turkey poults moved outside at 4 weeks .... to soon ?

[IrishBoy]

ok so i moved my 2 turkey poults outside cause my chicken eggs hatched and i only have one heat lamp and the turkies seem to be strong wee things ... they have been outside two days now and doing great . ... although will not shut up and all we can hear is CHEEP CHEEEP CHEEPE CHHHHHHHEEEP ! .. They go into the hut i made at night and stay snuggled into the hay. they seem to love flapping their wings and pecking the insects .. BUT

granny says they will die of the rain and cold .. but it has rained and they had common sense to go into their wee hut .. anyway .. what you think guys ...

 

[chickenzoo]

Poults can be fragile, how old are they? If it is getting chilly and rainy, I'd spring for another heat lamp w/ a 100 watt house bulb. You'd hate to raise them up only to loose them, and if they are peeping a lot they may be cold.

 

[toredano]

They will get chilled if they are to young..
a decent giudeline is that if they are fully feathered out they dont need a heatlamp.. but you still need to take care that they dont get chilled from the cold floor and dew on the ground.
Wet ground and chilly wind/weather will kill them rather quick. They are a bit more finikcy when it comes to raising them. Maybe because they grow so fast and use all their energy and reserves to grow so once they get sick they are harder to bring back.
The rain is bad if they getwet and chilled. Turkeys are not the smartest and if they lolligag around they will ge twet.But if they are going in like you said they might be ok also


I had a lef over big dog crate I put on my porch.. shavings and heatlamp on really windy cold nights keeps them warm still and they are about 1 month old or so. ( I think)Plus i wrapped it with hardware cloth to prevent prying little cat and racoon fingers to get into it.
I got a rug I throw over it to keep codler wind out and for shade during morning hours when sun hits it. Its been working out great.
Hetalamps you cna pick up cheap.. go to a ayrdsale or a fleamarket.. I see hundreds of them for sale.. or borrow one from a friend .. they might have one laying around and not using it..
trsut me.. with babys you need one.. lol

 

[Peeper7]

Warm and Dry...

When a chick or any other baby gets chilled, it cannot digest it's food and its organs don't work properly. Very important they stay warm

 

[Harp Turkey Ranch]

at 4 weeks they will die outside if they get cold or damp, they should not go outside untill they are 8-10 weeks min., best thing you can do is put a heat lamp in their hut for them at night time !!