This resources was updated as part of the veterinary review process. It was originally published on November 30, 2022.
Veterinary Review Initiative This resource has been reviewed for accuracy and clarity by a qualified Doctor of Veterinary Medicine with farmed animal sanctuary experience as of June 2023.Check out more information on our Veterinary Review Initiative here!
If you’ve spent much time looking through our offerings, you likely know the important role routine health checks play in keeping residents healthy and catching signs of concern early. Performing health checks regularly is imperative, but this should not be the only tool you use to monitor your residents’ health and well-being. The importance of thoughtful daily observation cannot be overstated. While some issues may be difficult to detect without a hands-on evaluation, there are other potential signs of concern that could be missed during a health check particularly those that manifest as slight changes in behavior or activity. By incorporating both daily observation and routine health checks into your care protocols, you are more likely to catch issues that develop in the period between health checks, as well as issues that are unlikely to be detected without a hands-on evaluation.
When it comes to daily observation, the keyword is “thoughtful.” Daily observation of residents must be more than just looking at them. Anyone caring for an animal, regardless of their species or breed, should be trained to observe the individuals in their care for behaviors and physical signs that are abnormal for the species, keeping in mind issues that are common in a particular species or breed and their warning signs. Of equal importance is getting to know the individuals being cared for and watching for things that are out of the ordinary for that particular individual. To read more about refining your observation skills, check out our resource here.
For hunters, naturalists, and backyard birders alike, learning to identify animal scat (also known as droppings or poop) provides valuable clues about wildlife activity. Turkey droppings have a distinctive appearance that makes them easy to distinguish from other animals once you know what to look for. Keep reading for a complete guide to turkey scat including shape, size, color, contents, and how to tell it apart from other species.
Overview of Turkey Droppings
Wild turkeys are large ground-dwelling birds found throughout North America. They are opportunistic omnivores, eating a varied diet of seeds, fruits, nuts, insects, greens, and small vertebrates. Turkeys frequent woodlands, fields, and backyards where they forage on the ground.
Female turkeys are called hens while males are known as toms (adults) and jakes (juveniles). Turkey scat reflects the differences in male and female anatomy. Read on to learn the unique characteristics of turkey poop.
Turkey Dropping Shapes
The most distinguishing feature of turkey scat is the variation in shape between the sexes:
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Tom droppings are tubular, resembling a “J” or “?” shape. They are elongated and cylindrical, often with a curled tip.
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Hen droppings are more rounded, lumpy, and piled They lack the length of the males and instead coil tightly
This is because the female’s wider cloaca allows droppings to clump before passing while the male’s narrow cloaca produces straighter poop.
Turkey Dropping Size
Larger turkey poop indicates an older bird:
- Juvenile (under 1 year): 0.5 cm diameter
- Young adult (1-2 years): 0.7 cm diameter
- Mature adult (over 2 years): 1+ cm diameter
Males also tend to produce slightly wider scat than females on average. But age correlates most strongly with dropping size.
Turkey Dropping Color and Texture
Fresh turkey scat is greenish brown with streaks of white uric acid on the surface. The texture is soft initially.
Aged droppings appear very dark brown or black. They become dry and brittle over time.
Wetness depends on diet Loose poop indicates high liquid content; hard poop means dense intestinal contents
Turkey Dropping Contents
Turkey poop often contains undigested food particles like:
- Seeds, nuts, acorns
- Berries, fruits
- Insect parts
- Pieces of vegetation
This provides clues into what the turkey recently ate. Contents vary seasonally based on available food sources.
Where to Find Turkey Scat
Look for turkey droppings in these types of habitats:
- Under roost trees or utility poles
- Along trails and paths
- Open dirt areas used for dust bathing
- Around food sources like oak trees or bird feeders
- Near shelters like brush piles or sheds
Distinguishing Turkey Scat
With its unique spiral shape, turkey poop is easy to differentiate from other wildlife scat:
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Deer – Round, pellet-like clumps
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Raccoon – Long and tubular but grayish, not brown
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Owl – Compact, with whole skeletons and fur
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Goose/Duck – Loose and semi-liquid with white coating
Familiarize Yourself With “Normal”
In order to identify signs of concern, it’s helpful to first consider how a healthy turkey typically looks and acts. While all turkeys are unique individuals, there are some general characteristics that most healthy turkeys will present. While it’s important to familiarize yourself with how a healthy turkey typically looks and acts, of equal importance is getting to know the individuals in your care so that you can learn what is normal for each resident. It’s also important to keep in mind that turkeys, particularly males, can change certain aspects of their appearance (such as the color of the skin on their head and neck and the length of their snood). Males (and sometimes even females) can also puff themselves up, changing the appearance of the shape and size of their body. Therefore, there may be a few different versions of “normal” for each turkey resident in your care.
Recognizing that every turkey is an individual, in general, a healthy turkey should:
- Be bright and alert
- Have clear, bright eyes
- Have smooth, flat feathers (unless they are molting or strutting)
- Walk with an even gait
- Have clean feathers on their bum and should preen their feathers regularly
- Have a healthy appetite. Please note that large breed turkeys should be very excited to eat.
In addition to knowing what a healthy turkey looks like, it’s also important to know what healthy turkey droppings look like. Many people are surprised to learn that there is an incredibly wide range of normal when it comes to turkey poop. Therefore, it’s important to familiarize yourself with what is normal for the turkeys in your care so you can notice if something seems unusual.
Turkeys do not urinate like mammals do. They produce urates, which mix with the waste produced by the digestive tract in the cloaca. Therefore, most turkey droppings will be a combination of digestive and urinary waste. The white portions of a turkey poop are the urates, with the rest being the feces.
The color and consistency of turkey poop can be a great indication of the overall health of the turkey. The most common colors of turkey poop are some shade of brown, gray, or green, but the color of fecal matter can be affected by diet. For example, turkeys eating red fruits may have some red-tinged poop, which may be confused with blood. Turkey droppings are typically soft but formed. However, turkeys who are eating lots of water-dense foods or are drinking more than usual, which is common when temperatures are hot, may have loose stool.
As part of the digestive process, food matter is fermented by bacteria in the ceca. The ceca empty their contents a few times per day, and cecal poop looks (and smells) different from other turkey droppings. Cecal poop is often a dark shade of brown and has a pudding-like consistency. It also has a distinct odor.
A broody turkey may spend the majority of the day nesting. Because of her dedication to nesting and her desire to keep her nest clean, she will often “hold it” rather than pooping frequently throughout the day and may only leave her nest a couple of times to relieve herself. Because of this “backup” of waste materials, it is not uncommon for a broody turkey to produce surprisingly large, pungent droppings.
What can a turkey poo tell you?
FAQ
How do you identify turkey poop?
TURKEY FACT #2: Turkey droppings tell a bird’s sex and age. Male droppings are j-shaped; female droppings are spiral-shaped. The larger the diameter, the older the bird.
How big is a turkey scat?
Turkey scat is cylindrical in shape with blunt ends and its diameter is slightly bigger than a penny.
What color is wild turkey poop?
The most common colors of turkey poop are some shade of brown, gray, or green, but the color of fecal matter can be affected by diet.