TURKEY RAISING 



also when they are kept separate from other fowls and 

 chicks. It is quite as necessary to keep turkeys and chick- 

 ens separate as it is to separate hogs and sheep. Some- 

 times a turkey hen and her brood and a chicken hen and 

 her brood of poults of the same age are put out in coops 

 near one another. This seems to work to pretty good 

 advantage as the turkey hen tends to take the chicken hen 

 and her brood farther away from the buildings while the 

 chicken hen tends to keep the turkey hen and her brood 

 from straying too far. Moreover, when the chicken hen 

 weans her little turkeys at an age which is too early for 

 their best development, the turkey hen will usually mother 

 and care for both broods. 



Bowel trouble or diarrhea is a frequent source of diffi- 

 culty with the little turkeys. The causes of bowel trou- 

 ble are several and the effects of it on the little turkeys are 

 bad. Bowel trouble may result from overfeeding or from 

 faulty feeding such as improper feeds or sloppy feeds, 

 and may likewise be the result of severe chill. The feed- 

 ing of boiled rice is claimed by many turkey growers to 

 be a good corrective for diarrhea. It is seldom necessary 

 to keep the hen and poults confined for more than a few 

 days at a time. The sooner they can be given free range 

 the better it will be all around. The question of whether 

 they should be put in the coop at night after they have 

 ranged during the day up to the time they are ready to 

 roost depends both on the weather and the danger that 

 exists of their being killed by marauding animals. Occa- 

 sional gobblers may prove troublesome in killing young 



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