by Good day, experienced and novice poultry farmers! What and how to feed turkeys at home from the first day? The efficiency of growing any farm animals, including poultry, primarily depends on the feeding characteristics: the variety and nutritional value of available feed, feeding regime, etc.
Since interest in the once forgotten turkeys has been growing in recent years, we decided to introduce you to the feeds used in the diet of young turkeys.
Why did we choose turkey poults as the object of study today, and not adult birds? The fact is that the immune status and productivity level of adult birds are determined by how well they grew and developed at the beginning of the post-embryonic period – in the first months of life.
Moreover, an erroneous approach to organizing feeding often provokes a number of serious problems, such as food poisoning, sometimes ending in the mass death of chicks.
What and how to feed turkeys at home from the first day of life
The maximum mortality of turkey poults occurs in their first days of life. The causes of mortality are different, but most often mortality is explained by infectious, viral and other pathologies. Therefore, immediately after incubation, the purpose of feeding is to strengthen the immune system, activate the protective mechanisms of the young organism.
The first feeds are fed in the form of a soft mixture, which should be nutritious. The truly useful food is one rich in vitamins, fats and protein compounds.
It is important not to miscalculate the feeding regime. It is different for each age group of birds. Recommended frequency of daily feedings:
- 1-6 days – 9 times;
- 7-13 days – 8 times;
- 14-29 days – 6 times;
- 30-59 days – 5 times;
- 60-89 days – 4 times;
- starting from 90 days – 3 times.
Now about the feed used in the diets of turkeys of different ages.
What and how to feed day-old turkeys at home
Domestic birds of all species are born with the remains of a yolk sac containing nutrients that are enough for the newly born organism to last for a couple of hours.
After this time, the chicks are given light and nutritious food. An example of the simplest feed mixture (its daily rate per 1 individual is given):
- Boiled egg and cottage cheese – 2 g each;
- skim milk – 3 g;
- green fodder – 4 g;
- chalk – 0,5 g.
All this stuff is finely chopped before feeding. Failure to pre-prepare the mixture is a probable cause of esophageal blockage. Only crumbly composition is applicable, since sticky mass provokes problems with the gastrointestinal tract.
Important point: for young animals with a weak swallowing reflex, food is forced into the beak.
The feed mixture is fed from a shallow container. Many experienced poultry farmers use cardboard instead of a feeder.
The young animals are given only boiled water at 20-22 degrees, containing a small amount of sugar.
A shallow bowl is used as a drinking bowl, since a high capacity will cause the turkeys to choke and drown.
What and how to feed turkeys at home from 7 days
The youngsters’ favorite delicacy is green onion feathers. Keep in mind that such food in large quantities causes severe thirst. Therefore, it is given in the morning and during the daytime.
If you feed them in the evening, the birds will not rest at night, but will drink constantly.
The feed mixture fed to day-old young animals is supplemented with dry grain mixtures, meal, peas (pre-crushed), boiled potatoes – about 10 g, shell rock and chalk – no more than 0,5 g.
The daily norm of feed mixture is 35-40 g.
Feeding turkeys with yeast, fish meal and bone meal has a positive effect on their health and growth energy.
What and how to feed turkeys at home at 2 weeks
At this age, young animals are no longer fed boiled eggs. Important: overuse of eggs can cause a number of gastrointestinal problems.
Daily set of feed per individual:
- Wet mash, the basis of which is skim milk, yogurt or low-fat milk (preferably homemade) – 12 g;
- three to five types of grain (wheat, barley, oats) and legumes;
- meal (cake). These ingredients are ground before feeding to the bird – 16 g;
- green fodder, including alfalfa, dandelions, nettles, green onions – 15 g;
- cottage cheese and bran – 10 g each;
- shell rock – maximum 1 g.
What and how to feed turkeys at home from 1 month
The composition of the feed base for keeping 30-day-old turkeys: a mash of skim milk, greens, vegetables and grains. Table salt is included in the “new additions” to the diet. Grains are fed from a separate feeder in the morning and evening. Daytime feed is a mash.
Keep in mind that if you give the mash in the evening, the bird will quickly feel hungry at night. Why? It’s simple – the substances in the mash are quickly absorbed, used by the body and deposited in the product.
At this stage of life, feeding turkeys with cottage cheese is ineffective, since as they grow older, the young animals’ appetites grow. And cottage cheese, as we know, is too expensive to sacrifice kilograms of it to your feathered charges.
Although there is one exception! Breeding birds, the quality of whose reproductive products determines the results of incubation and the productivity of the next generation of birds.
In the free-range system of keeping, both in the poultry house and on the free-range area there should be containers with mineral additives, for example, feed chalk, shell rock. The daily norm of these sources of minerals is 3 g.
The bird responds with additional weight gain if the diet contains meal or cake, hay, pine needles, and bran.
What and how to feed turkeys at 2 months
60 days. The organization of feeding a 2-month-old bird is in many ways similar to feeding 30-day-old turkeys. Of course, there are some differences. The feed base now includes crushed corn grain.
Important: a one-time transfer of turkeys to the full norm of corn is the cause of disruptions in the work of the intestines and internal organs. This prospect suggests that turkeys should be accustomed to the new feed gradually – smaller doses, and more frequent meals.
In order to improve vitamin and mineral nutrition, sprouted barley and wheat are periodically included in the turkeys’ diet. At this age, you can safely accustom the young to boiled potatoes.
Potato peelings are an acceptable food. However, their norm should be very small.
Advice: make sure that green tubers do not get into the bird’s diet. They contain solanine, which in high concentrations acts as a poison. There are known cases when pigs died from it. What can we say about young turkeys then.
The right decision would be to include grated carrots, dried nettles, pine needles, and rowan berries in the diet. According to experts from meat processing organizations, these feeds positively correlate with the organoleptic qualities of meat products.
Daily feeding regimen: 4 times.
What and how to feed turkeys at 3 months
At 3 months of age, turkeys are fed the same feed, but at higher daily rates.
- Meat and bone meal and wheat bran – 20 g each.
- Grain after crushing unit – 50 g.
- Greens – 150 g.
- Salt and chalk – 5 g each.
About feeds that pose a threat to the health of turkeys
The following are prohibited:
- Food with signs of rot and mold;
- salty, spicy and savory table scraps;
- unknown vegetation;
- compound feed with expired shelf life;
- compositions with a sticky consistency;
- belladonna, wild rosemary and other poisonous plants.
And what and how have you decided to feed turkeys? Share your experience in the comments. Any advice is important!
