Commercial turkeys have been selectively bred to the point where natural mating is impossible, with breed-related health problems causing chronic welfare harm.
Commercial turkey welfare encapsulates the consequences of extreme genetic selection for production traits at the expense of biological function. Birds so large-breasted that natural reproduction is impossible are inherently compromised. Heart failure and leg disorders are endemic in fast-growing commercial breeds. The inability to mate naturally is not merely a reproductive inconvenience — it represents selection so extreme that the species cannot perpetuate itself without human technological intervention. Heritage breeds that have retained normal body proportions demonstrate that turkeys can be produced without these welfare compromises.