Turkey nest device
The turkey is one of the most popular poultry in most countries. Its dietary meat and eggs are exquisite, and its quirky feather is used in arts and crafts and as a filler for feather beds. The high rating of this bird among farmers is also explained by the relative ease of its breeding: the turkey's body tolerates cold well, it quickly gains weight, and has a fairly high percentage of egg production (about 15-20 pieces per clutch). Despite the high cost of food, the turkey is a fairly cost-effective bird option for the breeder. A skilled owner will be able to cover the costs of maintenance quickly: turkey meat is more valuable than chicken. One of the main tasks of the breeder is to equip the premises for the birds and provide it with all the conditions necessary for the comfortable breeding of birds. How to make a nest for a turkey with your own hands, calculating all the necessary dimensions?
Turkey nest device
Socket types and their differences
Basically, the design principle of a brooding area for any poultry is the same. The deciding factor here is the size of the pet. A well-fed turkey can weigh up to 12 kg. Accordingly, she will need to make the nest quite spacious. Their classification is quite diverse.
- Open and closed. The former usually look like a basket or box without a lid. Suitable for indoor poultry houses. The closed ones are equipped with a hinged cover that can protect the bird from precipitation.
- With egg collectors: the double bottom is equipped to prevent the turkey from reaching the laid egg.
- Separate and Shared: Given the turkey's tendency to be alone, some owners prefer to use partitions to separate layers from each other during lay.
- Single-tiered and multi-tiered: if your farm has a large number of birds, a two- or three-story structure will become a compact option for their placement.
Location of sockets and calculation of parameters
As mentioned above, the turkey, being a fairly sociable bird, should still be able to retire. During the laying period, this need increases. Consequently, turkey nests are placed in a dark and cozy place, preferably separately from each other, fenced off with high walls about half a meter high.
It is very important that the bird feels comfortable laying eggs and hatching future offspring. Let her choose the location of the nest herself and give it time to get used to it. Make the place worth away from the entrance to poultry houseso that the bird is not disturbed by people entering the room. She should feel safe - so take care of the psychological state of the pets. If there are other inhabitants in the house besides the turkeys, they should be separated from each other during this period.
Fairly frost-resistant, turkeys need warmth and dryness during laying, so cover the nest with straw or hay.You should not place nests directly near walls: they should rise 40 cm above the floor. The main requirement when designing nests will be to provide space. The hen should never feel constrained.
When calculating the number of nests, keep in mind that females do not fly at the same time. The ratio of 1 nest to 5 females is optimal: as the number of layers increases, new places will be required. According to the standards, the parameters of a turkey nest are 50 cm wide, 50 cm high and 60 cm deep, which is much more than in chickens and ducks.
Arrangement and comfort
For comfort and safety, you have to make an effort
It is in your best interest to have healthy and large offspring, so you will have to make every effort to ensure the comfort and safety of the laying hen. To make it softer for her to sit, cover the bottom of the nest with earth, and put branches on top. Change the litter periodically and check the nests for vermin. Keep the house temperature at least 26 degrees, as during laying the bird becomes more sensitive to the environment.
Add to food and cover the floor with fine gravel: in the first case, it will improve the digestion of the turkey, in the second, it will distract it from pecking at its own nest. Set up a trough of sand or ash for birds to bathe. Just do not fill the container with water: this bird prefers dryness.
Making the nest ourselves
Almost everything can be done with your own efforts. Today, a poultry farmer can purchase any product for his farm in special stores. The advantage of a homemade roost is financial savings and the ability to show design creativity. The tips below will help a beginner to cope with the task at hand.
- A nest made from improvised material is the simplest and most budgetary option. Any container will do, be it a basket, plastic box, or barrel. It is enough just to disinfect it well and lay a soft bedding on the bottom. It is not recommended to build metal containers - eggs can be overcooled in them.
- A durable version of the nest is made of brick. A soft "filling" of a mattress or quilted jacket is placed in the center. Leave space for the eggs between the bricks. Tamp the structure with straw.
Both options for incubation sites require screens separating one nest from the other. For this purpose, ordinary cardboard or plywood is suitable.
Do-it-yourself booth
How to cope with the task with your own hands? If you have experience with tools, you can try to make a nice and comfortable plywood booth in which the turkey can safely incubate the offspring. You will need, in addition to the main material, tools, fastening accessories, a centimeter or tape measure.
Cut as many walls as necessary, depending on how many layers you have. Sand thoroughly: cut through a hole for entry and exit, the dimensions of which depend on the size of the bird. Connect the wooden beams to the plywood frame. It is convenient to make the roof removable to facilitate the process of cleaning and collecting eggs. A nest with an egg collector will suit you when the female does not need to incubate the eggs. With the help of the inclined bottom, they will immediately fall into a specially designated place. In order for the egg to remain intact in the process of rolling, it is necessary to slow down its "flight".
You already know how to assemble a booth. The inclined surface is fixed at an angle of 15 degrees. The place where the slope starts is at the entrance to the booth, the end is opposite it. Cover the bottom of the back wall with rubber, which will slow down the sliding of the egg, and sprinkle the bottom with sawdust for ease of movement. Attach an egg collector to the back of the booth. Alternatively, you can make it retractable.
Now you know that not only the size of the turkey will affect what the design should be for it - it is important to consider many other factors as well. As you can see, it is not necessary to purchase an expensive design. A cozy nest in which the turkey will be ready to carry and incubate eggs can be made by the owner with his own hands. Having correctly calculated the dimensions and following the instructions, you can easily cope with the task.