New RP poults, & question

[imaturtlefan]

I have a few questions....
I just got my first turkey poults last week, I probably should have done more homework, Ive had ducks, guineas, and have many chickens currently. Lots of farms Ive been to (including the large hatchery I got my poults from) has their turkey free ranging with or around the chickens, so although I knew blackhead existed, I didnt think it was that big of a deal, or not that common or something, till I stopped at the co-op and the lady there told me to make sure I didnt let my chickens and turkey near each other. My plan was to house them together, does anyone know how common blackhead is in middle TN?

My chickens free range the yard during the day, and go to the coop at night, now Im afraid maybe I should get rid of my poults before they get old enough to be let out

Also, I thought that the RP would be big and fat enough to not fly onto cars (I sold my guineas after the 2nd time they destroyed my husband's mustang's paint job) He would probably get rid of ME AND the turkeys if they got onto his new truck. I know I can clip wings, but that wasnt very effective on the guineas, tried one, both, and everything in between.

 

[TV]

I don't know about TN. but in general blackhead is not common. That said though, it can be devastating to turkeys. I too free range my turkeys with chickens but I don't bring in chickens from other flocks. RP's are very good fliers and can remain so most of their lives. Turkeys love nothing more than getting on a nice shiny vehicle

Clipping the flight feathers on one wing can help but they can can usually jump high enough to reach the hood.

 

[imaturtlefan]

Hmm...gives me something to think about, thanks for responding!

 

[myfinefeatheredfriends]

It was for this very reason that I resisted buying turkeys for about 10 years. I've always had chickens and really wanted some turkeys but everyone kept warning me about the "dreaded Blackhead disease" yet you seen all the time people keeping them together. So one day when I ordered what was supposed to be quail eggs off eBay, I received turkey eggs instead. I thought it might be the only opportunity I'd get to have a turkey. Well, the turkey whom I named "Gobbles" grew up with my chickens and is perfectly fine. He never got Blackhead and now I have a whole flock of turkeys that I keep in the same pen as my chickens. I've never had a problem with any of them. This isn't to say though that Blackhead CAN'T contaminate a flock, because it CAN. I keep around a bottle of Fish Zole just in case (Fish Zole is a treatment option for Blackhead that can be purchased from most poultry suppliers... you give it by mouth).

 

[frank53061]

There is one solution I might have for you to keep your Poults I do clip there wings but as a wise person told me that if I would not let out all the Turkeys at the same time the ones that were let out would not go far from the ones kept penned up and it works so far the ones

let out will not go more than 200 to 300 feet away.

i have water outside for the Turkeys that are loose but keep the feed inside the pen after 5 to 6 hours they will go back to the pen door wanting back in to eat feed I stand inside the pen with the door open preventing the ones inside from getting out and the ones on the out side walk back inside the pen.
The picture above the Turkeys are only 50 feet from the pen.

So if your pen is far enough away from your Autos there may not be a problem.
Works for me I hope this is helpful.

 

[Frosty]

I never had problems with the turkeys trying to roost on a vehicle, but then again my guineas never did either. Maybe give them something better to perch on? Mine preferred perching in trees, on a split rail fence, or on the chainlink fence. If they are going to be loose, I wouldn't clip wings. They can still fly with a clipped wing (I had 4 month old BBW poults with a clipped wing get on top of a 6' fence) but it could make them too slow to escape a predator. Another option is to keep them confined in a covered pen.