Vegetables
- Asparagus
- Beans, cooked
- Beets (the vegetable and the greens)
- Bell Peppers
- Broccoli
What is the best food for turkeys?
For adult turkeys, you can use a 16 – 20% protein feed. Most feed companies are, once again, going to brand this as a game bird feed. Gamebird and Turkey are pretty much interchangeable when it comes to commercially available feeds. This food will be the staple of your turkey’s diet for the rest of it’s life.
Should I Feed my turkeys organic food?
By allowing your turkeys to free-range they will still need a good organic commercial feed in addition to what they can catch for themselves. If you are keeping a few turkeys, then you should only buy enough feed for 2-4 weeks to prevent feeding your birds rancid feed as the oils in the feed go off very quickly.
What should I Feed my 5 week old Turkey?
If at 5 weeks old you still have half a bag of high protein turkey starter, just feed it till it is gone and switch when you buy a new bag. At about 13 weeks or so, your turkeys can start eating a regular turkey or game bird feed. At this stage, you can start feeding a lower percentage protein.
Should I let my turkeys free-range?
Protein is important to all poultry but especially so for turkeys who have a higher need for protein than chickens. By allowing your turkeys to free-range they will still need a good organic commercial feed in addition to what they can catch for themselves.
Do free range turkeys need feed?
Feeding on Pasture There's no such thing as raising a turkey on pasture only. They won't get the protein they need to grow out. Therefore, you must continue to give them proper food and water though they're free-ranging on your property. It's like free-ranging chickens.
What can I feed a wild turkey in my yard?
Preferred foods of wild turkeysBeech (Beechnuts are an alternate food source when acorn supplies are low.)Hickory (As with beechnuts, hickory nuts are an alternate winter food source.)Dogwood.Wild cherry.Grapes.Berries.
What is the best thing to feed wild turkey?
FEED turkeys cracked or whole kernel corn, sunflower seeds, oats, wheat, or non-medicated commercial poultry or turkey rations. FEED turkeys daily by broadcasting food at a rate of 2 large handfuls (or 1/2 cup) per turkey per day.
What should you not feed turkeys?
Here is some food that you should not feed to turkeys:Low-Quality chicken feed.Dairy foods.Onions.Raw meat.Chocolate.Processed foods.Fruit pits and seeds.Tomato and eggplant leaves.More items...
Should you feed wild turkeys?
Feeding turkeys Keep wildlife wild! Never deliberately feed wild turkeys to attract them to your property or keep them around. Turkeys can survive very well on natural foods and do not need handouts from people.
Can turkeys eat carrots?
Turkeys love to pick at natural plants. They will consume all sorts of leaves and grasses. You can also feed your turkey various vegetable plants like lettuce, cabbage, carrot leaves, and much more.
Is Cracked corn good for wild turkeys?
Cracked Corn-Corn is chocked full of protein and fiber that makes a great wild turkey food. Cracked corn is simply corn that has been dried and broken into pieces. This process makes it easier for wild turkeys to digest.
How do I attract wild turkey to my property?
Ideally, 20 to 30 percent of your woodland should consist of these fruit- and nut-bearing trees. Turkeys love acorns and pecans, as well as dogwoods, huckleberries, blueberries, and other fruits found in the understory. Planting food plots: Follow these tips to establish food plots as a supplement to natural forage.
Can turkeys eat whole corn?
Whole corn is an excellent choice if you want to feed them. Cracked corn works good too but tends to get covered up quickly if it is snowing or blowing. I've found they also like alfalfa hay, strange as it might seem. They get right into it and eat the green leaves and flowers.
Do wild turkeys eat vegetables?
Turkeys eat seeds, grains, vegetables, and insects. As omnivores, turkeys mostly eat seeds, grains, nuts, fruits, vegetables, and insects.
Do turkeys need different feed than chickens?
Turkeys are supposed to eat a higher protein food than chickens and game feed is the preferred turkey food. If you are raising turkeys for meat, it is important to feed them the proper protein content, but we honestly feed our turkeys the same food we feed the chickens.
What kind of fruit do turkeys eat?
Other planting suggestions include black cherry trees, blueberries, wild grapes and dogwood. Wild turkeys consume cacti fruits in arid areas and like many species of wildlife, will even consume poison ivy berries too.
What can I feed my turkeys?
Adult turkeys will get as much as 50% of their intake from pasture or range grass. Range grass is grass that is four to six inches long. Turkeys like to eat the growing tips of the grass. They will also enjoy any kitchen or garden scraps: lettuce, tomatoes, sweet corn, summer squash, and so on.
What kind of treats do turkeys like?
They enjoy nuts, acorns, seeds (including many wild weed seeds), corn, grain, and peas. They eat berries, flowers, bulbs, foliage, and fruit. Domesticated turkeys have different needs than chickens or ducks and should be fed either a turkey formulated feed or a wild or game bird feed to meet their needs.
How can I bring a turkey to my property?
6 Ways To Attract Turkeys To Your YardProvide Turkeys with a Varied Diet Year-Round.Provide a Water Source.Install Shelters and High Perches.Provide Nesting Sites.Limit Your Use of Pesticides.Lock Up your Pets.Attracting Turkeys May Be Illegal in Some States.Turkeys Can Cause Damage to Your Property.More items...•
Do wild turkeys eat whole corn?
Whole corn is an excellent choice if you want to feed them. Cracked corn works good too but tends to get covered up quickly if it is snowing or blowing. I've found they also like alfalfa hay, strange as it might seem. They get right into it and eat the green leaves and flowers.
How big are turkeys at 5 months?
At 5-6 months of age, most of your turkeys are full grown and will only be packing on more fat. Your toms will be between 30-40 lbs, and the hens 20-25 lbs. It’s harvesting time. We schedule this date right after the babies arrive, and before we sell any birds. Part of what we require from our turkey customers is participation in the harvesting. When they give us a deposit on one of our turkeys, the customer gets the date well ahead of time. We are not set up to have a bunch of butchered huge turkeys hanging around, nor do we want to be delivering all those birds. Having our customers come help also means they take their bird home with them. Our butchering set up is simple- a clean table top, a very sharp strong knife, some feed bags with the corner cut off, and then something to hang the bird on for dry plucking. Turkeys are very easy to dry pluck, if you do it immediately after they die. Can you imagine a scalder big enough to hold a huge turkey anyway? The day before harvesting, try to keep the turkeys off any feed, to keep the evisceration cleaner.
Why do we raise broad breast turkeys?
We raise the conventional broad breasted turkeys. Mostly because the heritage breeds of turkey poults are 2 times as expensive. Despite the nostalgic heritage concept, we didn’t feel the flavor was any better or different from our free ranged, well cared for broad breasted birds. Heritage turkeys also have a lower meat to bone ratio. The benefit to heritage birds should be that they can grow, breed and raise their own offspring without much input from the farmer. We tried keeping a pair of Bourbon Reds for a year, but the hen never sat on her eggs. We incubated them and had one poult hatch out, who died after a week. Our experience was not so good, but that doesn’t mean we won’t try again. Our current idea is to develop our own hybrid — we’ll be keeping 2 broad breasted hens and getting a heritage tom turkey for them. The Broad Breasted toms as too top heavy to naturally mate or mount a hen, but we’re thinking the other way around should work. However these hens most likely have most of their natural brooding ability bred out of them, so we’ll plan on incubating their eggs. Why bother with all this work? Poults are expensive to buy — our Broad Breasted poults run around $4 a piece. The heritage poults are $8-9 each. And a self sufficient homesteader wants to supply their own needs as much as possible.
How much are heritage poults?
The heritage poults are $8-9 each. And a self sufficient homesteader wants to supply their own needs as much as possible. You should give turkeys a try. They are an absolute joy, hilarious to watch, and so easy to please. And free ranged, real turkey is one of the most tasty meats imaginable.
How to keep turkey babies warm?
You can use window screens or chicken wire on top to keep them in. Turkey babies don’t need a lot of space in the brooder the first week, keep them nice and cozy at 85-90 degrees (don’t guess — use a thermometer) the first several days, then you can begin to lift the heat lamp up a few inches each day.
How to kill a turkey?
This is how we do it: The person who will do the kill has the feed bag with the corner cut off for the turkeys head to come out of. The “holder” corrals the bird and walks them over to the harvesting area. Turkeys are so mellow, this is not a problem in our experience. If you don’t freak out, they stay relatively calm. The person with the feed bag carefully puts it over the turkey’s head and feeds the head through the opening. The holder gently brings the turkey down to the ground, so they are sitting in a natural position, and the holder’s legs are straddling the back of the turkey. Some turkeys get a little riled up, and so we find it best to let them have a minute if so. Fear and stress mean adrenaline in your meat. It is worth it to be calm, keep in mind this bird is giving up it’s life for you to eat. Be grateful and give the bird it’s moments to calm down. Hold the turkey’s head in in one hand, and with the other, with a sharp knife, cut the neck and the jugular veins, going from one side to the other in a swift motion. Keep hold of the head and tell the turkey how grateful you are as it dies. As their spirit leaves, the wing muscles will move with amazing strength- hence the feed bag to hold the energy in. The holder should be prepared for this power so they don’t get bucked off. If they keep their knees firmly placed on the ground, they should be fine. Once the turkey has died, we use stout wire and tie it to one leg, and then hang the bird at a comfortable height for plucking. A semi-low strong branch on a tree works well. Eviscerating turkeys is the same as other poultry, except easier since they are so large. Their gizzards peel out easily and are delicious when roasted with the whole bird, or finely minced and used gravy. The heart and liver are the only other things we save besides the feet. Turkey feet can be dipped in scalding water and peeled, then added to bones for stock, supplying lots of excellent glucosamine and chondriton.
What do people hear about raising turkeys?
Sadly, the first thing many people hear about raising turkeys is just how stupid they are. “Don’t let them out in the rain, they’ll stare up into it and drown…” Our experience with turkeys has been completely the opposite. While most poultry species aren’t exactly bright, we find that turkeys are lovely, personable, and most important for the self sufficient homesteader — extremely efficient converters of grain and forage into delicious meat. In 5 months, a turkey can grow from a few ounces to 20-30+ lbs.
Why raise turkeys?
Jumbo turkey legs and BBQ wings on the grill, alongside kebabs and summer veggies? These meals sound good to you? Turkey is also a very marketable product for side-income. Selling a few extra turkeys can cover your turkey raising costs, so your own turkey meat supply is paid for! Raising birds humanely, when they can forage and live a good life means you have a special product for people looking for this as well.
What is the best feed for turkey fat?
For fattening up a turkey, using a 30% protein gamebird feed will likely give the best results.
What to feed a turkey to fatten it up?
This can come in the form of a starter or grower feed. For fattening up a turkey, using a 30% protein gamebird feed will likely give the best results.
Why are turkeys considered commercial birds?
Because turkeys (and chickens) are commercial birds, turkey growers and universities have put millions of dollars into research to ensure that they grow strong and healthy. For meat birds, rations are typically formulated so they grow to their maximum potential but not so fast as to cause issues with their health.
What happens to turkey chicks as they get older?
As your turkey chick (poult) gets a little older, the protein requirements decrease.
How to get turkeys to be more friendly?
Feeding your turkey treats by hand is a great way to get your birds to become more friendly and used to you. They will learn that not only do you not hurt them, coming close to you usually means they get some kind of yummy treat!
What is the best grain to feed a turkey?
Oats have about 11 – 14% protein and are a great grain to feed as well. Giving your turkey a variety of grains to access will help encourage them to eat.
When can turkeys start eating game bird feed?
At about 13 weeks or so, your turkeys can start eating a regular turkey or game bird feed. At this stage, you can start feeding a lower percentage protein. As far as commercial poultry feeds go, typically the lower the total percentage protein in the feed, the less expensive it is.
What is the best feed for a day old poult?
For your day old poults, use 28% feed or a gamebird starter which will be a 30% feed. Poults need a much higher protein feed than most other young birds and the appropriate day old poult feeds are noticeably more expensive than what would be fine for chickens.
Why do you want to keep track of the poults age?
The reason that you’ll want to keep track of the poults age and reduce the protein percentage of the feed is that higher protein feeds are expensive and lower protein feeds are less so.
What is the best feed for a turkey?
The best feed for turkeys is a 28% unmedicated turkey starter for day old poults, which will be gradually transitioned to a 12% unmedicated maintenance ration for adult turkeys.
What is starter feed for poults?
As the name “starter” suggests, it is the first feed your new poults need. It will be a bit higher in protein than the grower and come in smaller pieces, called a crumble, so it’s easier for the poults to eat.
What is 12% turkey feed?
Once your turkeys get to adult size, they are fine with a 12% feed as a maintenance ration. 12% non medicated poultry feed should be really easy to find at most any feed store. Notice that 12% is a maintenance ration, not a breeding/laying ration.
Can you feed turkey poults outside?
Do your best, but just don’t switch feed all of a sudden, ease them into it. Once your poults can go outside, read Space Needed To Raise Turkey Poults, keep feed available to them. Poults will eat whatever snacks they want to outside and eat the turkey feed they need, as well.
Does turkey feed change as it grows?
Protein % needed will change as turkey grows. You’ll notice in the table at the beginning of the article, the percent protein in the feed changes as the poults grow. This is normal for any feed ration.
Can you Add to our Information on Raising Turkeys Here?
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Why are turkeys so heavy?
The one problem with turkeys is that they are big, ungainly birds with the larger breeds being so big that they cannot breed naturally. The males are so heavy that they find it difficult to mount the females successfully and the females often get scratched and injured after the many attempts. The other problem with turkeys is again related ...
How to raise turkeys?
You could raise turkeys by breeding them, or incubating the eggs with either an electric incubator or a broody hen. However, this can be a troublesome process and far better to buy your poults at 5-6 weeks. This cuts down on the feeding time, you are ensured of a cut in losses as poults at this age are stronger and less susceptible to illnesses, and you only have to house them until they are between 24-28 weeks before you slaughter or dispatch your turkeys.#N#If you are a novice at raising turkeys it is advisable that you do not try with eggs first, as you can run into sorts of problems that you are probably ill-equipped to handle, and losses could be great, as a result.
How long do turkeys live?
Many turkey breeds can live between 10 – 15 years.
What is the best wheat for turkeys?
Winter wheat is also good as long as it is at least 6 inches tall before your turkeys are allowed access. The best forages are full of legumes and have a good mix. By allowing your turkeys to forage they will eat as much as 25% less of the commercial feed than if you didn't allow them to forage.
What to do if milk goes off in the fridge?
If your milk goes off in the fridge – feed it to your turkeys. They will love you for it!
When are turkeys ready to be slaughtered?
Turkeys hatched in June, should be ready for slaughter for Christmas and Thanksgiving at 20 – 25 pounds. However, that means you still have to catch it first before you can eat it! Catching turkeys are not that easy. Their wings are incredibly strong and can do a lot of damage if they are not properly contained.
Can you use BB for free range?
You could still use BB for free range, We have the Midget Whites and the Hollands which are good for free range also.
Do heritage turkeys run off?
Any of the heritage types will be smaller than a commercial bird. Mine have never run off with the wild turkeys, but I did have a wild hen with poults join up with a heritage hen with poults and hang around the yard. They actually got to the point where they followed me in to the barn to be fed.
How hot should my brooder be?
We accomplished this by following 3 main rules: 1) Keep it stifling hot inside the brooder, between 95-100 degrees, with high humidity. We use an exhaust fan with both a temperature and humidity sensor on it. 2) Build your brooder draft-free. The occasional cold breeze at night seems to really affect baby chicks.
How much space do you need for a turkey?
Keeping that in mind, it’s still easy to underestimate the amount of space you’ll need to allocate once the birds arrive on the pasture. A basic rule of thumb is 10 acres for every 200 turkeys .
What is the purpose of a brooder?
The purpose of the brooder is to imitate the warm, safe conditions beneath a mother hen. That said, mortality in the brooder can be extremely high, with producers routinely experiencing losses in excess of 25%. That kind of attrition can be very discouraging to a first time farmer.
Do turkeys need granite grit?
It’s crucial to give turkeys constant access to granite grit from day one. Also, the size of the pebble must be increased as they grow. Once they get onto pasture (for us, we turn them loose around week 7, or after the dander has disappeared from their heads) they will go straight to gobbling up grass. They need proper amounts of grit in their gizzards to help grind that fibrous pasture into soluble nutrition, truly supplementing their diet.
Do you have to raise turkeys to sell them?
In order to sell the turkeys, we have to raise the turkeys. In that spirit, here’s a list of tips that I’ve accumulated over ten years of pastured turkey raising.
Who is Forrest Pritchard?
Forrest Pritchard is a full-time sustainable farmer and New York Times bestselling author, holding a BA in English and a BS in Geology from William & Mary. Smith Meadows, his farm, was one of the first “grass finished” operations in the country, and has sold at leading farmers’ markets in the Washington DC area for two decades. Pritchard's books have received starred reviews from The Washington Post, Publishers Weekly, Library Journal, NPR, and more.
Is it hard to wrestle a 14 pound turkey?
Additionally, wrestling a 14 pound (live weight) turkey is hard enough. But try coercing a 26 pound tom upside down into a kill cone! Literally and figuratively, it’s for the birds.