my spare room until they ready for the great outdoors. However, i am just a tad lost. I read where turkeys only need a covered roost. Not even with walls just a nice roof with a great overhand.. However something in me thinks they need a house or coop. Many things i have read says turkeys love roosting so i was thinking if i built a roost with 3 sides or at least a back..I am scratching my head thinking if its covered like a chicken coop how my space..and then when i look at those elevated turkey houses the size does not jive..

I saw some pictures of houses probably the size of a dog house up in the air like on stilts..Honestly it might have been bigger than a large dog house pictures can be hard to tell sometimes. What is best a roost ground level with several roots lower to higher or a house in the air?? and how big is another thing i really cant find nothing on it..I went to flea market today hunting people selling grown ones to see the size of a grown bird i was only able to find a fully grown bronze breasted and mine are palms (royal, pencil) and slates ..it looks like 2 feet of roost space per bird..Would that be about right?

there will be no pen for them i am pretty sure i am going to have to be doing some wing clipping and i am sure it is not the same as doing my parrot LOL so they cannot get over my 6 foot chainlink or roost on it. I am going to let them free range they wont have access to my duck pen or chicken coop area ( boy wont they be jealous LOL)


I have kinda put off building a roost house cause i know i can get it up pretty quick and i have all the material, i am just stumbling on how big , walls no walls..

thanks for any advice

 

[WalnutHill]

Okay so I hatched my little tykes they are in my spare room until they ready for the great outdoors. However, i am just a tad lost. I read where turkeys only need a covered roost. Not even with walls just a nice roof with a great overhand.. However something in me thinks they need a house or coop. Many things i have read says turkeys love roosting so i was thinking if i built a roost with 3 sides or at least a back..I am scratching my head thinking if its covered like a chicken coop how my space..and then when i look at those elevated turkey houses the size does not jive..

I saw some pictures of houses probably the size of a dog house up in the air like on stilts..Honestly it might have been bigger than a large dog house pictures can be hard to tell sometimes. What is best a roost ground level with several roots lower to higher or a house in the air?? and how big is another thing i really cant find nothing on it..I went to flea market today hunting people selling grown ones to see the size of a grown bird i was only able to find a fully grown bronze breasted and mine are palms (royal, pencil) and slates ..it looks like 2 feet of roost space per bird..Would that be about right?

there will be no pen for them i am pretty sure i am going to have to be doing some wing clipping and i am sure it is not the same as doing my parrot LOL so they cannot get over my 6 foot chainlink or roost on it. I am going to let them free range they wont have access to my duck pen or chicken coop area ( boy wont they be jealous LOL)


I have kinda put off building a roost house cause i know i can get it up pretty quick and i have all the material, i am just stumbling on how big , walls no walls..

thanks for any advice

Turkeys prefer a sheltered roost. You don't mention where you live, but if it's a mild climate (not much weather below freezing) then a simple covered roost made of a long, strong pole between two posts, with a simple roof a few feet above and no less than 6' wide will be fine for year round wind/rain/hail/sleet/sun shelter.

My birds like to roost on the highest roost available, so if you build it so the roost pole is up 6', they will be happy.

Instead of clipping wings, first try building the roost in the middle of the pen. That way the fence can't be reached from the roost, unless the pen is really small.

2 feed of roost space is adequate, but only barely, as their wingspan is close to 5' and they need to land between the others when they fly up. So add 5' to your 2' per bird to cover the birds on the end.

I wouldn't bother with a coop unless the climate is cold or if you want a broody house.

 

[kmartinez]

I live in middle TN, our weather is funky.. 2 winters ago it was mild but this past winter we had a nasty ice storm.Our weather is just not predictible at all.

 

[ivan3]

If you are going to keep them free ranging, clipping wings will make them more available to predation. You can download the entire ALBC turkey manual from the following link, but the chapter is relevant to info. you're after is Chapter 6: http://www.livestockconservancy.org/index.php/resources/internal /turkey-manual We are predator heavy, here. Free range without supervision would result in turkeys flying to get away from pred and getting lost (even if imprinted strongly on "home", panic can send them too far away to find their way back, easily). Penning them up for a month or so on transition to the out-of-doors helps in the imprinting. We have to use a 7x8 shed to prevent their being eaten by preds (they can be trained to return to shed and roost - takes about a month of consistent guidance (to herd, easily, get two 5-6 ft. long plastic/bamboo garden poles - hold one in each hand with arms outstretched to sides and slowly move the flock to your front in the direction you choose) Even "little" poults can "climbfly" up and over 6 ft. fencing: A shed is useful for protected nesting/brooding As was mentioned, outdoor roosts (we put them up in corners of our run) seem to keep ours satisfied (rarely fly over fence up into easily accessible and available trees)