Turkeys with Chickens

[CDennis]

I am thinking about getting some 6 month old Royal Palm Turkeys, for farm ornaments/maybe breeding in the future. I have chickens currently. Can they be raised together? I know there is a disease chickens carry that turkeys can get, is that just when they are chicks? Do they need a roost area or just sleep on the ground? Sorry if these questions have been answered on other posts, I seem to have the worst luck searching with the search function. Thanks in advance.

 

[denasfarm]

I am new to turkeys myself and still learning. With that in mind My two 6mo Turkeys were raised with BW quail and all kinds of Chickens. Now that they are older they go in and out of every pen and wander the farm at will.
They harrass the dogs, and pick on.chase the young roosters. They run from the geese and older roosters. We try to catch them and lock them in with the RIRs at night but if we are too slow they hit the trees above the barn, where they sleep with the owls.

 

[chickenzoo]

I raise them up on wire with my chicks, once they are old enough to go outside on the ground they free range with the chickens, but I house them separate. Black head diease is what you have to watch for. It can be carried by some chickens and they show no signs of it, but can be deadly to turkeys and peafowl. A good worming program with Safeguard for both chickens and Turkeys is advised.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

We raise ours together from day of hatch to adult and haven't had any problems with them being together. Blackhead aka Histomoniasis has to be present in the soil for the birds to catch it, your local AG rep can tell you if it's a problem in your area or not.

Turkeys like to roost, what we did was just go back into the woods and cut down a small pine tree about 6 inches diameter then we put that about 5 feet off the ground between two trees.

Steve in NC

 

[chickndoglover]

I just got a turkey and put him in with my flock which is 16 hens and 2 roosters, everything seems to be going ok, sometimes he pecks at the chickens if he wants to eat what they are eating. I put up a roost for him inside my enclosed pen, the chickens are inside coops inside the pen, but I didnt want him sleeping out in the yard, I have lots of coons and mink around. I put up a 2"X4" and it is over top of a old bathtub I have in there so all his poop just falls into the shavings and I can scoop it up!

 

[PatS]

but if we are too slow they hit the trees above the barn, where they sleep with the owls.

Dumb question from a newbie here. If they can fly that high, what is to keep them from flying away? We have a 6 foot fence around our 2 acres, and so far, the chickens haven't shown any interest in escaping. But I'd like couple of turkeys next year, and I'm thinking escape might be an issue with them.​

 

[denasfarm]

They fly over the 6 ft fenced pens, in and out, all day but to get up over the barn they do it in steps. They fly on the rabbit pen, then to the top of the barn, then to the lower tree branches and then up. So its not like they are flying all the way up ... yet.
They have shown no interest in leaving the property or even going in the front yard. They stay right with the chickens.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

Quote:
Dumb question from a newbie here. If they can fly that high, what is to keep them from flying away? We have a 6 foot fence around our 2 acres, and so far, the chickens haven't shown any interest in escaping. But I'd like couple of turkeys next year, and I'm thinking escape might be an issue with them.

Once they call your place "home" they stay put. One day I didn't latch the door of the pen that we keep our Beltsville's in and when I came home from work there were about 30 turkeys in the front yard.

Steve in NC

 

[longranger]

Not trying to hijack this thread but where in the country is Blackhead prevelent? I have not heard anyone state that blackhead is endemic in their area and my local ag agent was totally unhelpfull.

 

[Steve_of_sandspoultry]

I have seen in listed by state but never a nationwide listing.

Steve