TURKEY LOVERS and Breeders

[DaKid]

Ok This is for all you TURKEY LOVERS and Breeders .

Ok so how big is ur turkey pen and how many turkeys are you keeping in them

My second question is this do ya’ll make turkey coops or nesting boxes so they will lay they eggs in if so how large and how are you building them 3 sides only or a full 4 sided plus roof coop .


I going to be having this year 8 pens of true breeding turkeys - 3 to 1 , so I was wondering what ur pens and coops or nesting boxes wasin size and how many turkeys ya'll are keeping in them .


Thanks Alan

 

[turkaholic]

Pen size can vary from breeder to breeder. I personally try not to over crowd a pen, so 4 birds to a 12x24' pen should work for most. You might be able to get by with something smaller, but I've found the more room they have, the less stress on them and fewer problems like feather picking and boredom. Also, remember turkeys are large birds and all the food that enters them comes out the other end ! Manure build-up can be a problem, especially under the roost. I spend at least an hour a day in maintance, more during the breeding season.

Nest boxes are used by the hens if they are inviting. My birds seem to gravitate to the corners, and that's where I generally place them. Putting a lean-to ( 4x4 piece of plywood) over the box for weather protection helps and I then cover the lean- to with evergreen branches. The hens like a secluded dark nook to lay their clutches. Now, some hens are just plain clueless. they will squat and drop their eggs where ever they happen to be standing. Unfortuately, those eggs nearly always turn out soiled, especially with this wet weather we're having again this spring. I put clean sand in the nest boxes and then a layer of pine straw, since it is free and readily available. I would stay away from sawdust unless your boxes are completely weatherproof. If it gets wet, mold and fungus can develop in it.

 

[farmerlor]

My turkey houses (which also house five or six chickens each) are all 10x10 with fenced runs that are about 75 x 20 for foraging. In each house I have a breeding trio (except the Bourbons who are just a pair so far) and five or six chickens. The chicken nests sit up off the ground about a foot and are (I think) 12 inches square. The turkey nests are in the corner and are regular little boxes with a roof and I think they measure 18 inches square.
All of our coops are regular little houses with windows and doors. It gets too cold here and we have too many predators to let them live in an open structure.

 

[turkey guru]

my pens are 8' by 16' I have 19 of them, all have auto heated waters,feed from outside! all roost are 4 ft! I screen the soil, I use for there nest hole! once they start to lay I lean a board over the next, so its dark! I clean the pen twice a month! feed and collect eggs daliy! 8 breeds of turkeys all true color heritage birds! a labor of love tom

 

[KOTurkeyRanch]

Mine just lay in an area near a corner. Nest boxes arent really needed but if they go broody it helps. They will lay where they feel safe.

 

[DaKid]

Ok I see some of you state that you clean out ur pens, My turkeys are in a wood area with dirt soil and leaves which I have not really clean the there run in the 3 years that I have had them , I do spread lime a few times a year on the ground when I know we are getting heavy rain and it has work for me and has cut down any smell form there poop , under the rooster and some time they sleep on top or there nesting boxies / mini coops roofs where there poop some time build up I just hose the roofs off and spread more lime , I also do this in my Chicken runs and I have a large hex dog run where my 3 puppies use to make there mess, I also lime that too -only I have a 55 gallon plastic barrel buried in the ground with a wood cover, I do pick up the dog mess and place it in the poop barrel and heavily lime the poop bucket and add water once a week to cover the poop , never smells . I also till there grass run once a year in the dog run and plant new grass.


Alan