I have recently hatched three wild turkeys from my incubator, after mowing down the mother turkey's cover. I now have them in a brooder and they are about two weeks old. I would like to turn them back out to the pasture that we found the eggs in. My question is, how long do I need to pen them and what sort of pen should I build in order to raise them until they are old enough to survive outside of it? Thanks in advance for any advice!

Wammy, Do you have chicks? I raised my Wild Turkeys (2) from such a nest, and they lived with my chickens until about 9 weeks old. Can't remember exactly, but I released them when some Turkey youngsters were in the grain field. A Wild Turkey mother will adopt any stray young turkeys, and we often see a hen with poults of different sizes and ages. Turkeys need room to keep on clean ground, otherwise, they are very easy to raise, feather young, and after good hard feathering, they can survive well in the wild. They can fly just as soon as some wing feathers grow. Good luck, CJR

CJR
Thanks so much for answering my question. I didn't realize that I could release them that early. I'm much relieved because I didn't know how I was going to house 3 large turkeys. At this time, I have them in a three foot tall watering trough with a light, bedding, food, and water. I have a wooden crate with slats in it to cover it. Will they be ok in there until they are big enough to release? Do I need to make a point to wait and release them when I actually see some more turkeys? Thanks again for any information you can give me!