Turkeys and Electric Netting

[Berd Man]

Has anyone here ever used medicated feed? Good results / bad? I am finishing up my last bag of game bird starter and noticed the tag at bottom of my bag said medicated with Bacitracin Methylene Disalicylate...had to Google that one

I ordered non medicated feed so either my feed store accidentally ordered medicated or their distributor sent them the medicated by mistake.

I was noticing some of the poults “sneeze” occasionally. Im worried that maybe I’ve been giving them medicated feed and it’s caused problems, I don’t even know if that’s possible.

 

[R2elk]

Has anyone here ever used medicated feed? Good results / bad? I am finishing up my last bag of game bird starter and noticed the tag at bottom of my bag said medicated with Bacitracin Methylene Disalicylate...had to Google that one

I ordered non medicated feed so either my feed store accidentally ordered medicated or their distributor sent them the medicated by mistake.

I was noticing some of the poults “sneeze” occasionally. Im worried that maybe I’ve been giving them medicated feed and it’s caused problems, I don’t even know if that’s possible.

In-feed bacitracin methylene disalicylate modulates the turkey microbiota and metabolome

It should have nothing to do with causing or curing sneezing in poults.

 

[Berd Man]

In-feed bacitracin methylene disalicylate modulates the turkey microbiota and metabolome

It should have nothing to do with causing or curing sneezing in poults.

Thank you for the research paper. I read through it and the part where it mentions BMD has deleterious impact on the beneficial gut bacteria the same as the bad makes me not want to feed this ever again. The authors also mentioned that it was still needing “further research”. lol no thanks.

I asked them for 30% game bird non med, but the design and color of the bag is the same for all the various game bird feeds. Should have read that small print tag.

If it has no impact on poults sneezing or not, I’ll have to keep watching them to see if anything else happens. I’ve not heard it before today and several of them did it. I thought at first it was that puffy noise they make when they strut, but it was definitely a sneeze.

 

[Chicken Heel]

I haven’t used that bedding, it looks like they mashed recycled paper and cardboard into almost an insulation consistency. Interesting, let us know if poults try and chow on it. I first tried pine shavings, then went to shredded paper, and eventually settled on paper towels. I found poults just kept eating the bedding. They had grit, but I just didn’t like them eating what wasn’t feed.

This bedding is working great thus far after removing the paper towels on Saturday. The poults don't appear to be eating it and the darker color contrasts nicely with the lighter colored feed which they do peck up. And all have readily taken to eating feed from the chick feeder. By the way, I did have one poult die over the weekend but it was the smallest and never seemed to get over the stress of shipping. The remaining ones are doing well.

 

[Berd Man]

Poults are 3 months old this week. Still doing great with the netting so far. I was walking by their spot this morning and saw them cleaning and taking naps and had to pop in for a quick visit.

IMG_2745.mov

• Berd Man
• Jul 1, 2024

I feel like the toms are starting to stick out.

 

[Chicken Heel]

Poults are 3 months old this week. Still doing great with the netting so far. I was walking by their spot this morning and saw them cleaning and taking naps and had to pop in for a quick visit.

IMG_2745.mov

• Berd Man
• Jul 1, 2024

I feel like the toms are starting to stick out.

Nice video. My remaining 13 are four weeks old today and doing well. When did you first turn yours out on the ground Berd Man?

 

[Berd Man]

Nice video. My remaining 13 are four weeks old today and doing well. When did you first turn yours out on the ground Berd Man?

I waited until 4 weeks old. Till then I had them in my garage haha

Mine are 10 weeks old this week and doing their first rotation in the netting onto new pasture. The first cicadas are coming out here. They have been absolutely bonkers running those down. I am hoping there’s enough in the pasture to keep them from wanting to fly over the net. So far so good. Only breakout was on a night we came home late and they roosted on my shed….. i was just glad it wasn’t the house, thankfully they’re a ways away from the house and stuff.

 

[Berd Man]

Turkeys are eleven weeks old and I believe there are two hens and five toms. I gave someone three and they ended up with two toms and one hen. So out of ten poults only three were female. Sometimes it’s not close to 50/50 split, oh well….

I needed to get them out of a 6x6 meat chicken brooder cage they had been sleeping in, so I dug through some scrap and salvaged stuff I had and slapped together a roosting area in a few hours. It’s 8’Wx8’Lx10’H, the roosts are at 2, 4, and 6 feet high. If I go down to a small breeding group of a single tom and two hens this will be plenty of space. Right now there is always one that has to pick a lower roost since the top space goes quickly.

They also got an upgrade in pasture space. I gang 5-6 strands of 164’ poultry net and they have a decent amount of area to fly and run and meet the chickens who range there too. The roosting areas for the chickens are also in the building the turkeys are in but I partitioned them so the two would not roost together. The opening for the chicken roosts is a small 12”x12” door so I hope the turkeys don’t find it suitable to walk through. Hope everyone and their flock are staying cool and hydrated.

 

[Berd Man]

So the turkeys are doing well still, getting bigger and there are more battles between the males happening… which made me wonder, how does one select the right tom for the flock? Do you pick the friendliest, the largest, most dominant? How are you all selecting your toms?

 

[R2elk]

So the turkeys are doing well still, getting bigger and there are more battles between the males happening… which made me wonder, how does one select the right tom for the flock? Do you pick the friendliest, the largest, most dominant? How are you all selecting your toms?

Temperament, size and conformation.