Turkeys and Wild Turkeys

[hippiehen]

I'm getting my first set of heritage polts in May (SOOO EXCITED!) *ahem* and I plan to let them free range with my chickens and ducks when they are old enough. But, as I type this, there are 20 wild Rio Grande turkeys eating under the bird feeders behind my house. They hang around pretty often, last year a couple of the hens nested in the salt grass about 200 yards from the house. This year's group is 6 toms and 14 hens. I love having them here and I'm kind of surprised how tame they have gotten, there's not any other people around here.

My question is, how will they get along with my new turkeys? Should I leave mine penned during breeding season? And most importantly, will mine turn wild and integrate with this flock?

 

[ColbyNTX]

Yes, yours can take off with the wild turkeys. They can also breed with them making bigger, heavier poults that can not excape predators. You should leave yours pinned during breeding season.

 

[Shad]

I have seen quite a bit of this in my area, many will readily and freely cross breed with the wild turkeys.

It is a numbers thing, the way I FEEL about this is if you have 10 - 14 domesticated turkeys that are established on your property this is enough for the social turkey rafter. Often times the matriarch hens will not allow any adult additions to the flock.
When a turkey does not have a home or know where its range is and is added to your social flock, they will persist and eventually be accepted, you will see them immediately identify the inferior tom hen or group and start to hang out with them, this sets their social position and allows for a smoother transition often times they will start a fringe group given enough outcasts and this will initiate a clear distinction and occasional "gang wars" upon removal of the outcast tom the outcast flock will re-establish itself to the main flock. If a wild turkey does come into your established social turkey flock they will not persist, often times they are quite clever with what they want. I find that wild hens fancy bourbon red toms and readily mate with them. (though I did have a BR tom that despised the bronze) after they have gotten what they want they usually clear out.

Free range and Wild turkeys usually return to their same roost every night. It is likely that once you establish an adequate roosting location for your new flock they will continue to return to the same roost unless they hatch poults. If you find that a wild turkey starts to use the same roost, you will need to run it off. If your turkey roosts in the wrong place, the best way to fix that is to make sure it awakes on the roost of your choice. this can be accomplished by capture during the day (when they are not at the top of a 200 foot Douglas fir) holding them until night then place them on the appropriate roost.

The other issue you will discover is that your flock will "stray" as far as necessary to acquire the appropriate nutrition. Don't allow your birds to lose focus by not providing them with a complete diet.

If the pair you have turns out to be a pair of hens, you MUST get a tom, all of the above has no bearing on that scenario.

If you only have one Tom he will likely find another Tom,

Keep us informed on this issue, also, what type of heritage turkeys have you bought

During the brooding stage of their lives, make sure you ineract with them and they are in a high traffic area (especially if it is only two) you may look at getting more turkeys (even if they are not heritage breed)

...

 

[lil'turkeymama]

Congrats on the poults.They are so much more interesting than chickens.Not smarter just fun to raise and watch and just plain funny birds.
You will need to keep yours up during their seasons.They will mix and that is very bad for the wild population.Not so much if your hen mates a wild gobbler,her poults will be tame.But say you have royal palm gobblers and they mate with wild hens then their poults are odd colored or smaller,then they can't survive as a wild bird.
I have learned to keep mine up after losing hens to the wild flock,I have only bronze,and losing jakes to hunters.Hunting wild turkeys is what made me buy my own birds to raise and enjoy.I still hunt them and have learned tons about them from my pet birds.But I don't let them mix.My 4 year old tom still trys to get away and join the wild ones.Last year he kept coming up missing and I kept thinking a hunter was going to get him.I had him free ranging while my hens were laying.I finally got him caught up and painted his tail and wings a bright hunter orange.Looked real funny,sure wasn't a normal looking wild bird.While hunting the back forty a week later he comes strutting right out with the wild birds.He went on to fight with the wild flock gobbler and after getting his but kicked headed back to the house.I penned him when I got back because I knew for sure he was running with the wild birds.
Make pets out of yours as much as you can and keep them feed well.They should stay fairly close the rest of the year.

 

[hippiehen]

Thanks everyone for all the great information! I think I'll just keep mine penned during breeding season, just to be on the safe side. Here's another thought: What if I got some day old wild poults from the Rio Grandes and raised them with mine? Think they would stay? Last year we started out with 24 poults and between the fire ants and predators I think 4 made it to adulthood.

I certainly wouldn't take them all, just a few.


I'll for sure let yall know what my heritage poults are when I get them!!

 

[pampered_poultry]

Yes keep yours locked up - out of the respect of the wild turkeys and conservation. Hybrid birds have a hard time leaving in the wild and really can make a mess of the wild turkey population.

 

[deerman]

Quote:
Better check your state laws, here you will get jail time takein wild turkey poults...poaching its called here.....better not get caught free range turkey in Ohio either, big fines.


Alway bad idea for wild turkey, in either case....for lots of reason