I was given 20 ducklings, 56 Leghorn chicks, and 20 broad-breasted white turkey poults for FREE! Yeah! I have raised chicks and ducklings before but my question is this: I plan to put the turkey poults in a pen by themselves but other than gamebird starter for them how do I keep them from picking on each other? Besides docking their beaks? I would prefer to keep them off medication unless absolutely necessary... Are there any play toys for birds? Geez, these guys are vicious! They've pecked one of their brothers/sisters bloody already (I removed the bloody one and quarantined it). Thanks!!

-- Gailann Schrader (gtschrader@aol.com), April 17, 2002

Answers

If you have got them on a high protein starter, then I'd look at how much space each bird has, seems that with enough space the pecking will be at a minimum. Some people add supplements with the amino acids methionine and lysine.

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), April 17, 2002.

OK, everybody get ready to laugh. When my new chicks were pecking at each other, I not only put handfuls of grass and weed leaves into their box, I also hung parakeet toys (yup, you read that right) on the sides of the box. They seemed to find them entertaining enough that they didn't feel the need to pick on each other any longer.

-- Laura Jensen (lrjensen@nwlink.com), April 17, 2002.

i am not gonna laugh at putting parakeet toys in there, i think its a great idea, if i had some i would, but what i do , is give them fresh alfalfa hay daily, along with applecores , and potatoe peels, oranges they fdont like, and when i make cheese, yep the tweeters get soem too (the dogs get most of it)

why not, its better to keep them entertained than killing each other

-- Beth Van Stiphout (willosnake@hotmail.com), April 17, 2002.

I just went through this. Isn't it frusterating! I woke up Saturday morning to 4 bloody poults out of the 21 I had. The 4 bloody ones got removed into a separate pen. The remaining ones were switched to wood chips in the brooder, they were on wire mesh. This seemed to help a lot as it give them something to pick at, roll around in etc.... I also give them a handful of grass twice a day - they like playing with and eating it. I also switched them to an infra red heat lamp at night, so they actually get some sleep in a darken area but still have their heat. I have big brooder, built for a 100 chicks so that wasn't a problem. I also have mine on the high protein game bird feed.

Someone suggested putting a cabbage head in their for them to peck on but they didn't do anything with it.

I was able to save 3 of the 4 injured ones. The 3 are still in their own cage and their wounds are healing up nicely.

-- Anita in NC (anitaholton@mindspring.com), April 17, 2002.