Detailed Guide to Turkey Breed Selection and Feeding Management Techniques

     Because of their large body size, turkeys pose difficulties for marketing, so the current national market stock is relatively small and development is expected to be slow; however, as a new food source, their prospects are promising. The feeding and management techniques for turkeys are as follows: 

1. Breed Selection for Turkeys 

(1) Bronze Turkey: Native to the Americas, named for the bronze sheen of its feathers. It lays about 60 eggs per year; the female turkey weighs 8 kg and the male turkey 16 kg. This breed was introduced into China too long ago and is currently severely degraded. 

(2) Nicholas Turkey: Bred by the Nicholas Turkey Breeding Company of the United States. The largest adult male weighs 25 kg, and the female turkey about 12 kg; it lays 60-80 eggs per year and has pure white feathers. This turkey shows a great disparity in weight between males and females, resulting in poor fertilization rates through natural mating, so artificial insemination must be used; it is suitable for intensive factory farming. 

(3) Betina Turkey: Native to Mexico, later bred and domesticated by the Betina Turkey Breeding Company of France, and has now become the only breed in the world that can be both grazed and raised in housing. This turkey tolerates coarse feed, gains weight quickly, has a high feed conversion rate and strong disease resistance; it lays 90-120 eggs per year, with male turkeys weighing about 10 kg and female turkeys about 5 kg. This turkey has a high natural mating fertilization rate and strong self-incubation ability, making it suitable for both medium and small turkey farms and for free-range raising by rural specialized households and farmers; it is an ideal breed. 

2. Construction of Standard Turkey Houses 

(1) Site selection: For small-scale production and household raising, local conditions can be adapted; but for large-scale production, site selection for the turkey farm is very important. A land use plan should be made according to production volume, and a site with high, dry, flat terrain facing south with its back to the north should be chosen for the farm, while also planning supporting exercise areas and pasture farmland. Within 1 km around the turkey farm there should be no cities, villages, factories or other pollution sources, and air quality should meet the requirements of the GB3095 standard. 

(2) Building layout of the turkey farm: The building layout of a turkey farm requires a complete system, which is mainly divided into the living area for management personnel, the breeding turkey farm, the hatchery, and the commercial turkey production base. All personnel and vehicles entering the site must be strictly disinfected, and the environment inside the turkey houses must meet the requirements of NY/T388. 

3. Feeding Management of Turkeys 

(1) Points to note when introducing turkeys: Turkeys should come from breeding turkey farms that hold a “Livestock and Poultry Production and Operation License” and are free of pullorum disease, Newcastle disease, avian influenza, mycoplasma and leukemia. 

(2) Supporting pasture: Planting pasture is a key part of all turkey feeding work. Turkeys enjoy eating a very wide range of green feeds; wild grasses, vegetables, tree leaves, water spinach, sweet potato vines, peanut vines, and planted pastures such as ryegrass, chicory, comfrey and rumex are all good feeds for turkeys. When feeding, they should be kept fresh and clean, protected from mold and spoilage, and guaranteed to be pollution-free and non-toxic. Pasture and crop straw can also be sun-dried and crushed and reasonably combined with oilseed meals and bran and wheat types; such self-mixed feed not only ensures quality but also reduces costs, and can achieve the goal of improving turkey quality. 

(3) Reasonable combination of pollution-free feed: Feed quality must meet the requirements of NY5037. Veterinary drug additives mixed into the feed must meet the requirements of NY5035. Formula for chick starter feed: corn 50%, soybean meal 28%, fish meal 12%, wheat 4%, rice 5%, yeast 0.2%, bone meal 0.5%, salt 0.3%. Multivitamins and trace elements are used according to product instructions, with an appropriate amount of chives, garlic, scallions, etc. mixed in. Concentrate feed is primary and green feed secondary. Formula for commercial turkey feed: corn 50%, wheat 15%, soybean meal 15%, rice 15%, fish meal 3%, bone meal 1%, yeast 1%, salt 0.3%. Poultry multivitamins and trace elements are added according to product instructions. Green feed is primary and concentrate feed secondary. 

(4) Preventing feed from becoming moldy: Because there is a lot of rain and high humidity in summer, concentrate feed is very prone to mold, which can lead to mold poisoning in turkeys. Therefore, management personnel must be conscientious and responsible, use sunny weather to dry the feed, prohibit the use of moldy feed, and completely eliminate the occurrence of poisoning incidents. When using feed, it should be given at fixed times and in fixed amounts, with small amounts given frequently. At ordinary times, pay attention to managing by groups, providing appropriate exercise, maintaining quiet, and paying attention to hygiene. 

(5) Disease control: To control the occurrence of turkey diseases well, scientific management is required, and the policy of prevention first must be adhered to; the health of the flock should be checked frequently, and comprehensive preventive measures should be adopted. In the selection of drugs for prevention and treatment, national standards must be strictly implemented to eliminate residual contamination by harmful substances and ensure the safety of turkey meat and its products.