Should I worry about him/her flying off?

[Bookspryte]

I have a Rio Grande turkey poult that has been raised with chickens. He/she was one of three we bought several months ago but the other two died.

Here's my dilemma. I'd like to start letting the chicks out in the evening when I'm home, but I hate leaving the turkey alone in the tractor and I'm afraid if I let him/her out, he/she'll fly off.

I wouldn't worry so much, except that this poult is recovering from an eye problem and I'm worried about how good his/her vision is.

I hate to have the little thing fly off and be unable to find its way back home.

This weekend, I'll be moving all of them to a larger grow out pen that is uncovered. Do I need to invest in poultry netting or am I just worrying too much?

Denise

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

If the poult is recovering you don't want to let it out to range. How high is the fence on the grow out pen?

Steve in NC

 

[Bookspryte]

The fence is 4 foot high. I'm worried about letting the chickens out to graze while keeping the poult in jail with that sad little peep it gives when the chickens get too far away.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Turkeys are flock animals and would probably stay with the flock but it's hard to tell. It may range out it may stay right there. keep a close eye on it and have your running shoes handy just in case. With a 4 foot fence it will be able to clear that easy. That gives you 2 options - clip it's wing or put some netting over. If you clip wings and it does get out it is defenseless. When ours first go outside they are in covered pens until they are 5 + months old before they go out with the flocks. By that age they are big enough to take care of themselves.

Steve in NC

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

The fence is 4 foot high. I'm worried about letting the chickens out to graze while keeping the poult in jail with that sad little peep it gives when the chickens get too far away.

It will be just fine. We only have 4' fences here and none of our birds ever just fly away. They can clear the fence if they want but a turkey stays on the ground 99% of the time, they will run before they fly even with a dog chasing them until they get cornered. And to have a bird just fly over the fence with out something for it to land on then go over or something spooking it is very unlikely. They just don't do it. Now if you have them penned up they just might, we have no experience in this type of raising as we don't believe in caging them up.

If the poult is raised with the chickens and it has been with them in the cop for a week or so it will come back every night with the others, I would not worry. Ours run around outside at 8 weeks and they all come back at night by themselves.​

 

[Lu King]

My four month old black spanish turkeys fly over the 5' (may be 6') fence easily. Some just fly to the top of the fence and then over, but others can clear it. They always stay together as a group and don't stray too far from their coop and run.

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

Quote:
How big of an area are they in ?? Does the top of your fence have a board or rail going across ?? If so that is why they are getting out, some will fly to roost on the board and others will just over shoot and be on the other side. We have 4' field fencing with nothing at the top and none of our birds just fly over it.

 

[Lu King]

We have no boards on top of the fence....just the fence.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Quote:
So they just land on top of the fence? I have seen them do that here, as well as fly over 6 foot fence.

harp didn't you say in another post how well yours can fly? to the top of a 9 foot pump house I think it was, I thought the pasture raised birds had no problem getting airborne? surely they could clear a 4 foot fence. can you show some pics of the fencing you use. Our brooder boxes have 24 inch high sides and after a month or so we have to put covers on them to keep the poults in.

Steve in NC

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

Quote:
Well we have never had one land on the top of our field fence that I have ever saw. Yes they can fly real well when they go up to roost for the night. They can clear the fence super easy, but they don't, unless something spooks them and then they will go over. On the occasion that one does get out "Tucker" the farm dog puts right back in and if they don't go fast enough he'll pull feathers and then they go right over.

Here Steve, here is a pic I just took from out my office window.