Possibly sick turkey

[RandR]

I noticed one of my turkeys was sitting on the ground in the coop today. I thought she might have laid her first egg and wanted to sit on it but I got her to move and no egg. She doesn't look great when she tries to walk. Her wings droop a little and it seems hard to walk. She was sitting the run which has snow on the ground rather than the coop where it's dry with straw. I moved her to her own crate with lots of straw outside the coop. Her eyes droop a bit and I can see the red part more. Any ideas of what it could be? She was born June 1, 2014 and is a Beltsville Small White. When I picked her up I looked at her feet, legs, and belly and they looked fine.

 

[chknoodles]

Have you been feeding extra high carb food (like 5-grain scratch) to help your birds maintain heat during the cold spell? If not, it is possible she has used up a lot of her reserves to keep warm. I would suggest bringing her inside a garage or other area where you can monitor her closer and ensure she has a little extra warmth. Until your nights are above freezing, make it a habit to toss a few cups of scratch into the pens about an hour or so before dusk. Scratch is a treat, not a meal, but it does help give them extra calories they can burn for warmth. Check her poo to see if it is normal. She may need wormed. Listen to her breathing and check her nostrils. If she's got any discharge or you hear a rattle, she will need antibiotics. Also, lift her wings and check for any mating injuries...one of our girls was acting off and what had happened is the Tom had ripped her under a wing. She's in the garage now until she's healed. These are just suggestions. Could be she was just having an off day...you know we all have those. LOL

 

[RandR]

I add some cracked corn to their feed to fatten them up in the winter. I separated her and she looked completely fine and was standing again. I put her back and she acted normal again (hopefully this wasn't a bad idea, but she looked healthy but sad being separated). Then this morning she's sitting on the ground again (snows all melted and it's much warmer). I've never kept turkeys past Thanksgiving. Do you think she's wanting a gentleman friend? lol

 

[chknoodles]

Hey, you may be on to what is ailing your girl. Get her a guy friend...if anything, he will keep her from laying around...LOL.

 

[RandR]

I'm almost positive that's it! I caught her walking around normally with her friends then I walked up and she sat down. I assumed it would be more like chickens and she would squat instead of sit. She's a beltsville small white so she'll lay eggs that are fertile about 40% of the time so there's no plan for a Tom (too loud where I live). Google the USDA studies on it if you think it sounds crazy.

 

[BantamFan4Life]

Lol! If your turkey is showing further signs of sickness, I would recommend posting it in the "Emergencies, Diseases, Injuries, and Cures" section.