my new turkeys!

[R2elk]

Thanks. Okay I get it with the higher protein. Right now there are only two of them so they are currently brooding with chickens. I don't know a way to feed them a game bird food without the little chicks getting into it as there are 19 of them. I guess I may have to brood them by themselves though I hadn't planned on it.

I often brood chicks and turkeys together. Both the chicks and the poults all get the same feed which is turkey game bird starter at 28% protein. For all the longer that I keep them in the brooder, I have never found the higher protein feed to cause any problems with the chicks.

 

[R2elk]

That's what's confusing me about they're breed, they do not have any brown striped for spots with they're yellow They are solid yellow with brown/bronze darker heads. Super cute. I will try and post a pic.

They don't have any stripes or other markings because they are not bronze turkeys. My guess is that you have Broad Breasted White poults. They definitely are not Bronze or Bourbon Red turkeys.

 

[MollsBaldwin]

I agree now that I looked up the white broad breasted, that's what they are. Thanks. I will keep brooding them and then chicks together and buy a higher protein feed as well. I have just read several things talking about people loosing them in the brood process. I want to be successful at raising these two turkeys. Also, it too early to tell if these will be jakes or jennys?

 

[R2elk]

I agree now that I looked up the white broad breasted, that's what they are. Thanks. I will keep brooding them and then chicks together and buy a higher protein feed as well. I have just read several things talking about people loosing them in the brood process. I want to be successful at raising these two turkeys. Also, it too early to tell if these will be jakes or jennys?

It is my experience that the fewer poults that you have, the greater is the likelihood of losing them. You have enough chicks with yours that they should be alright.

Around 6 months is generally a good time to be able to tell the sex of the poults. There are a few characteristics that can help determine what they are at a much earlier age. If you cradle a poult upside down in your hand and it draws its feet up to its breast, that is a good indication that it may be female. If it kicks its legs out it is likely a male. Males will have thicker legs than females. When looking down at the top of the poults head, if it looks like it would fit between 2 parallel lines, it is likely a female. Males also tend to grow faster than females. The head of a male poult looks more like a triangle. While none of these traits are guarantees of the sex of a poult, if all of the traits are indicating a certain sex, the odds are really good of a correct diagnosis.

One other thing to consider is that the Broad Breasted turkeys don't tend to live long lives and can easily develop leg problems because of their weight. They were developed to be raised for meat. They also don't normally reproduce naturally because of their size at breeding time. Commercial Broad Breasted turkeys are reproduced through the use of artificial insemination.

Good luck.