Pasturing

[ldube]

We have been pasturing our tukeys in a covered run with mobile housing inside. We'd like to give them more space, but don't have the infrastructure to continue with a covering. At what age/size can we surround them with electric fence and not be concerned with aerial predators?

 

[frank53061]

I am not sure we only have these small red hawks around my area my Turkeys are 5 months old and Hens 7 to 9 pounds and the Toms around 15 plus I hear hawks over head they dont seem to be very much concerned but our chickens still run for cover.
I have not lost any to hawks knock on wood.
These hawks couldent be much more than a 2 to 3 pounds I dont know if they would try to take on a 15 plus pound Tom.
I live on the edge of the woods and any hawk would have to do an almost straight downward dive to get to any of my fowl.
May be someone who has lost fowl to birds of pray can be of more help.

 

[jdc]

I have lost some pretty big broilers to a hawk. It couldn't get them out of the pen so it ate what it could and left the rest. I hung some CDs from fishing line and haven't lost any since. The hawk has been the only predator to get ny birds since we started using the poultry net early this spring.

 

[ldube]

"I have lost some pretty big broilers to a hawk" Do you mean chickens? My turkeys are about 12 weeks old and are bigger than any broilers we've ever raised. Still, it sounds like the wild birds could kill them even if they can't carry them away. Hmmm...Does your poultry net totally enclose the birds or just around the perimeter?

 

[Oregon Blues]

Crows have killed an 8 pound bird at my place. Turkeys are known to go after crows, so should be safe enough once they have the weight and size to intimidate the crows. I'd want them up about 8-10 pounds before I risked the crows.

Turkeys will never be big enough to be safe from any sort of mammal predator and never big enough to be safe from a Great Horned Owl, if you happen to have any of those.

Eagles could probably take an adult turkey, but they tend to prefer easier game. I've got a lot of bald eagles on a daily basis and they have never shown the slightest interest in my poultry. I know that they can kill a Canada Goose, so could probably handle a turkey if they ever decided to try for one (which is rather unlikely)

My turkeys are getting pretty big and they are not covered, but they are inside a 7 foot tall fence. I lock them up at night because the only predator I worry about is the local Great Horned Owl. He is absolutely enormous and routinely kills and eats the local jack rabbits who are knee high to me, so I am thinking that an adult turkey wouldn't be a problem for him.

 

[ldube]

Apparently, I should have told you where we are raising the turkeys. I am in NH. I'm not sure what kinds of predators there are around here, I just know they exist. Thank you all for your experiences; I will post again when I have more details.

 

[jdc]

Chickens, around 6-7 lbs. they are free ranged inside the three sections of netting. I will be doing the same with our turkeys this year. I think it was a peregrine that was the culprit.

 

[chicken pickin]

Im in NH also, Southern NH. We raise chickens and turkeys. I havent had a problem yet with predators but I know we have a lot. Hawks, Owls, Coyotes, Fox, Skunk, Crows, Opossum, Racoons, Im sure there are more. We do supervised free ranging for all but I have all my poultry in enclosed runs due to the hawks and I lock all my birds up at night in their houses. How old are your turkeys? Id probably wait til they were atleast 10-15lbs but it doesnt mean a hawk wouldnt swoop in and kill it inside of the electric fence.