The modern commercial turkey is one of the most selectively modified production animals, facing welfare challenges analogous to but distinct from those in broiler chickens.
Extreme growth selection in turkeys has created a suite of welfare problems centring on musculoskeletal and cardiovascular systems unable to support unnaturally fast growth. Walking difficulties reduce access to food and water, creating welfare burdens that compound growth-related suffering. The inability to mate naturally is a direct consequence of selection for extreme breast muscle development. Slower-growing heritage or cross breeds offer substantially improved welfare at modest cost increases. As with broiler reform, genetic selection toward more moderate growth rates offers the most fundamental long-term solution.