We have two turkeys, Prince Charming and Opal.
Bringing Them Home
Prince Charming was rescued from a person who decided he no longer wanted to raise turkeys. Opal came to us when her previous owner’s dog attacked and killed almost the entire flock of chickens and turkeys. We took in Opal and the last surviving chicken from the flock. Opal was really hurt and lived in our bathroom for several months until her wounds healed. The chicken, Robin, had a dislocated leg from the dog attack and was so infested with worms that she screamed whenever she went to the bathroom.
Doesn’t Play Well With Chickens
It took some time, but we healed Opal’s wounds, rid Robin of worms, and healed Robin’s leg. We were so happy to be able to move them outside! Opal lived outside with the chickens for a while, but after she killed one, we quickly moved her into her own house. She tries to attack the chickens every time they walk past her yard so we had to reinforce her fencing so she couldn’t pull them through.
Another Attack
Opal doesn’t like staying in her yard and is constantly looking for a weak spot in the cover to get out through. One night the wind blew a portion of the cover off. She took full advantage of the opening and got out. Dogs got onto our property and discovered she was out before we did. They got a hold of her and were tearing feathers out. Once we saw what was going on, we were able to stop the attack, get her back into her yard, and immediately repair her cover.
Prince Charming
Prince Charming lives up to his name. He’s a gentle giant. Charming is timid and won’t come closer than a few feet from us, but we’ve never had any aggression problems with him towards us. He’s great around the ducks but he tries to attack the chickens every chance he gets. He and Opal live in separate heated houses, with aspen wood shavings for their bedding, because we’re afraid Charming will accidentally hurt Opal by over-breeding her.
Food
We feed the turkeys a high protein gamebird food and supplement with grains, mealworms, and fruits/vegetables. Opal also gets a calcium supplement. We don’t let the turkeys free range without close supervision. Since we always have chickens out, we can’t take a chance of one of the turkeys grabbing a chicken.