Home turkey and features of its contents

Turkey is almost the largest poultry and represents the chicken family. Only ostrich has more weight. But African giants are rarely grown here. Domesticated turkey many centuries ago, in America. Introduced to Europe by the Spanish colonialists in the 16th century. From Spain, the bird quickly spread to neighboring countries. The old name for the turkey is “Spanish chicken.” In English, it is called “Turkish chicken.”

• Weight of males 11-13 kg, thoroughbred broilers can reach 20-35 kg
• Weight of females – 5 , 5-6 kg, in meat breeds – up to 11-15 kg
• The length of the body of the male is 100-110 cm, of the female is about 85 cm
• The head is small, with runny with feathers or completely naked
• The beak is mediocre, slightly bent down, the nose is located at the base
• On the beak there are growths of coral, they are much larger and longer in turkeys than in turkeys
• On the forehead there is a small blue process resembling wart
• The neck is elongated, almost without plumage
• The chest is powerful and wide
• The body is elongated
• The hips are powerful, with well-developed muscles , which allows birds to run at speeds of up to 50 km per hour
• Guzka plump
• The wings are average, slightly lowered to the ground, turkeys can fly up to 150 m at low altitude
• The plumage is magnificent
• The color depends on the breed, there are white, black, gray, brown, bronze, marble, colorful turkeys

This species has good vision, smell a little bit worse. The male screams loudly, the sound of his voice is not too pleasant, the Turkey is rarely aggressive. More often, females, especially rushing ones, enter the battle. Turkeys fly well, as well as king guinea fowl birds, so everyone who breeds cut their wings. In nature, birds live 3-4 years, at home – up to 10 years.

You can take a closer look at how your home turkey looks in photos and videos. It is important to remember that the size, plumage and some body parameters in different breeds may vary. a turkey is a very beautiful bird, many poultry farmers are attracted not only by productivity, but also by the decorative appearance of their pets.

How to determine the gender of birds

How to distinguish a turkey and a Turkey , what is the difference between them? In the first days of life, you can distinguish by the type and size of the pen. Male turkey poults have longer wing feathers on the wings, their length is exactly the same. After a couple of days, it is no longer possible to determine the sex by this sign.

Males are always the largest females

Brighter sex differences appear from the second month of life. A male domestic turkey is always larger than a turkey. In the future, its weight may be twice the weight of turkeys. The head of the male does not have feathers; a light fluff is noticeable in females. One of the main differences is the length of the nasal process. In turkeys, it is large, sometimes descends below the breast. During sexual activity, it pours blood and increases a couple of times, it can reach 15-20 cm.

Male and female differ in plumage. In the male, it is lush and slightly loose, the tail opens with a fan. In females, the feathers are thin, adhering closely to the body.In the 5th month, on the neck of the turkeys you can feel a special gland, like a wart or bump. Turkeys do not have such a gland. The turkey also boasts beautiful spurs on its legs.

Turkeys

Domestic turkey has been bred for many centuries, mainly as a meat breed. Modern broilers can reach a weight of up to 30 kg. Turkey has few eggs. When breeding breeds, attention was also paid to adaptability and resistance to diseases. After all, turkeys are rather tender birds, they do not tolerate cold. Therefore, they are suitable for cultivation only in a temperate and warm climatic zone.

Here are the names of some popular breeds:

• White broad-chested and its hybrids
• Bronze broad-breasted
• Moscow bronze
• Moscow white
• Mountainous North Caucasus (white, bronze and silver)
• Black Tikhoretskaya
• Black steppe Kuban
• Uzbek
• Dutch white
• Beltsville white
• Norragentset
• Black Norkfolian
• Red Bourbon

If you call in any village, that you can see the local varieties. They are unpretentious, but rather slowly gain weight. The weight of turkeys and turkeys does not exceed 11-12 kg. In industrial conditions, they prefer crosses and hybrids, the benefits of them are great. You can get a lot of meat from broiler turkey at an average feed cost.Turkey meat is very useful , it is recommended for children with breastfeeding or HB, with diseases of the liver, other organs of the gastrointestinal tract, with tuberculosis.

Conditions of detention

Turkey is quite a whimsical bird, sensitive to cold and damp. Special care and care require turkey poultry up to 9 weeks. By three months they will get stronger and their maintenance will become simpler. The chicken coop should be spacious, light, with good ventilation. It is not necessary to heat it in winter, you just need to carefully heat it up.

The area of ​​the house is calculated so that no more than one and a half birds live on one square meter (2 m² for 3 turkeys). The floor is made of planks, it is raised above the ground by 15-20 cm. Litter from straw, peat, sawdust is laid on top. Its thickness should be about 10-15 cm. It is important to ensure that the litter is always dry and clean, change as necessary.

Turkeys cannot stand dampness

At a height of about a meter perches are arranged for turkeys. Their dimensions are 60 × 60 × 60 cm. A small sill is made in front, about 15 cm high. Up to five females can be carried in one nest. On the floor put a box of wood ash, in which birds can arrange a bath. This helps them fight parasites. The dimensions of the box can be 125 × 80 × 25 cm. Also, drinking bowls and feeders are placed in the chicken coop.

The temperature in the house in the summer should be within 20 degrees, in winter at least 5 degrees. Lighting is provided at the rate of 2-5 watts of power per 1 m². For ventilation, you can make ventilation, it has huge advantages. In its absence, the house is regularly aired.

the turkey does not accept cell or closed housing at all. He needs a spacious place for walking. If it is a village, turkeys can be let out into the yard or into the meadow. When growing in the country, an aviary is equipped. The turkey, like the guinea fowl, has not lost its ability to fly, because the fence around the aviary should be high. There is another way, to cut the wings of the birds. Most farmers do just that. It is important to remember that keeping turkeys along with chickens and other domesticated birds is unacceptable. They can become infected with dangerous diseases.

Feeding turkeys

To get the maximum yield from turkey, they need to be properly fed . The diet should contain a sufficient amount of protein. The main source of protein is grain, meat and bone or fish meal. Of cereals, wheat and barley are preferred. Turkey eats reluctantly oats, and rye is given only sprouted or soaked.

Also, the menu should include a sufficient amount of fat. Tribal birds are given 3.5–4.3% fat, before they are chopped, the amount is increased to 5–6%. Fiber in the diet of turkeys is 4-5.5%.It is very important that birds eat a sufficient amount of phosphorus and calcium, especially during growth. Its source is meat and bone meal, chalk, crushed shells. The amount of calcium should be 1.9-2.7%, phosphorus – 0.8-1.5%.

Here is an approximate description of the menu of one turkey per day, which provides a guide:

• Whole grains – 120 g
• Chopped grains with herbs or yeast (tart) – 50 g
• Bran – 40 g
• Green and succulent feed – 400 g
• Grass flour – 30 g
• Meat and bone meal – 5 g
• Chalk – 10 g
• Common salt and gravel – 2 g

It must be remembered that a turkey can eat 30-40% more feed than a turkey. Wet mixes of boiled potatoes, carrots, fodder beets, fresh kitchen waste, if there are no spices, will be useful for turkeys. Their bird should eat within 20 minutes, so that the food does not turn sour. Because mixers give in small portions. In summer, an important place in the diet is green grass. Nettle, alfalfa, clover, beetroot and carrot tops are suitable for feeding.

Feed the bird needs only fresh food

In winter, when there is no greenery, you can give the turkeys a silo. For its manufacture use clover and alfalfa, chopped carrots with tops, fodder and sugar beets, corncobs of milk ripeness.It is also useful for the organism of birds if you feed them in the winter with needles from pine, Christmas trees, and fir. To increase egg production in the spring, vitamin supplements, fish oil are added to the feed.

There should be water in the house at any time of the year. Both food and water are always given fresh. If you do not follow this rule, you can cause irreparable harm to livestock. Turkeys will begin to hurt and die, it is easy to lose a whole herd in a matter of days. Feed the birds 2-3 times a day. For breakfast and dinner, they give grain, for lunch – wet mixers.

Breeding poultry

To get good offspring, you must first properly form the breeding herd. They begin to conduct selection for breeding already in the first day after the birth of the chicks. Choose the largest, most active and strongest. Then additional selections are carried out in 2-3 and 6-7 months. Take into account the speed of mass gain, health, external characteristics, compliance with breed standards. There can be 6-7 females per male in a herd. Sometimes a large herd of 4-5 turkeys and 30 turkeys is formed.

Maturity in females and males occurs late, by 8-9 months. The breeding season in birds begins in early spring. The turkey at this time begins to behave in a special way. He lowers his wings, the corals on his beak swell, his tail fan out. The male speaks loudly, when listening to his voice and scream, he resembles a bubble. Sometimes it is so intrusive that the owners dream at night.Turkeys rarely attack each other, females are more aggressive. Mating takes place many times, the male manages to fertilize most of the eggs.

Birds only breed up to five years, then the tribe should be replaced. The turkey makes a very good mother hen. She is able to raise not only her chicks, but also chickens, guinea fowls and even ducklings. For a year, the female carries about 50-90 eggs. One egg weighs 75-90 g, has a conical shape, the gray shell is speckled. To remove turkey poultry, spring material is taken, in winter, young growth is more likely to die. If it is not possible to lay eggs under the female, use an incubator for breeding. Little chicks are born 28-30 days after the start of hatching.

Growing little chicks

Poultry in the first weeks are very sensitive to cold and damp. Therefore, for their cultivation at home, it is best to use a brooder. If special equipment is not available, you can use a conventional heater or lamp. In the early days, the temperature is maintained at 31-33 degrees, from 6 to 10 days it can be reduced to 27-29 degrees, on 11-20 days – up to 24-26 degrees, from 21 to 30 days – 21-23 degrees. Two-month-old turkey poults feel great at room temperature and walk outside.

For the first three days, the turkey poultry is fed a boiled egg mixed with cool porridge. From the third day, you can dilute such a mash in kefir or sour milk, add bread, finely chopped greens.Useful for a growing organism nettle, dandelion leaves, plantain, clover, alfalfa. To prevent intestinal pathologies, young animals are fed green onions. With intensive feeding, turkeys are given special feed with 28% protein. Chicks need clean water so that they do not get sick, they add a little potassium permanganate or an antibiotic. Poultry grow rapidly, already in 3 months weigh 2.5-3 kg. The mass gain table will tell you more about this.

Diseases of turkeys

About poultry diseases you need to have an idea

Even the most well-groomed turkey at home can get sick. Therefore, any owner needs to know the main symptoms of pathologies. If it is an industrial farm, timely diagnosis will help save the whole herd from infections. Most commonly found in poultry:

• Newcastle disease. It is caused by a virus, paralysis of the extremities occurs in birds with infection, then diarrhea joins. The duration of the disease is 1-4 days, less often 7-10 days. If sick turkeys are identified, they must be killed immediately and carcasses destroyed. The treatment has not yet been developed, for the prevention of injecting vaccines.
• Respiratory mycoplasmosis. In this disease, the birds first wheeze, sneeze, cough. Then bloating or swelling appears under the eyes. The case is not very high, but little meat is obtained from turkey with mycoplasmosis.She loses weight, lags behind growth. To prevent the infection from spreading, sick birds are isolated, and disinfection is carried out in the house.
• Pullorosis. The pathology of young animals, sick little chicks lag behind in growth, weaken, they begin to have diarrhea. In the final stage, turkey poults fall on their paws, clog into a corner. The mortality rate among young animals is quite high. For prevention, it is important to monitor the cleanliness in a box with chicks, they should always have clean water and fresh food.
• Aspergillotoxicosis. Fungal turkey pathology, which is transmitted with infected food. May be acute and chronic. Manifested by diarrhea, the turkey becomes lethargic, lags in growth, loses weight. It is best to kill a sick individual, disinfect the room, and change the litter. Pills with bacteria and sour milk well prevent the disease.
• Histosomiasis. A bacterial disease in which the colon and liver are affected. The main signs are frothy diarrhea of ​​an orange or yellow hue, loss of appetite, weight loss, feather loss. Often, the disease occurs in a herd that lives in a former duck house.
• Parasites. When skin parasites appear, the turkey itches, behaves uneasily. Ash baths are used for prevention; you can treat the house with insecticides.

When the first signs of pathologies appear, you should contact your veterinarian, why take the risk once again. If this is a dangerous infectious disease, the entire herd should be slaughtered.Both sick and healthy birds are cut. With some diseases turkey can still get meat, they are not dangerous to humans. There are pathologies that can really be treated. To prevent the turkey from getting sick at home, you need to keep the house clean and vaccinated on time.

How to cut the carcass

You can get a lot of dietary meat from the turkey. As already mentioned, this is one of the largest poultry. The mass of broiler carcasses reaches 20-25 kg, and a live individual can weigh more than 30 kg. The percentage of output is quite high. You can kill a turkey in the usual way, separating the head from the body with an ax. The factories practice jamming by electric shock. You can stab the bird with a sharp knife.

Cutting the carcass with your own hands does not present any special difficulties. First, the turkey with feathers is scalded. Sometimes it is kept in boiling water for 10-15 minutes. Then plumage is plucked, you can use tweezers or special tweezers for this. Then the plucked carcass is placed on the table to cut. Paws are cut between the tendons. Cut the skin from the anus to the sternum, remove the insides.

The next step is to cut the hips, carefully cutting the ligaments and separating the joints from the pelvic bones. The wings are cut using the same technology. The body is divided into two halves along the sternum. You can cut the neck and gently separate from both sides of the rib from the ridge.To cook a whole turkey, for example, stuffed in Thai or with rice, you can only gut it, not cut it. At this point, the cutting of the diet turkey will be completed. It remains to add spices, bake and serve for dinner.

How much does a turkey cost

Before you buy birds for breeding and rearing, you should choose a breed. You can quickly get a lot of meat from broiler turkey, but such breeds require proper feeding and special conditions. Otherwise, there is a high percentage of cases among them, the output is lower than the declared one. Ordinary varieties recover more slowly; their final mass is lower. But they are undemanding and undemanding in content. Dietary turkey meat in both cases will be very tasty and healthy.