Breeding turkeys and what to keep in mind from the very beginning

Beautiful, with excellent weight gain, turkeys will certainly diversify any poultry farming activity, especially for those who have already cut their teeth on chickens or quails. Just remember from the very beginning about good veterinary support - you will definitely need it!

You can start breeding turkeys either by incubating fertilized eggs or by purchasing chicks from a hatchery. 

The first path can be quite difficult for beginners, and in brief the following should be kept in mind. For those who want to incubate turkey eggs and buy an incubator , it is important to know that the incubation period lasts 28 days and there are some nuances here. 

For example, to ensure high hatchability, turkey eggs are first stored at a certain temperature of 16 degrees Celsius for at least 12 hours before being placed in the incubator; the incubator itself, after disinfection cleaning, is warmed up for a day before laying the eggs. During the incubation period, turkey eggs should be turned 180 degrees five times a day. Stop turning eggs about three days before they are due to hatch, or about day 24 of the 28-day incubation period. In addition, you need to ensure that the relative humidity level during hatching is around 68-70 percent. Turkeys can take up to ten hours to fully hatch and emerge from their shells. Therefore, they wait 8-12 hours before removing the chicks from the incubator.

The second way is to buy day-old turkey poults. And it is better to do this in a proven farm or factory with proper veterinary control. For example, mycoplasma diseases such as Mycoplasma Gallisepticum and Mycoplasma Synoviae, which are easily transmitted by chickens, can be fatal to turkeys. The main danger is coccidiosis. 

In theory, raising turkeys is very similar to raising chickens. You will need essentially the same setup: brooder, heat lamp or plate, bedding, feeder and waterer. The brooder is preheated a day in advance to regulate the temperature. A thermometer is attached to the inside wall of the brooder and the poults have a "hot zone" (under a lamp) set at 35 degrees Celsius for their first week, then begin raising the heat lamp to lower the temperature 5 degrees each subsequent week. Do not keep the entire brooder at the highest temperature. Chicks do better when there is a warm area under their heating element and cooler areas near food and water.

Turkey poults begin to be fed feed with a higher protein content than chickens. You need food with a protein content of 28% - if you haven’t found food for turkeys, this may be in the line for wild birds. 

As with any chicks, it's a good idea to show poults how to eat and drink when you first get them. Tap the food to show them where it is and encourage them to start pecking. Do the same with water. Carefully pick up the gobbler and gently dip the beak into the water. 

Now about why many people think that it is more difficult to raise turkey poults than chickens. The biggest problem you are likely to encounter is coccidiosis. A preventive dose of Amprolium is the best way to help your turkeys strengthen their immune system, along with keeping the brooder clean. 

This is important because you are unlikely to find a food with 28% protein that includes anti-coccidiosis medications . Therefore, add a small dose of liquid amprolium to the water - sold in powder for dilution - to reduce the level of cocci, in accordance with the instructions. However, in this case, be prepared for some losses. Unfortunately, it is extremely difficult to cure turkey poults from coccidiosis if they already refuse to drink and eat. However, having mastered this principle of veterinary support, the chances of success in breeding turkeys increase significantly!