Turkeys are social, exploratory birds with complex behavioral needs that are rarely met in commercial production, with enrichment providing welfare improvements at modest cost.
Turkey welfare has received far less attention than broiler chicken welfare despite turkeys being farmed in hundreds of millions globally and facing many of the same genetic and environmental welfare challenges. Wild-type turkeys are active, social birds with diverse behavioral repertoires. Commercial production in barren, crowded sheds prevents expression of most natural behaviors. Providing perches, litter, and foraging objects improves turkey welfare at modest cost. Reducing stocking density reduces the injurious pecking that leads to routine beak trimming, a painful mutilation performed to prevent a welfare problem created by inadequate housing.