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How to keep geese at home. Breeding geese at home for beginners

Breeding geese at home for beginners and experienced farmers is a rather labor-intensive process, but it cannot be called difficult. The main thing that needs to be done is to provide the birds with proper care in the first decade of life. It is most important for young animals. If the owner has successfully completed this task, it will become much easier in the future. By adhering to the basic recommendations for nutrition and maintenance, it will be possible to raise all the young animals.

Breeding geese at home for beginners and experienced farmers is a rather labor-intensive process, but it cannot be called difficult

Domestic geese are bred to obtain a large amount of valuable products. Healthy and strong birds provide valuable dietary meat, high-quality down and feathers, and delicious liver. All these goods have a fairly high price and, when sold, bring a significant profit to the owner. At the same time, serious material costs are not required for keeping and breeding geese.

Birds are distinguished by their intelligence and unpretentiousness. They can adapt well to harsh weather conditions and are highly resistant to many diseases. Even if the farmstead is small, you can easily raise 3-5 birds on it. This property allows you to raise pets not only in private homes. Many city residents have geese in their dachas. With proper care, by autumn each individual gains 4-6 kg of live weight.

If you decide to start raising birds, the first thing you need to do is decide on the breed of birds. There are many varieties of geese. Only a few of them are optimally suited for keeping in the household:

Kholmogory geese are one of the best options. Birds of this breed grow quickly and in the shortest possible time reach quite large sizes. Thus, adult males grow on average to 8-10 kg, and females - to 7-8 kg. Another distinctive feature of the breed is its high egg production. Geese produce about 30-40 eggs per year. The average weight of one egg is 200 g. Geese are gray, piebald and white.
Gray birds, like Kholmogory birds, are representatives of the heavy type. Adult ganders weigh about 8 kg, geese - about 6 kg. Under natural conditions, the female lays 30-40 eggs per year. The brooding instinct in geese is poorly developed, which can cause difficulties with the appearance of offspring. It’s good if the farm has an incubator. Geese have high resilience and adapt well to environmental conditions.
Toulouse geese were brought to our country from France, which explains their love and adaptability to warm climates. This breed is not very suitable for keeping on pastures, since the birds move little and do not eat plant food well. Toulouse are the largest and fattest geese of all existing breeds. Males often grow up to 12 kg, and females - up to 10 kg. From them you can get tasty and fatty liver weighing up to 1 kg.
Landbirds are native to Hungary. They were bred to produce fatty liver. Some particularly large individuals produce a delicacy weighing over 0.7 kg. Adult birds grow up to 5-8 kg.
White Italian geese have high fattening characteristics and produce tasty large livers. Adult representatives of the species grow to 6-9 kg. A feature of the breed is the rapid development of young animals. Already at the age of 2 months, the weight of the chicks exceeds 4 kg.
Chinese geese grow small, but produce a lot of eggs - 50-70, and the best geese produce 100 eggs per year. This breed is often used in breeding to increase the egg production of other species. Adult ganders grow up to 5.5 kg, geese - up to 4.5 kg. Birds are dark gray, less often white or brown.

You need to choose a breed taking into account the goals you are pursuing. If the choice is difficult, consult with specialists.

Breeding geese (video)

Selection of birds for the tribe

If you want to get strong and healthy goose offspring, you need to approach the choice of birds for the parent flock with all responsibility. Sick and weak individuals will not be able to produce high-quality goslings. Therefore, you need to carefully cull and purchase only the best birds.

In geese, unlike many other poultry, sexual maturity occurs quite late. They are ready to reproduce only at 8-10 months. Over time, egg production in laying hens gradually increases. Therefore, they are used not for 1 year, but for 3 or even 4.

When choosing individuals to form a parent flock, it is necessary to take into account both the individual characteristics of each bird and the hereditary qualities. Experienced farmers carry out selection in several stages. It begins immediately after the birth of the offspring. At one day of age, goslings that are too small and poorly developed are discarded.

The next stage occurs after the young are 8 weeks old. At this time, several indicators are assessed at once: body features, live weight gain, plumage. Only those ganders that have a weight exceeding the average by 10% get into the parent herd. For geese, this indicator should not be lower than the average value for the batch. The final assessment takes place at 26 weeks. Experts evaluate the exterior qualities and weight of the raised individuals. Typically, about 30% of geese are culled at this stage. Those who have passed all levels of control enter the parent herd.

Domestic geese are bred to obtain a large amount of valuable products.

Features of keeping the parent stock

When forming a parent flock, you should pay attention not only to the external characteristics and health of the geese, but also to their age. It is desirable that birds 1, 2 and 3 years old, as well as replacement young animals, be present in approximately equal numbers. In this case, there should be 3 times fewer males than females.

Keeping geese in a country house or country house must comply with one important rule. It is important to remember that birds highly respect hierarchy in relationships. Often a pariah goose appears in the herd, which causes hostility among the rest of the birds. As a result, it may happen that the female’s egg production decreases, which negatively affects further offspring. To prevent such a situation, you need to approach each bird individually. It is advisable to choose a mate for the male or select several geese for him at once, forming a family.

Each herd includes several families at once. They can get along well in a common pen, but only if the ganders do not show aggression. Otherwise, each family requires a separate room for living.

How should geese be raised so that they produce good offspring? Everything here is extremely simple. It is enough to follow a few simple recommendations:

Usually geese lay eggs in the morning once every 2 days. It is important to remove eggs from nests in a timely manner so that they are not pecked or trampled.

When forming a parent flock, you should pay attention not only to the external characteristics and health of the geese, but also to their age

How to recognize a good hatchable egg

There are several ways to obtain offspring from the parent herd. The natural method involves the use of a mother goose, and the artificial method involves the use of an incubator. Some people who raise goslings at home use both of these methods at once.

To ensure that as many goslings hatch as possible, and that your efforts are not in vain, you need to choose the right eggs. They must meet two basic requirements:

be fertilized, which can be determined after 6-7 days using candling;
ensure the hatchability of goslings, as evidenced by the ratio of the number of chicks hatched to the number of eggs laid.

Normally, these values should be as follows: eggs with a fertilization rate of at least 87% and a hatchability rate of over 65% are considered high-quality. Hatching results depend not only on the contents of the eggs. When choosing a material for laying, you should also take into account its external characteristics. Thus, it is not recommended to use eggs that are contaminated with bird droppings. They deteriorate much faster, which leads to embryonic death of the chicks. To prevent this, experienced poultry farmers advise wiping the shells with hydrogen peroxide before laying them.

A thorough preliminary inspection of the eggs is required. There is no need to lay eggs that have:

2 yolks at once or 1 moving yolk;
irregular shape;
cracks and other defects on the shell;
blood clots determined by x-ray;
An air chamber that is too large or incorrectly positioned.

If you follow all the above rules, you will be able to get large and healthy offspring.

Goose farming (video)

Natural incubation

If the geese begin to line their nests with their down, it means that the egg-laying period has ended. Females begin preparations for brooding; their corresponding instincts are much more pronounced. It is advisable that an experienced goose sit on the eggs. If a young bird is preparing to become a hen, you should give it a small preliminary test. For 3 days, eggs are placed on the female for hatching. To make her feel as comfortable as possible, it is recommended to equip the nest in a quiet and peaceful place. If, when a person appears, the hen does not leave the nest, but tries to drive away the stranger with flapping wings and sounds, she has passed the test and is ready to hatch.

If possible, the female is left to sit on her eggs in the nest where she is used to laying eggs. If this is not possible, you should create the most comfortable conditions in the new place. If several hens sit at once, it is recommended to fence them off not only from the entire house, but also from each other. Otherwise, there is a high risk of conflicts and even fights.

When hens hatch eggs, they need to be monitored periodically. You need to check the clutches at least 2 times during the entire period: on the 11th and 27th day. Unfertilized eggs, which are completely light when lumen, without a darkened spot of the embryo, are discarded. Eggs with dead embryos are also thrown away. They are distinguished by dark vertical or horizontal rings, which are also visible in the light. During the 2nd inspection, death is indicated by a solid dark mass in the egg.

If the hen becomes nervous and restless, it means that the incubation period has come to an end. The goslings should be carefully removed from the nest and carried away. However, this should not be done immediately, but after the chicks dry out. In some cases, for example, if you are breeding heavy breed geese, it is better to remove the eggs from under the hen in advance, about 2 days before the chicks hatch. Otherwise, there is a high risk that the massive goose will simply crush its offspring.

Small goslings should be kept at a temperature of +26...+28°C until the entire brood is born. After this, the chicks are handed back to the goose. At the same time, day-old hatchery goslings or young animals from someone else’s brood can be quietly added to the offspring.

How to care for little goslings

Raising geese at home requires compliance with special maintenance rules. This especially applies to cases of caring for newborn offspring. It is important to remember that small chicks are highly sensitive to temperature changes. If goslings grow up without a hen, you need to take care of constant heating of their home. It is advisable that the temperature be kept at +26…+28°C. If the room is too hot, the birds will be more active in drinking water and bathing in the drinking bowl. This can lead to wet litter, which negatively affects its quality. Therefore, the owner needs to monitor both the air temperature in the room and the quality of the coating. The water in drinking bowls should be changed every day.

The survival rate of chicks largely depends on their numbers. So, if too many individuals live in one room, not everyone has the opportunity to approach food and drink, which can cause illness and death. To prevent this, certain standards must be observed. It is optimal if 10 month-old chicks live per 1 m². As you get older, this figure changes. So, at the age of 70 days, only 4 goslings feel comfortable per 1 m².

Geese begin feeding on the same day they are born. For the first 3-7 days, meals should be very frequent, optimally giving food every 3 hours. It is recommended to give young animals high-quality compound feed; it is advisable to test it on adults in advance. A self-prepared mixture consisting of:

1 part rolled oats, buckwheat, wheat, peas or corn;
1 part finely chopped greens, cottage cheese or eggs.

After about 3-4 days, you can introduce cake and boiled root vegetables into the chicks’ diet. It is desirable that the feed be crumbly and moist. Sticky food can clog the nasal openings, which often causes inflammation. Separately, you need to put containers with fine gravel, crushed chalk and ground shells.

From the age of one week, chicks can be released for walks. At first, they should spend no more than half an hour outside. Then this time is gradually increased. At 2 weeks, young animals can be in the fresh air throughout the day.

How to raise geese for meat? There are some nuances here. Individuals that must rapidly gain weight are selected at the age of 3 weeks. They are deprived of free range and intensively fed. The menu of such goslings should include concentrated feed and fresh herbs. The optimal ratio of these components is 1:1. You can give a mixture consisting of:

2 parts crushed grain;
1 part bran;
1 part legumes;
1 part cake.

Additionally, it is recommended to introduce mineral supplements into the diet: chalk, salt and ground shells. If you decide to care for goose offspring using this technology, be prepared that one individual at the age of 70 days will require 11-12 kg of grain and 25 kg of green feed.

Features of winter keeping geese

How to breed geese in winter? There is nothing complicated here. The downy cover and dense plumage of geese reliably protect them in winter weather. However, if birds are kept in unfavorable conditions, such as dry bedding, their feathers become dirty, resulting in much poorer heat retention. As a result, the body's resistance decreases, and birds often begin to get sick.

To avoid possible problems, before the onset of cold weather, the poultry house should be insulated and all cracks should be closed. This will avoid drafts. It is necessary to monitor the cleanliness of the litter and change it promptly. Experienced poultry farmers recommend pouring a layer of superphosphate onto the litter once a week. It dries well and prevents the formation of ammonia in large quantities.

Even in winter, geese can benefit from periodic walks. However, we must not forget that their paws are very sensitive, so in severe frosts it is better to avoid walking.

So, the desire to get into goose farming appeared. In this regard, beginners have many questions.

We solve priority problems

First, we settle the issue with the neighbors. The solution depends on where you live:

private sector of the city,
or village.

The goose is a noisy bird. If you live in a city, not every neighbor will like it. Why, as they say, do you need unnecessary troubles and tensions? Better then give up this idea and get another bird.

If you live in a village, then no questions should arise. There is a place there, free grazing. It is much easier to create conditions for maintenance.

Secondly, you don’t need to set large-scale goals in the first year. Especially if you are a novice poultry farmer. The first year is better to try, take a closer look, see if you like this activity. Geese make a lot of dirt. They need to be constantly cleaned up and cleaned up. It may turn out that this is not your thing and it is better to start breeding another bird. For example, chickens also require constant cleaning, but due to the fact that they row, it is much easier to clean up after them.

Thirdly, set up a goose barn. The goose is an unpretentious bird and is not afraid of low temperatures, but it still needs to have a house.

Arrangement of a gooseneck

Geese can be kept in any suitable outbuilding. But you can also build a special goose barn.

What should a gosling be like?

It should be:

dry,
with good ventilation, but without drafts,
clean,
light,
spacious.

Measures to fulfill basic requirements

Based on these requirements, the place where the gooseneck will stand should not be flooded during spring floods. It is better to place it on the south side. This way it will be better illuminated and warmed up.

It’s good if the floors are made of boards and raised 20 cm above the ground level. Then soil water will not get inside.

The area of the goose barn must correspond to the number of birds. The norm is 1 goose - 1 square. meter. If this is not observed, the air in the goose barn will be unbearable not only for people, but also for the geese themselves. In such a stinking atmosphere, pathogenic microbes will begin to actively multiply. As a result, various diseases will begin to cling to them.

The floor of the goose barn is covered with bedding. The following materials are used for it:

shavings,
sunflower husk,
sawdust,
hay,
chopped ears of corn,
sphagnum peat.

It insulates the floor, dries the droppings, thereby improving the air in the goose barn. One goose requires about 40 kg of bulk material per year. The litter should not be wet and preferably always clean. To do this, it needs to be changed more often. Do not allow the pen to become dirty. Feathers are an important element of thermoregulation in the body of geese. A clean pen will help you avoid many diseases.

For the winter, it would be good to sprinkle slaked lime on the floor, and lay warm bedding (peat, hay, straw) on top. When litter accumulates, it is updated by gradually adding bedding material. In the spring you will get an excellent fertilizer for the garden.

To enrich goose manure with minerals, mineral fertilizers, such as superphosphate, are sometimes sprinkled onto the litter. It not only improves future manure, but also increases air dryness.

Nests are installed in the poultry house. There should be enough of them. It is calculated so that there are no more than three geese per nest. Do not place them near a cold wall or in direct sunlight. Approximate Dimensions:

height - 50 - 55 cm,
length - 60 - 65 cm,
width - 40 cm,
sill height - 1 cm.

They use regular litter, just change it more often. It's better to update in the evening. Then in the morning the goose will lay eggs in a clean nest.

Equipment for feeding and watering geese

In the place where the bird will live there should be containers for food and water. You can make them yourself.

To build a feeder, you can use boards, old pipes, and other auxiliary materials. Only when making them, one must take into account that one goose needs at least 15 centimeters for comfortable eating. Then there will be no crowding during feeding. Install or suspend the feeder above the floor at a height of 20-25 cm.

Any container can be used for drinking bowls - it can be a bucket, barrel, or boiled water. In winter, you need to make sure that the water in the drinking bowl does not freeze.

Temperature and illumination of the goose barn

The goose is a cold-resistant bird. It can exist in a goose barn without any problems even at minus 10 degrees. She is not afraid of short-term drops to minus 25 degrees. But if geese are kept for breeding, such conditions will adversely affect the egg production of geese. Therefore, it is desirable that the goose house be warm. To do this, the walls are carefully insulated.

Plus temperatures and artificial lighting in the goose barn will speed up the start of geese laying eggs. They lay eggs with a day length of 14 hours. This means we need to lengthen the day artificially. To do this, we leave the lights on from 6 am to 8 pm. And we do this until the natural daylight hours become equal to 14 hours.

Geese usually start laying eggs at the very end of winter. But with such lighting, egg production can occur much earlier (closer to the end of January).

Placing geese in summer

Everything that was stated above is important and necessary if you decide to start breeding geese seriously. If you are just a beginner and this is a trial experience, then usually you buy goslings in March-April, and by the fall you decide whether it’s worth doing this business or not.

In spring and summer, geese may remain outside. On the economic territory where they will be located, it is necessary to fence off the enclosure, and build a small canopy in it. Under it there are containers for food. Then it will not get wet in case of rain. Under the same canopy, geese will be able to hide from bad weather.

For a bird to live comfortably in the enclosure, it is necessary to place containers with water in which it can splash around. These can be simple galvanized troughs and boil-offs. And then you can do without a reservoir.

Geese breeds

Before you start breeding geese, you need to decide what breed you want to have. The following are well suited for home breeding: Kuban, Lindovskaya, Kholmogorskaya, Seraya and Legart.

Table 1. Popular breeds of geese that are bred in households.

Geese breed

Characteristics

Kubanskaya

The plumage is gray-brown. A characteristic brown stripe runs along the entire length from beak to tail. It's called a belt.

Belongs to light breeds. Gander weight - 6 kg. The weight of the goose is 4.5 kg.

Lays up to 85 eggs per year. One egg weighs about 160 grams. A two-month-old gosling weighs about three kilograms.

Bad hens.

Unpretentious.

Belongs to heavy breeds.

The bird is beautiful, white plumage, popular in households

The weight of an adult goose reaches 10 kg. Gains weight quickly.

Can hatch eggs.

An unpretentious bird.

Kholmogorskaya

The best meat breed.

They are difficult to confuse with other representatives of the goose tribe. They have a growth (bump) above the beak, which reaches a maximum size of 2 cm by the age of five.

Their plumage can be different - from dirty gray to white. The beak and paws are a characteristic orange-yellow color.

They are long-lived - they can live up to 17 years (usually geese live about 6 years).

It can lay up to 30 eggs per year.

Weight - about 12 kg.

Large gray

Hardy. Capable of covering long distances.

The plumage is gray. A small head with a thick short beak. Paws are orange.

The male and female weigh approximately the same - about 10 kilograms.

Egg production per year is up to 45 pieces. The weight of one egg is about 170 grams. The hatchability of goslings is very high. Reaches 60%.

Good hens.

Not demanding on the presence of a reservoir.

They have a medium build. Males and females of this breed are equally heavy.

Their weight is about eight kilograms.

The plumage is white. The legs and beak are orange. They have a distinctive feature - blue eyes.

They can lay 40 eggs per year. The average weight of an egg is about two hundred grams.

Thrifty breed. Requires 20% less feed than others.

Their goslings grow very quickly and gain weight. Already at three months of age they weigh 7 kilograms.

They are distinguished by high-quality down. They have a meek, calm disposition and cackle little.

Purchasing young stock

Having decided on the breed, we purchase goslings. When purchasing, you may encounter unscrupulous sellers. They may slip in goslings of the wrong breed or not entirely healthy ones.

It is good to buy birds from a breeder at home. Then there is the opportunity to see the mother herd. See in what conditions it is kept. What kind of geese are they, are they strong, are they large, do you like them. And then, if the seller is not afraid to show all this, then he probably won’t deceive.

It is better to buy not day-old goslings, but those that are five days old. They cost a little more, but their survival rate will be slightly higher. When buying goslings, follow these recommendations.

Pay attention to the behavior of the goslings. It’s good if they are cheerful and active, squeak loudly, and their necks stretch upward.
The navel should be overgrown without crusts.
The tummy is toned.
Nothing stands out from the nostrils of the beak.
Check your paws for sprains.

Raising young animals

If the goslings were initially strong, then feeding and raising them is not difficult. At the beginning they are given oatmeal and millet porridge, adding a finely chopped egg. It is good to feed them fresh cottage cheese. You can start giving starter feed almost immediately. The diet of goslings is similar to that of broiler chickens.

They are fed often - at least six times a day. From the fifth day of life, you can start giving the goslings chopped grass - dandelions, nettles and everything that appears in the spring. A one-month-old gosling can eat almost a kilogram of grass.

Don't forget about the pebbles necessary for digesting food. Place a container with coarse sand or small pebbles next to the feeder.

Geese should always have water. They drink a lot. A two-month-old goose drinks up to one liter of water per day.

By autumn, the geese grow up and already then you can make a conclusion about whether you should do this business. If you like it, then you can form a mother flock from these geese by purchasing one or two ganders on the side. This is necessary to renew the blood and produce healthy offspring.

Try it, experiment! Without trying, you will never know whether this bird is right for you or whether it is better to do something else.

For your information:

By the way, the delicacy of foie gras is goose liver. It is very fatty, but not harmful to our blood vessels. Doctors say that the fat in it is represented by polyunsaturated fatty acids. And they just reduce the presence of bad cholesterol in the body. As a result, blood circulation and brain function improve, and tone increases.

Raising geese is not yet so popular in our country and it is in vain, because geese are an excellent source of valuable dietary meat, as well as suppliers of delicious eggs and liver.

Goose fat is actively used for medical purposes. Don't forget about soft goose down.

Breeding geese is not only profitable, but also interesting. These birds are quite smart, they quickly get used to their owner.

At the same time, they are unpretentious to living conditions and nutrition, resistant to diseases, and grow incredibly quickly - in just a couple of months, the live weight of the bird increases 40 times.

A goose carcass weighs on average 4-8 kg and is almost 65% edible; the price of meat starts at 300 rubles per kilogram.

You can earn the same amount from fluff from one bird (about 600 g of fluff costs about 1000 rubles). The egg production rates of geese are low - about 40-50 eggs per year.

As an additional source of profit, you can start selling down and feathers and even finished products made from them, for example, pillows or blankets.

Meat and eggs are easiest to sell to restaurants, shops and markets. The carcasses are first checked in a veterinary laboratory, whose specialists must issue the necessary document to the farmer confirming the quality of the product.

Geese breeding as a business- where to begin? Let's look at the main points of breeding, rules of feeding and caring for birds.

In order to start breeding geese, it is important to correctly decide on the breed. Each of them has its own characteristics.
To the question what breed of geese is best for breeding, experts answer - Toulouse, Italian, Kuban, Kholmogorsk, Seraya and Legart.

Birds of these breeds are characterized by rapid weight gain, resistance to popular avian diseases, and also have large liver sizes, which is why they are also raised on a large scale in poultry farms.

If the goal is to get as many eggs as possible, you should pay attention to the Japanese breed.

Main characteristics of goose breeds

Italian: recommended for farm breeding, chicks quickly gain weight, egg production of females is about 50 eggs per year,
Toulouse: the fattest breed of geese, came to us from France. The weight of geese can reach 10 kg, and males 12 kg. Particularly valued for its large liver.
Kholmogory: a large breed with an egg production of 40 eggs annually.
Legart: the most profitable breed, since individuals eat 20% less feed than all others. It quickly gains weight - at just two months, goslings can weigh up to 6 kg.
Kuban: Geese of this breed are light and weigh up to 5.5 kg. But the breed’s egg production is high – up to 90 eggs per year.
Gray: has a good body build, hardy. The weight of geese is about 8 kg, egg production is about 40 eggs per year.

Kuban and Gray breeds of domestic geese

Domestic geese maintenance, care and breeding

In general, caring for birds is not particularly difficult. First of all, you should pay special attention to the room where the flock will be kept.

VIDEO INSTRUCTION

Incubation

Geese are bred artificially and naturally. The most effective option is an incubator. The second is breeding by the hen. One female can produce no more than 13 chicks, which will take about 28 days.

To incubate geese on a farm you will need:

incubator,
ovoscope for inspection and selection of eggs,
brooder for keeping hatched babies and heating young animals.

Caring for geese in winter

It would not be superfluous to have an artificial reservoir where the water needs to be changed every day. However, this requirement is not mandatory and does not directly affect the growth performance of the bird.

If it is not possible to provide daily walking for the birds, then fence off a small area around the goose barn using a chain-link mesh. Walking will help prolong the growth period of the bird, and it will reach its slaughter weight by 4 months.

Common diseases

Birds of this breed are resistant to disease, and with proper care they cause a minimum of trouble.

Unfortunately, many goose diseases cannot be cured, so the task of farmers is to prevent their spread by observing the rules of cleanliness and hygiene in enclosures, as well as choosing the right quality food, not forgetting about walks and clean water in drinking bowls.

What to feed

Since geese are fast-maturing birds, an increased metabolism can be observed in the chicks already at a very early age, so they need to be fed often. For the first 40 days they are given food 6-7 times a day.

They are fed for the first time immediately after the babies dry out. At the same time, they eat willingly, and if they do not notice the feeder, it is enough to lightly knock on it to attract attention.

As the first feed, a mash of wheat bran, ground grain, chopped grass and boiled potatoes is used.

You can also give finely chopped boiled eggs and a mash of fermented milk products. Babies also need mineral supplements and constant access to water.

After the chicks turn one month old, they begin to be given whole grains, as well as green food, mineral supplements in the form of bone meal, gravel, and shells. Food of animal origin is recommended, for example, in the form of cockchafers, as well as worms and frogs, which geese eat with great pleasure.

Adults eat up to 3 kg of fresh grass, root vegetables and tops, vegetable waste, silage, and crumbly grain mash.

VIDEO

Where to buy geese for your home

Many farms across the country sell geese. Private farms send their products, including by rail, to other regions.

In the Moscow region, eggs and poultry are offered by the following enterprises:

farm in the village of Glazovo, Mozhaisk district.
"Home Poultry Farm"
"Eco-bird house" in the village of Poyarkovo,
“Moscow Farm” in the village of Alferovo, Chekhov district.

From these farms you can purchase both eggs for incubation and adults.

Poultry farming, geese, raising goslings, raising goslings under a brood hen, feeding goslings, conditions for keeping geese, housing for geese

Breeding geese has always been quite profitable, since caring for them is quite simple, and the basis of their nutrition is vegetation and grain. In addition, they gain weight quite quickly, and breeding geese for slaughter does not take much time. With proper care, including complementary feeding, geese produce a fairly large amount of fat. Creating conditions close to natural increases egg laying in geese and leads to an increase in offspring. This fact makes keeping geese profitable for breeding and selling young animals. The main problem of geese is.
Geese breeds . There are quite a few breeds of geese, differing in egg production, average weight and dietary characteristics. This should be taken into account when choosing young animals for breeding. For example: geese of the Kholmogory breed are the largest, with a live weight of about 9 kg. The optimal age before slaughter is 2 months, and the weight by this time is about 4 kg. Geese of the Kuban breed are distinguished by their vitality and high egg production with a relatively low weight. Toulouse geese fatten well and quickly, but it should be noted that they are not adapted to cold climates, grazing on pastures and roughage.

There are two options for starting geese breeding: buying adults and laying eggs for the goose if you already have your own geese in small quantities.
When choosing eggs for lining, you should not take squeezed or deformed ones; pay attention to the shell - it should be smooth and clean, without bulges or belts, the shape of the egg should be oval. Hatching the chicks usually takes about a month, after which the goslings are taken away for a short time, dried and placed back with the goose. When choosing young animals for purchase, pay attention to the integrity of the feather cover, size, shape of the beak and neck. The chicks should be large and look healthy.

Feeding the goslings.

For the first month, goslings are fed a moistened mixture of finely chopped greens, barley, corn grits, boiled potatoes and wheat bran. It is also necessary to include in the diet of goslings a special vitamin and mineral supplement for young animals of your choice.

Geese from a young age should have free access to gravel, charcoal, crushed shells or ground bones, as well as food of animal origin (earthworms, insects, crushed frogs and shellfish in the cereal mixture). It is good to use soaked peas as complementary food.

Fattening Geese

Fattening of young animals should begin in August upon reaching 3-4 kg of live weight. This process takes about 20 days, and starting from the 15th day, the geese should not be driven out to pasture. During the first week, 30-35 grams of grain are fed per kilogram of live weight, then 130-140 grams. At the end of the fattening period, after the “fat apple” has formed, the geese can be slaughtered. When fattening poultry for home consumption, the fattening time can be extended.

In the summer, geese are kept in fenced pastures, driven indoors at night. Places for grazing should be selected with thick, juicy greenery, since this is the basis of their diet. The best choice of pasture would be a field with dandelion, plantain, sorrel, nettle, thistle and other dense, low-growing greens growing there, since geese do not eat enough tall grass. There should be a shady place in the pasture so that the geese can stay out of the sun during the hottest period of the day. The presence of water is a must; if there is no body of water nearby, a large basin is placed in the pasture. For winter maintenance you need a lime-whitened inside, well-ventilated, dry shed. Bedding must be present (sawdust, straw).

Ducks and geese. Basics of breeding

Among poultry, geese occupy a special place. If chickens are bred mainly for the purpose of obtaining eggs, then geese are raised for tasty, juicy meat.

Although it is inferior in dietary characteristics to chicken due to its high fat content, it is still very healthy. It contains trace elements and vitamins A, C, B, including B12, which is deficient for many, and mineral components - iron, zinc, manganese. Goose meat is especially valued for its amino acid content., from which our body produces antibodies against viruses.

In this article we will take a detailed look at breeding, keeping and caring for geese at home for beginners. Let's find out whether goose eggs can be eaten, how they are useful and how much they can cost. After reading all the information, you will be able to raise healthy and strong birds.

First, let's talk about breeding geese at home. The specificity of keeping geese is that they cannot be raised in cages like chickens. This explains that their population is much smaller. It is advisable to breed this bird if there is a nearby place for them to walk - a pasture with a body of water (river or lake). Geese need space. They should walk a lot and move. Because of this, their meat is darker than chicken (there are more blood vessels in the muscles).

Breeds of geese for breeding

The most common breeds are as follows:

Large gray geese- weigh 6-7 kg. Egg production 37-47 eggs. The eggs are large - 150-200 g. Very hardy.
Chinese geese - live weight reaches 5 kg. Egg production - 50-60 pieces per year with a weight of 130-170 g. Hardy, but aggressive by nature.

Lindovsky breed– weight of adult geese is 7-8 kg. Egg production is 45-50 eggs with an average weight of 120-140 g.
Kuban is a domestic breed. Egg production - 80-90 eggs per year. Average live weight is 4.5-5.5 kg.
Kholmogory - weigh more than other breeds - 8-10 kg. But egg production is 30-40 eggs per year, but their weight is more than 200 g. They are calm and non-aggressive.

Italian geese- characterized by high meat productivity. Live weight – from 6 to 7 kg. Egg production - up to 50 eggs per year.

Toulouse- French breed. It is considered the largest with a weight of 10 kg or more. Egg production is 30-40 eggs per year with an egg weight of 190-210 g. They are calm and inactive, fatten well and quickly.

Emden geese weigh 8-9 kg. Egg production is low.

Rhineland— bred in Germany. Their characteristics are similar to those of Emden.

Breeding geese on a farm. Different breeds.

Eggs with a hen

It is better to hatch geese chicks from eggs using a hen, than in an incubator. However, if there is only one hen in the poultry farm, then the brood gets a maximum of 13-14 birds, since the eggs are large. If you still choose this method of obtaining chicks, then first create the necessary conditions. Temperature indoors supported at 14-15 degrees.

It should be dry and well ventilated, but without drafts. The goose's nest is made spacious. Be sure to separate it from other livestock and fence off the nests with partitions (if there are several hens). Keep hens separately from other geese. This is due to the fact that geese can lay eggs into an already hatched clutch during the absence of the expectant mother. Thus, the period of receiving goslings will stretch over time, which is very bad for their further development.

We monitor the dryness in the nest. An accidentally broken egg must be urgently removed and the rest of the survivors wiped. The need to make partitions between nests is explained by the fact that in the absence of one hen, the other rolls several eggs towards itself, since their maternal instinct is very developed.

An excess number of eggs in one nest will make it impossible to heat them all at once. In addition, there is an additional risk of damage.

We make sure that when the hens return to the nest after the necessary exercise, food intake and water procedures, they occupy their nests and do not confuse them with neighboring ones. During incubation, we change the water in the expectant mother's drinking bowl daily to avoid diarrhea and feed only selected grains. The hen herself will take care of all the processes during incubation.

She herself rolls the eggs in the nest for even heating. If for some reason the goose does not return to the nest after eating within 20 minutes, it is driven into the nest. This happens mainly with birds sitting on eggs for the first time.

The first chicks appear on the 28th day. After this, they are taken from the nest, placed in a separate box, and illuminated with a lamp, creating the desired temperature. After all the chicks are born, they are returned to the goose. In the first two days, the mother can be given several chicks from eggs hatched in an incubator. They do this in the evening.

Eggs in the incubator

Hatching geese chicks in an incubator harder than chickens. This is due to the fact that goose eggs contain a lot of fat and are large themselves. If more than 70% of the chicks hatched from one egg, then this is a good result. Several features of incubating goose eggs:

are taken away them within 10 days - no more;
3-4 hours before booking the incubator is warmed up with an elevated temperature of 39 degrees;
are taken away only healthy ones perfect shape eggs;
you can't wash them, but can be disinfected by spraying with a light solution of potassium permanganate;
the first 4-5 hours after setting the temperature in the incubator maintained at around 38 degrees. Then they reduce it to 37.8. The last couple of days it has been reduced to 37.5 degrees;
eggs are turned 6-8 times a day to avoid the shell sticking to the mesh or mold and for uniform heating;
to prevent harmful gases from accumulating, the incubator should be periodically laid after 15 days open for 10 minutes for ventilation.

How to care for, raise and maintain goslings

Caring for goslings at home from the first days of life is extremely important.

With the beginning of life, the immune system of the goslings’ body is formed and strengthened. That's why It is important to have a balanced diet so that a large and healthy bird grows. For each period of growth and development, its own diet is prepared. Feeding newly hatched goslings is also extremely important.

Caring for goslings in the first days of life

When caring for goslings at home, it is useful to give the chicks the yolk of boiled eggs for the first 5-7 days. It is well absorbed by the fragile organism of goslings. When feeding, it is recommended to add greens. Better yet, eat this green onion. It is finely chopped and mixed with the yolk. During the first two days, hatched goslings are fed 7-8 times a day.. This is what determines whether you will be able to raise healthy geese.

The drinking bowls are chosen to protect the brood from the risk of choking or drowning in it.

We make sure that the enclosure where they are kept is dry.

Care in the first weeks: how to raise healthy geese

Gradually we diversify the diet with forbs and increase its presence in the feed. In addition to green onions, they give alfalfa and clover. We monitor the availability of clean water in drinking bowls. We gradually introduce boiled potatoes and corn porridge into the diet.

Drinkers are replaced with larger ones so that the goslings can swim in them. They turn into small ponds. To do this, use basins or bowls, but with low sides. This is a must.
The presence of the required amount of nutrients and vitamins in food will be ensured by chopped root crops and vegetables. If we prepare porridge for goslings, it should not be too liquid. It is recommended to give more dry food.

Three-week-old goslings are gradually transferred to pasture. It is advisable that they graze in an open air pen. Along with grass, they eat feed and crushed grain..

We introduce new food into the diet in small quantities, gradually increasing its presence in the total feed mass.

Care in the first months

How to care for goslings at home? Starting from this period, the goslings are intensively fed with mixed feed, grain, sunflower cake and herbs. They are grazed in an open small body of water without a strong current. In addition to grass, they eat algae, which has a positive effect on the development and increase in live weight.

The proportion of greens to all other feeds should be 1-1.3: 1. That is, they give more greens. In this case, keeping goslings will be cheaper and this will not affect the gain of live weight.

Conditions of keeping and feeding

In addition to food and water, goslings need appropriate ambient temperature, sufficient room space, and lighting.

Choosing an aviary for goose farming

Depending on the number of livestock, we select the appropriate premises. In the first days, the goslings are kept in cardboard boxes on the veranda, in the summer kitchen. Then they are given a place in a poultry house or barn. It must be well ventilated (ventilation) and warm, drafts are unacceptable. It is necessary to exclude the possibility of penetration of predatory animals, primarily rats.

Straw and chaff are used as bedding. We change the litter every 2-3 days to keep it dry. This will protect the still fragile chicks from illness and hypothermia. Having a window into the room is a must. Geese like to be in enclosed dark spaces only when sleeping.

After three weeks of life, we provide the goslings with an outdoor run, since during this period they are transferred to pasture.

After 40 days, they are grazed near water bodies. But until they have become stronger and are not able to defend themselves, the presence of a person is mandatory. As soon as the live weight reaches an average of 2 kg (depending on the breed), Geese are released to graze on their own.

It is better to do this in the early morning - the grass is then juicy and nutritious. Geese find their own food. They are well oriented in space, so they can easily find their way home. Adult geese have their wings clipped to prevent them from flying away.

Daily temperature and lighting

In the first week of life, we maintain the temperature at 28-30 degrees. If the natural ambient temperature is not enough, heating with heating pads or lamps, which, in addition to light, provide heat to the room. We measure the temperature at the litter level.

We gradually reduce it to 22-24 degrees. And after three weeks, if the weather permits, we transfer the goslings to a lifestyle in natural conditions. In general, adult geese are quite hardy birds due to the presence of fat, large live weight and warm plumage.

They can easily withstand temperatures down to minus 15 degrees. Lighting should be sufficient to maintain normal conditions with increased daylight hours (more than 14 hours). Lamps are used for this purpose.

Conditions for breeding and keeping geese

Room dimensions

The main condition for the size of the room for goslings is that it should not be crowded.

Provide free access to food and water. When the young animals grow up, it is recommended to release them into specially fenced pens in the fresh air during the day. At night they are in the barn (goose barn).

Geese rearing period

Now we’ll find out how long geese grow. If day-old chicks weigh only 100 grams, then after 5 months their weight reaches 5-6 kg. On average, this bird gains more than one kilogram per month. In order for geese to be healthy and live weight to reach good weight indicators, you need to carefully and carefully monitor their diet.

The weight of adult geese of different breeds varies from 4.5 kg to 10 and above. If you plan to breed geese for meat, then it is advisable to keep them until they are two to three months old. During this period, they gain 50% of the weight of an adult one-year-old bird. Then weight gain stops.

Goose eggs: how many can you eat and what are the benefits?

Depending on the breed, geese produce from 30 to 90 eggs per year. They are distinguished by their size (up to two hundred and twenty grams) and thick shell. They can be eaten and are healthy, but due to the fact that they contain a lot of fat, they should be eaten in moderation. Our ancestors consumed goose eggs as food 7 thousand years ago. This is the first domesticated bird.

100 g of raw eggs contains 185 kcal, including more than 13 g of protein and fat. They contain vitamins K, D, E, A, B, micro- and macroelements. Their use has a positive effect on brain activity and the genitourinary system, and the elimination of toxins. Goose eggs are widely used in cooking and cosmetology.

Now you know that breeding and keeping geese at home is profitable. After all, in addition to the quick return of meat, geese provide us with eggs and down. To successfully raise geese, it is advisable to have pasture and open water. In this case, with sufficient care and proper nutrition, their maintenance will pay for itself many times over. Perhaps even in the future, goose farming will become the main source of your income.