What am I doing wrong?

[TheMoonBottom]

Hello all, I’m new to raising turkeys. I got 16 turkey poults delivered on Wednesday. They all seemed to show up healthy and thriving. I’d been told to put them with a chick or two to “teach them how to be birds.” I bought bourbon red and blue slate turkeys. I’ve had 3 bourbon reds die since arrival.

I put them in my 4x8ft brooder box that I’ve raised 100’s of chicks in. It was cleaned and sanitized and had fresh pine shavings. I typically start all chicks with a splash of apple cider vinegar in their water. They are on a 28% high quality game bird starter.

The next morning I found the 1st one dead for no apparent reason. Yesterday, my husband found two on their backs under the heat lamp. He thought they had heat stroke. We brought them inside and was able to give them droppers of water. One survived the night one did not. The one that survived the night just died this morning.

We’ve unplugged the heat lamp and are using a regular incandescent bulb that generates some warmth, but not that of a heat lamp. The heat lamp is set up on one side so the birds can be on the other side, far away from the heat, if they need to cool off. It’s in the 90’s during the day here, so the heat lamp may have been too much.

I’m not sure if these two just got stuck on their backs and couldn’t help themselves, or if I’m doing something wrong.

 

[R2elk]

Hello all, I’m new to raising turkeys. I got 16 turkey poults delivered on Wednesday. They all seemed to show up healthy and thriving. I’d been told to put them with a chick or two to “teach them how to be birds.” I bought bourbon red and blue slate turkeys. I’ve had 3 bourbon reds die since arrival.

I put them in my 4x8ft brooder box that I’ve raised 100’s of chicks in. It was cleaned and sanitized and had fresh pine shavings. I typically start all chicks with a splash of apple cider vinegar in their water. They are on a 28% high quality game bird starter.

The next morning I found the 1st one dead for no apparent reason. Yesterday, my husband found two on their backs under the heat lamp. He thought they had heat stroke. We brought them inside and was able to give them droppers of water. One survived the night one did not. The one that survived the night just died this morning.

We’ve unplugged the heat lamp and are using a regular incandescent bulb that generates some warmth, but not that of a heat lamp. The heat lamp is set up on one side so the birds can be on the other side, far away from the heat, if they need to cool off. It’s in the 90’s during the day here, so the heat lamp may have been too much.

I’m not sure if these two just got stuck on their backs and couldn’t help themselves, or if I’m doing something wrong.

It is not recommended to have poults on wood shavings for the first 2 weeks. They can eat the shavings, get plugged up and die because they have to have appropriate sized grit in their system to be able to digest the shavings.

I do not recommend using chick tutors as the imprinting it causes can be problematic when they are adults.

I use sand in my brooder because I live on a sand dune and the sand is free. I like it because it allows me to sprinkle the starter feed on the sand. Poults instinctively peck at things on the ground. Mine usually start eating within minutes of being put in the brooder.

I use a GQF brooder heater that is connected to a temperature controller. I set it to control the temperature at 90°F at the bedding level for the first week. If you measure the air temperature, you will make the bedding too hot.

The two you found on their back under the heat lamp most likely were too hot.

I use warm water in the brooder. I DO NOT put ACV or anything else in the water.

If you are going to keep the poults on wood shavings, be sure to provide them with appropriate sized grit.