Turkeys are the third most farmed poultry species globally, yet their welfare receives far less attention than chickens. Selective breeding for rapid growth has created serious welfare problems in commercial turkey production.
Commercial turkeys suffer from a welfare crisis analogous to but distinct from that of broiler chickens — extreme growth rate genetics that cause skeletal pain, cardiovascular failure, and the inability to perform natural behaviours. The inability of broad-breasted white toms to mate naturally is both a welfare indicator (their musculature is so disproportionate that natural mounting is impossible) and a marker of selection that has prioritised production traits entirely at the expense of functional anatomy. Leg pain in heavy turkeys prevents normal movement and causes suffering throughout the growing period. The barren, high-density shed environments typical of commercial turkey production prevent the expression of exploratory, foraging, and social behaviour that turkey cognition and motivation are oriented toward. Welfare reform requires both genetic change toward less extreme growth rates and environmental improvement.