My baby turkey...

[PineBurrowPeeps]

"Yesterday" morning (it's the middle of the night) I got a Bronze Breasted Male Turkey poult.
I have yet to see my little gobble eat. I have pointed him toward the food bowl on several occasions but he doesn't seem interested.
He's tired and also wobbly, are they supposed to be wobbly, I mean is that a slow starting baby turkey thing or what? He's not always wobbly, just now and then will stumble a tiny bit and catch himself with his wings out.
I have brought him to the waterer a few times as well and witnessed him drinking.
As far as eating, I don't know how reliable a method this is but I know on my Cornish chicks and duckling that you can feel their crops full with food but the turkey doesn't feel that way.
What can I do to make him want to eat? I don't want to lose the little guy...

 

[silkiechicken]

He needs a friend to encourage eating. Try to tap on the feed till it shows interest, or put it in with a chick. Best of luck!

 

[PineBurrowPeeps]

Thanks. He's in the same brooder with 26 others.. Everyone else has been seen happily chowing.

I'll keep my eyes on him.

Maybe tomorrow morning I'll try putting some crumble on the table and making it move or something, maybe he'll want to eat it.. *shrugs*

 

[al6517]

Unfortunatly turkeys are kinda dumb, and some will starve themselfs while sitting in front of the feeder, some may come around and some may not, I don't know why this is but it is what it is.

 

[Sparrow]

I think he needs to be "taught" how to eat. Think about how his mom would do it and try to see if you can replicate it. Like silkiechicken said, act like his mom. Show him to be interested in food by making it look interesting. "Peck" in it with your finger. Show him little pieces of it. Put some pieces of food on a paper towel on the bedding. It soundscrazy, but sometimes I have had to entice little chicks and ducks to eat by "pecking" at the food and making the sounds that a mother bird would make when she is calling her chicks to food.

 

[SueNH]

Baby turkeys take a day or two to catch up the point chickens are born at. Not dumb, more Dependant on mom.

Best thing to do is put him in another brooder with 4 or 5 chicks so he isn't overwhelmed by the numbers of more active chickens for a few days. This way he can get the hang of it without being run over or bumped.

 

[justusnak]

I have 3 little turkeys that are 2 weeks old now. (15 more in the bator)What I did for the first few days is wet my finger, and dip it in the feed...then "cluck" They would come running over, and peck the feed from my finger. After a few times, I layed my finger down in the feed dish, so they saw it was in there. They are fat and happy today...and doing fine.