Noob here with lots of first-timer/wanting-to-get-turkeys questions. These will be meat turkeys. We already have ducks, but they will be in a separate pen (I mean, really! Who would want to share a pen with a duck, I mean pig, I mean duck!
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1. I have read that turkey poults have high mortality rates and that I should start with more than I need. Is that accurate? What's an average percentage mortality rate?
I have raised turkeys for the past two summers. I purchased 4 Royal Palm poults my first summer and 8 Bourbon Red poults the second summer. I didn't loose any, which is not the my experience with meat chickens, which I always seem to loose a few of the first weeks. That said, it is my understanding that poults need more guidance than chicks do. You really need to show them where the food and water are because they can't figure it out by themselves.
2. We have 10 acres, but are near a pretty main road (not a ton of cars, but they drive fast). The ducks free range during the day (and stayed out of the road, except the one sad day when the goose didn't). What are realistic expectations for free ranging turkeys? I am a little worried about them deciding to take off onto the neighbors 200 acres and never coming back. The ducks are good at coming back near the pen at dusk and I open it up and they go right in (occasionally with a little encouragement from the children). I'm guessing that this won't be the same with turkeys. Is it better just to keep them penned?
I let my turkeys out to free range for a few hours every day, usually during the two hours before dusk. Most days they just wandered down to the house and spent their time watching me through the sliding glass doors and pooping on the patio. However, on several occasions they did wander off a lot farther than my hens normaly do. Usually I could just go outside and call for them or gobble and they'd gobble and call back. On the two occasions that I had to go quite a ways looking for them they seemed happy to see me and came running and followed me back to the pen. I'd be sure to start looking for them long before dusk, because when it starts getting dark they will probably look for a place to roost, and it may not be where you want them to roost. Heritage turkeys are good flyers and mine seemed to feel safer roosting on the top of their 6 foot fence than they did in the secure night-time shelter I built for them, so I often had to shoo them off the fence with a broom and herd them inside in the evenings. God forbid I waited till dark because finding them could be a real challenge.
3. What's a good starter heritage breed? I've been looking at Bourbon Reds, but see lots of people with Slates and Narragansets. I know none of them are idiot proof, but want the best chance at our first try.
I was pleased with both the Royal Palm and the Bourbon Red as far as temperment, health and meat quality. However, the Royal Palm don't put on much meat for the amount of food they consume. I'm trying Narraganset this year.
4. We have an incubator so will be getting eggs. What are your favorite sources for eggs? Anyone heard of AV Bird Hatchery?
I have no experience with hatching my own.
5. If this goes well, we would like to get our own eggs, i.e., keep a male/female or male/female/female. With ducks, I know that you can inbreed that first generation without too much problem, is the same true of turkeys?
I'm not an expert but I'd imagine so. Depending on where you get them, the poults in your first batch may not be closely related at all.
6. We use DE in the duck feed. Is this safe for turkeys? poults?
Don't know. Again, I don't see why not.
7. Is 6 months really a realistic growth period for the average heritage bird to butcher? And, no, I'm not interested in a 50 pound bird like I've read about. We are wanting average 12-20 pound birds.
My 8 Bourbon Red poults were hatched on April 9th. I lost two to a predator one night and was left with 2 hens and 4 toms. The hens were butchered on October 24 and both weighed around 8 pounds fully plucked and butchered. The 4 toms were butchered on November 15. One was 12.5 pounds and the other three were between 16 and 16.5 pounds.
Thank you so much to anyone who takes the time to answer my questions!!
