I am not suggesting that I'll get a definite answer here by any means, but I am just curious as to any guesses you guys may have to offer.
About a month ago I got two royal palm turkeys off of a guy who said that his grandson had raised them for shows, gotten bored of it, and he didn't need them anymore. One was a male and one a female. When I brought the turkeys home, I pretty immediately noticed that the male seemed to have a cataract of some sort in one eye, but he functioned fine and they both seemed healthy otherwise. All was well until a few days ago.
Then, the male turkey seemed less active. He would still run around and eat and lay in the sun with the other turkeys though, so I thought maybe I was just imagining things. The following day, he wouldn't come out when I opened the door for the birds. I guided him out of the door and noticed he was standing oddly: His neck was bunched up, his head close to his body, and he was standing almost stiffly. He wasn't walking around much. I went inside for about ten minutes and got my phone to take a photo of him to send to my friend who also has turkeys, and when I returned he was laying down not far from where I had left him standing. I picked him up and carried him closer to the house. He still made an attempt to get away from me, as he always does when I pick him up, but not a very good one. I left him on the porch with food and water nearby, and while he walked around a little bit, he stayed on the porch pretty close to where I put him.
I was going to call a vet and bring him in, but they were all closed until the next day. At night I put him in the garage with food and water, as I had had him on the porch. I checked on him once throughout the night. He was drinking on his own, but not eating (that I saw.) The next time I checked on him was early the next morning and he was dead.
Things to consider:
- I do have turkeys and chickens. They live in the same building, but different parts so, inside, they do not interact. I hadn't been letting the turkeys out as much as I had been letting the chickens out because they don't go back in on their own and I had been working late. However, the turkeys, in the few days before the death, had been going outside for the better part of the day. I considered blackhead, but we have had turkeys for a while (always with chickens) and never had an issue with it before. Maybe this was naive of me?
- They had access to food and water 24/7.
- In a total of one day, he went from acting slightly ill to definitely very, very sick. I know birds hide when they're not feeling well sometimes, however.
- The remaining two turkeys I have, including the one that was bought with and raised with him, seem completely fine.
Thank you for any help regarding this. Mostly I just want to know if it is something I should be worried about regarding my remaining turkeys, so any help is appreciated. I have never had a turkey die because of a very sudden illness before and I am very sad, especially since I had gotten this one a little less than a month ago.
About a month ago I got two royal palm turkeys off of a guy who said that his grandson had raised them for shows, gotten bored of it, and he didn't need them anymore. One was a male and one a female. When I brought the turkeys home, I pretty immediately noticed that the male seemed to have a cataract of some sort in one eye, but he functioned fine and they both seemed healthy otherwise. All was well until a few days ago.
Then, the male turkey seemed less active. He would still run around and eat and lay in the sun with the other turkeys though, so I thought maybe I was just imagining things. The following day, he wouldn't come out when I opened the door for the birds. I guided him out of the door and noticed he was standing oddly: His neck was bunched up, his head close to his body, and he was standing almost stiffly. He wasn't walking around much. I went inside for about ten minutes and got my phone to take a photo of him to send to my friend who also has turkeys, and when I returned he was laying down not far from where I had left him standing. I picked him up and carried him closer to the house. He still made an attempt to get away from me, as he always does when I pick him up, but not a very good one. I left him on the porch with food and water nearby, and while he walked around a little bit, he stayed on the porch pretty close to where I put him.
I was going to call a vet and bring him in, but they were all closed until the next day. At night I put him in the garage with food and water, as I had had him on the porch. I checked on him once throughout the night. He was drinking on his own, but not eating (that I saw.) The next time I checked on him was early the next morning and he was dead.
Things to consider:
- I do have turkeys and chickens. They live in the same building, but different parts so, inside, they do not interact. I hadn't been letting the turkeys out as much as I had been letting the chickens out because they don't go back in on their own and I had been working late. However, the turkeys, in the few days before the death, had been going outside for the better part of the day. I considered blackhead, but we have had turkeys for a while (always with chickens) and never had an issue with it before. Maybe this was naive of me?
- They had access to food and water 24/7.
- In a total of one day, he went from acting slightly ill to definitely very, very sick. I know birds hide when they're not feeling well sometimes, however.
- The remaining two turkeys I have, including the one that was bought with and raised with him, seem completely fine.
Thank you for any help regarding this. Mostly I just want to know if it is something I should be worried about regarding my remaining turkeys, so any help is appreciated. I have never had a turkey die because of a very sudden illness before and I am very sad, especially since I had gotten this one a little less than a month ago.
Did this just happen?
If he were mine I would necropsy and check for blackhead.
