turkeys chickens together

[simple33]

i was wondering if i can hatch a turkey egg & later put him with my chicken flock of 6 girls.or let one of them hatch the egg. please advise thank you.

 

[ShannonR]

You can, but the turkey will face higher health risks due to being housed with chickens. Lots of folks do it though.

If you can get a very dedicated broody she may hatch a (just one??) Turkey egg . Turkeys take 28 days to incubate and chickens 21 days to incubate. So you can't mix and match chicken and Turk eggs under a hen

 

[chickens really]

@oldhenlikesdogs

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I have had toms raised with chicks kill a rooster at maturity. We butchered after that. Turkeys that are bonded to chickens or that are kept with chickens can harass or kill them. Turkeys are best housed and raised with other turkeys so they know what species they are. Everything can be fine up until it is not, than the chickens pay the price as turkeys can be relentless if something bothers them.

 

[keesmom]

You may want to check to see if you have blackhead in your area. Chickens show no signs of it, but it will kill turkeys.

We've had turkeys on and off over the years with no issues, until the last bunch. We lost all of them at a month of age. It doesn't seem to affect the wild population though. I'm guessing they have some sort of resistance to it.

 

[simple33]

thank you for your reply. i will think a bit more before i do anything. i have 2 small chickens in my flock & a turkey is a giant to them. thanks for the info.