Sick 9 day old turkey poult?

[Rdespain22]

We just got 2 White Holland turkey poults on Saturday. They are now 9 days old. I've been keeping them outside in a small pen out of the sun. Today it reached 113 degrees and when i went to check on them this evening one of them threw up as soon as i picked it up. They're both walking around fine and eating great ever since i brought them inside. They both have runny/frothy/grainy mustard poop. Are they sick or did the heat get to them? Any help would be greatly appreciated. This is my first time having turkeys. I also have 6 chickens we got a couple months ago and i brought one of the pullets in the brooder with them for a few minutes to see if she liked them but then took her out. Could she have gotten them sick? I read about cayenne pepper helping sick turkeys so i put some in their water.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

Hi there, welcome to BYC!

Please remove the pepper from the water and don't be so fast to jump on those type of suggestions. I would be using plain water or water with poultry nutri drench to support their immune system in a way that really adds up. No supplement should be given more than 10 days in a row.

What are you feeding? Is it a formulated turkey or game bird starter ration? This will be key to all things health related.

Maybe you just pushed on the crop to hard and stuff came out?? Was the vomit just liquid or was there stuff in it?

When it's hot like that... excess water consumption may play into droppings conditions.

In order to help a "sick" turkey... or any animal, it's really best to identify what you are intending to treat instead of throwing unknown fixes that might make symptoms worse or mask or alter them.

The pullet did not likely make the turkeys sick that fast. However it's good to be aware if black head is a problem in your area. It is a condition in turkeys caused by being kept with chickens... when a certain parasitic worm is present in chicken droppings. Getting a fecal float done a few times per year and see where YOUR parasite load stands is a great tool. Treating with the correct med if needed, works well. Many folks will swear certain symptoms (like muddy bum or yellow or foamy poo) are worms, but my fecal floats say that's not necessarily true. Testing will tell a better story. Black head isn't a problem in my area. Contact your local agriculture department and ask them or talk with other keepers of both species in your area. Adding your general location to your profile can help peeps make the most relevant suggestions possible.

Turkeys can be quite a blast, fun creatures!

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

Could of been the heat, that's a bit warm. The poop could be from the feed change. Turkey poop seems to be anywhere from runny to more solid. I personally wouldn't worry unless you see blood. They are probably stressed out from all the changes too.

Things to watch out for is coccidiosis, and black head if it's your area and soil. Also make sure to feed a good fresh game bird starter for the first month or so with 28% protein.

I wouldn't mix them with the chicks. You don't want them bonding to chickens as it can cause problems down the road.

 

[Rdespain22]

Hi there, welcome to BYC!

Please remove the pepper from the water and don't be so fast to jump on those type of suggestions. I would be using plain water or water with poultry nutri drench to support their immune system in a way that really adds up. No supplement should be given more than 10 days in a row.

What are you feeding? Is it a formulated turkey or game bird starter ration? This will be key to all things health related.

Maybe you just pushed on the crop to hard and stuff came out?? Was the vomit just liquid or was there stuff in it?

When it's hot like that... excess water consumption may play into droppings conditions.

In order to help a "sick" turkey... or any animal, it's really best to identify what you are intending to treat instead of throwing unknown fixes that might make symptoms worse or mask or alter them.

The pullet did not likely make the turkeys sick that fast. However it's good to be aware if black head is a problem in your area. It is a condition in turkeys caused by being kept with chickens... when a certain parasitic worm is present in chicken droppings. Getting a fecal float done a few times per year and see where YOUR parasite load stands is a great tool. Treating with the correct med if needed, works well. Many folks will swear certain symptoms (like muddy bum or yellow or foamy poo) are worms, but my fecal floats say that's not necessarily true. Testing will tell a better story. Black head isn't a problem in my area. Contact your local agriculture department and ask them or talk with other keepers of both species in your area. Adding your general location to your profile can help peeps make the most relevant suggestions possible.

Turkeys can be quite a blast, fun creatures!

Hello and thank you for your response. I removed the pepper from their water and replaced it with the nutri drench. They are on the Purina medicated game bird starter feed. They seem to be perfectly fine now. I think the heat was just way to much for them so I've brought them inside the last couple of days.

 

[Rdespain22]

Could of been the heat, that's a bit warm. The poop could be from the feed change. Turkey poop seems to be anywhere from runny to more solid. I personally wouldn't worry unless you see blood. They are probably stressed out from all the changes too.

Things to watch out for is coccidiosis, and black head if it's your area and soil. Also make sure to feed a good fresh game bird starter for the first month or so with 28% protein.

I wouldn't mix them with the chicks. You don't want them bonding to chickens as it can cause problems down the road.

What can happen if they bond with the chickens?

 

[EggSighted4Life]

They are on the Purina medicated game bird starter feed.

Oh wow, I didn't know they made a medicated game bird starter.

Do you mind sharing a pic of the tag?

Please note that supplementing vitamins will negate any "medicated" effect because it works via mimicking thiamine to essentially starve out a slow the growth of coccidia... if it's medicated with amprolium.

I know the heat sure effects us... and I can only imagine it's a much bigger stress on such tiny bodies.

 

[Rdespain22]

Oh wow, I didn't know they made a medicated game bird starter.

Do you mind sharing a pic of the tag?

Please note that supplementing vitamins will negate any "medicated" effect because it works via mimicking thiamine to essentially starve out a slow the growth of coccidia... if it's medicated with amprolium.

I know the heat sure effects us... and I can only imagine it's a much bigger stress on such tiny bodies.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

What can happen if they bond with the chickens?

They will view themselves as the same species. I've had Tom turkeys kill roosters at puberty because they were fighting for dominance. Hens can be viscous when fighting too. It's best to raise the species separately.

 

[EggSighted4Life]

View attachment 1880555

Wow again... that is truly interesting... medicated with Bacitracin, which is an antibiotic. Through more research, since I haven't seen that before.. I found out that is is a sub-theraputic dose and it's one of those things that is "controlled", here is California.

Also, my statement about vitamin supplementation negating effect does not apply in this instance since it isn't amprolium. Thank you for sharing this opportunity for me to learn something new!

To add to the turkey/chicken discussion... my friend had her favorite Silkie killed by turkeys the first year she raised them. This was my first year raising them. When they get focused on something they are not easily distracted and they join forces and become relentless. The turkey hen that was very friendly to me would come make noises and try to peck at my favorite hen when she would be sitting on my lap. Out the window, I saw them going after her several times, chasing and jumping and kicking (at about 8-12 weeks old). They weren't raised in the same coop or even close by but free range as it is still have mingling happen. Well, the Tom also decided he didn't like HIS hen sitting on my lap and commenced to telling her and trying to pull her out and put her in check that she was his and not mine. While I had plans to finish fences for full separation, I decided that losing my favorite hen to a bunch of hormonal teenage turkeys wasn't worth the risk (right now), and re-homed them BEFORE any tragic accidents. My friend who lost her chicken to her previous turkey gang (processed all aggressive birds), has a new set this year... and she told me she is begging her hubby to make full separation of species... noting that her chihuahua had become a new target and was lucky to escape this past week. Turkeys are a force to be reckoned with and SOOO different than chickens. Now there are about 12 turkeys and that's how many I had also), and I think larger groups are a bigger concern than just 2... but agree with oldhenlikesdogs and just wanted to elaborate on some *possible* issues.

Hope the one has fully recovered and they thrive for a long time to come!

 

[R2elk]

medicated with Bacitracin

According to the information I found when asked if bacitracin was harmful to guineas is that Bacitracin as the medication in gamebird feed is put there specifically to combat ulcerative enteritis in quail.