Raising Organic Turkeys - Vital Tips Before You Order Your Turkeys

Chickens are usually the first thing that comes to people's minds when they think of homesteading. Chickens are always a good source of eggs and bird meat. But the better choice of bird to raise is turkeys. The demand for turkey shoots up during Thanksgiving. But this doesn't mean you can't earn from raising turkeys all year round. Best of all, you can get a bigger income if you go for raising organic turkeys. Organic turkeys feed mainly on grass or free-range. They are only fed supplemental feeds to promote their health and improve meat quality. As such, the costs of feeds are brought down drastically.

If you are considering raising organic turkeys, the first thing you need to think about is where to get your poults. You have the option of ordering them by mail or simply sourcing them from a local breeder. We recommend the latter because while mail-order poults will work, the journey from the breeder to the mail post puts unnecessary stress on the birds.

Before you order the poults and begin raising turkeys, you need to make sure that you have an area that is enclosed with fences and protected against natural predators. You will need to put the poults here, and maybe even install a heat lamp in case the weather gets a little too cold. Poults should be fed with starter mash to get them started on the road to growth. Also, make sure that there is sufficient supply of clean and fresh water all the time.

Wait until four weeks before allowing the birds to go outside into a bigger, fenced area. However, when raising organic turkeys, you should remember to keep the temperature above 70 degrees, and the supply of fresh water coming. Also restock the supply of feeds regularly.

Ten weeks into raising organic turkeys, you can start feeding your poults with growth formula. At this point, you can also start adding other food items such as greens into your diet. At this point also, you can choose whether you want your birds to be pasture-raised, grass-fed or go free-range. Free-range chickens are those that are not kept in cages. Grass-fed and pasture-fed turkeys are those that are kept on living grasses. All options allow you for raising organic turkeys by providing them with a natural diet consisting of live grasses, insects, growing plants and other natural preys. If you choose to grass-feed your turkeys, however, you will need to feed them with supplemental grain and mash.

If you think you still need guidance on raising turkeys for profit, consulting existing turkey owners and farmers will certainly be a big help. Learn more about rearing turkeys correctly here: www.howtoraiseturkeys.com