Breeding geese what is necessary. We learn to raise and care for goslings at home. Breeds of geese for home breeding

The sale of goose meat and offal, feathers and down is a profitable business, which is increasingly forcing beginning farmers to turn to growing these birds. When people talk about home conditions, they do not mean a city apartment, but a specially equipped room in a rural house or country house.

Features of breeding and raising geese

Having decided to engage in goose farming, you need to take into account absolutely all the nuances, otherwise, instead of healthy geese and subsequent profit, you risk getting a large percentage of the death of young animals. To begin with, it is worth remembering that geese reach sexual maturity no earlier than 9 months. It is assumed that there is a so-called parent flock, where there are always three times more geese than ganders. Raising geese at home for beginners does not imply the formation of goose families, but as the farmer gains experience, selecting a mate for the male will help in breeding.

An integral part of breeding is the construction of nests for laying eggs. It must be completed no later than a month in advance. It is better to arrange nests according to the number of females, but several geese can lay eggs in one nest. Hatching of eggs occurs naturally or using artificial incubation. Ganders should be given sprouted oats a month before laying, to prevent the birds from becoming obese.

Which breeds to choose for home breeding?

The first thing a novice goose breeder should do is decide on the breed. Each variety of geese raised at breeding farms has its own characteristics, advantages and disadvantages, which must be clarified before breeding. Among the popular ones are the following types:

Geese Linda. The leading birds bred by farmers are distinguished by their white feathers and massive build. The weight of adult males of this breed can be close to 8 kg. For beginners, it is recommended to start breeding geese at home with this variety because of its precocity and unpretentiousness to food.
Kholmogorsky. Among goose breeders, this breed is defined as the most beautiful. The friendliness of these geese attracts novice farmers to start breeding this variety. In addition, they are not picky about living conditions and grow quickly.
Arzamas. The fighting type of geese began to be bred for the purpose of obtaining meat only in the 19th century, although it was discovered much earlier. Has good endurance.
Tula. Like Arzamas geese, their counterparts from Tula were bred to participate in goose fights. It is extremely rarely bred for meat due to its aggressive disposition.
Chinese. This species cannot be called massive; the weight of adult individuals is significantly less than that of other species. At the same time, geese are characterized by increased egg production and endurance.
Large gray ones. This type does well without a pond, and the liver, considered a delicacy, is fatty in such geese. Geese make excellent hens.
Gorkovsky. Unlike the previous breed, the females of these geese are unlikely to be suitable for the role of hens. At the same time, the meat properties and egg production of this variety are high.

Premises requirement

Keeping geese requires creating ideal conditions for them. First of all, decide whether you will breed all year round or limit yourself to the warm period. For year-round cultivation, it would be useful to think about heating, but the main thing is to eliminate drafts by sealing all the cracks. It is not even the room temperature that is important, but the absence of destructive cold wind. The area of the goose barn depends on the number of geese: there must be at least 1 per individual square meter.

The room should have space allocated for feeders, drinkers and nests; it is advisable to provide a corner for equipment and feed. In summer, sand is used as bedding; in winter, something warmer, such as hay or peat, is needed. Make sure that the geese can climb out of the coop on their own during the warm season. Birds can bathe in the yard in a specially equipped container.

What to feed geese at home

Many breeds are profitable to raise due to their omnivorous nature. Breeding healthy geese at home for novice farmers has as its starting point the selection of a diet. It can be made from greens and grains; it would be useful to add grass, which often has nowhere to put it. You can resort to the help of complex feeds, which consist of different grain crops rich in vitamins. The cost of such food starts from 600 rubles per 30 kg.

Chicks will require more digestible broiler feed containing nutritional elements. Goslings should be fed this mixture until they are 18 days old. This diet allows you to gain significant weight in a couple of months. After increasing the weight of the goose to 7 kg, it can be switched to less expensive food. It is not necessary to fatten the goslings to greater weight.

Caring for goslings

The farm should also have a place for raising young birds. You need to remember about their strong sensitivity to temperature changes. If the hen does not take part in hatching the young, then the farm should maintain a temperature of at least 26°C. Survival and subsequent growth depend on access to the feeder: if the room is so overcrowded that the gosling cannot eat, then it is likely to die. A place for small birds should be chosen at the rate of 10 birds per 1 m2.

Breeding young geese at home may seem difficult for beginners due to the need to feed the chicks once every 3 hours for the first week. As birds grow older, you can feed them less often, using compound feed and gradually introducing root vegetables. The young are released for a walk a week after hatching, but no more than half an hour. Two-week-old geese can walk all day long.

Geese diseases and prevention

Bird diseases are quite common. Breeding geese at home for novice farmers at first can result in death more individuals. This is caused by a lack of experience in keeping and feeding birds. Drafts in the goose barn, improper food and lack of vitamins are the causes of diseases in geese. Viruses can also infect healthy individuals.

To prevent the incidence of disease among individuals, first place young and older birds in separate rooms. In addition, it is necessary to exclude from feed harmful impurities, for example, cockle and ergot. It would be a good idea to enrich your food nutrients to avoid vitamin deficiency. Pay close attention to the condition of the feeders and drinkers: dirt accumulated on them can also lead to the development of disease in geese.

Video: how to raise goslings at home

The meat of young, lean poultry is always in great demand. For this reason, many farms are engaged in raising chickens, geese and other birds not only for themselves, but also for sale. From point of view economic benefit, the most profitable is breeding geese for meat. Why geese? Yes, because they are unpretentious, prefer green food, which allows them to save a significant amount of money, and besides dietary meat, they can be used to obtain valuable fluff, as well as liver - the main component of the famous “Foie gras”.

Collateral successful cultivation geese at home is choosing the right breed. Like all birds, geese are divided into three main groups: light, medium and heavy (meat breeds or broilers). Since in in this case If the goal is to breed geese for meat, then you should choose among heavy breeds with good meat performance. Such birds grow quickly, gain weight within 4–5 months, and their meat has a higher taste.

The group of heavy (meat) crosses numbers more than two dozen, but the most popular are the following breeds:

Kholmogorskaya. One of the most large breeds, characterized by rapid fattening and carcass weight gain. Already by the age of 60–65 days, young animals grow up to 4 kg, so this particular breed is most often bred for meat.
Large gray. A heavy cross obtained from crossing the Toulouse and Romny breeds. These geese are agile, have a strong build, a muscular, wide sternum, and low content fat For slaughter, it is recommended to raise goslings until they are 9–10 weeks old – at this age their weight is 4–4.5 kg.
Lindovskaya white. A very popular breed among domestic poultry farmers with high productivity, including meat production. Young animals reach their slaughter weight (4–4.5 kg) by the age of three months. Geese gain weight well, eat pasture, and are not demanding of care.
Toulouse. French breed, distinguished speed dial weight, not only meat, but also fat. Toulouse geese are inactive and do not eat plant foods well, so young animals are slaughtered when they reach two months of age, otherwise the meat will become too fatty.
Broilers G 35. Highly productive cross, bred by French specialists through genetic selection. Ideal for breeding geese at home, since the birds rapidly gain weight and have high immunity to diseases. Young animals reach slaughter weight (4 kg) by the age of 7 weeks, and already a three-month-old goose weighs about 7 kg.

How to keep

The technology for raising geese on a private farm requires the creation of favorable conditions for keeping birds. While the goslings are small, they will need a bright and heated room of such a size that there is at least 1 m² of space for every 8–10 chicks. In the far corner of the poultry house, a resting area with bedding should be installed, and drinkers and feeders should be installed on the opposite side.

For chicks up to 20 days old, it is necessary to maintain temperature regime at 26–28 °C. When the temperature drops, infrared lamps can be used. Daylight hours for normal growth of chicks should be approximately 17 hours.

IN farms Raising young geese for meat occurs mainly in mesh or wooden cages. Typically, such pens have several partitions (sections), each of which houses 15–20 animals.

If cages are used to keep geese at home, then it is necessary to ensure that the number of goslings per 1 m² of area does not exceed 3-4 heads. With denser housing, the livestock grows slowly and often gets sick, becoming infected from each other.

Mandatory conditions for cage keeping include daily walking of birds for 1–2 hours. Under normal conditions home care Geese should always have access to water. It is advisable for the goslings to grow up near a pond, but if this is not possible, then large containers of water should be installed in the yard for the birds to bathe and swim.

What to feed

The diet of goslings depends on their age. During the first two weeks from birth, chicks need to be fed healthy and light products: boiled egg, low-fat homemade cottage cheese, chopped cereals. When babies turn 10 days old, you should gradually add bone meal, chopped greens: dandelions, nettles, ordinary grass, onion feathers. For the first 4 weeks, the chicks need to be fed frequently - up to 8 times a day.

When they are a month old, you need to put out an additional feeder for solid grain feed. Geese are very fond of mash made from vegetables (zucchini, carrots) and grains. You can and should add good combination ingredients to this food. vitamin mixtures, promoting growth and weight gain.

The water in drinking bowls should always be clean and in sufficient quantity. Sand and small shells should be poured next to the feeders - these components improve digestion. As the chicks age, the frequency of feeding decreases to 4–5 times, and the size of the portions, on the contrary, increases.

In the warm season and good weather, it is better to let geese outside for the whole day. Forbs, various insects and the sun will have a beneficial effect on the growing organism. The birds themselves will be able to choose which pasture food suits them. In general, an adult bird can eat about 2 kg of greens throughout the whole day, and will only have to feed it 2 times - in the morning and in the evening, which is very economically profitable.

How long does it take to grow

How long do geese usually grow before slaughter? – the answer to this question depends on the breed. The main criterion to focus on is that the bird reaches a weight of 4 kg. For some breeds of geese, 60–75 days are enough for this, while for others it takes 3–4 months. You can determine the period of readiness for slaughter by the condition of the feathers - if you can’t feel the stumps when you run your hand over them, this means that the bird has fully fledged and can be slaughtered. Having mastered this knowledge, breeding birds at home will not be difficult for beginners and experienced poultry farmers.

Video “The Basics of Breeding Ducks and Geese”

From this video you will learn how to raise ducks and geese on your own.

Currently, breeding and keeping geese at home is becoming very relevant. This is due to the fact that geese are very large birds, in addition, they grow quickly. The meat obtained from breeding geese is low-calorie and dietary. In just one season you can get up to 6 kilograms of meat from each bird. An interesting fact is that most The goose gains its mass by the fourth month of life.

Benefits of raising geese

But this one Domestic bird famous not only for meat. From geese they get down, fat, feathers and eggs. To be fair, it is worth noting that egg production is not strong point geese Goose eggs rarely used for food. They are mainly left to increase the number of livestock. But goose liver pate will please any gourmet.

It is worth noting that the goose is a rather unpretentious bird. It perfectly withstands any climate change. Adapts perfectly to environment. If it is possible for geese to graze freely, then the cost of food is minimal.

Breeding and maintenance depending on the time of year

To begin with, it should be noted that there are quite a few breeds of geese. a large number of. Among the most popular are:

Gorkovskaya;
Obroshenskaya;
Kuban;
Rhineland;
Chinese;
large gray.

The best time to start breeding geese is in the fall. It is at this time that geese begin to select pairs for themselves. It is at this moment that great attention should be paid. Crossbreeding of related birds is not allowed. This negatively affects the breeding of offspring.

Important! If the goose has chosen a male from someone else’s flock, then it is recommended to buy or exchange this bird.

For breeding, it is best to leave fighting males who are able to protect the flock. At the same time, it is not recommended to leave males who slaughter geese to breed. This point must be taken into account if you want to regularly receive offspring.

During the cold season, geese must be kept on special bedding, the thickness of which should be at least 30 centimeters. Despite the fact that geese are quite unpretentious birds, the temperature in the poultry house should not fall below minus five degrees. It is recommended to either insulate drinking bowls or regularly add water to them warm water. This is done so that the water does not freeze and the birds do not suffer from thirst.

It is best to divide the poultry house itself into several compartments in which several birds will be kept. If you want your geese to lay eggs well, you need to walk them periodically. In winter, the number of geese is kept in such a way that there are no more than five geese per male.

Breeding season begins in spring. At this time, geese usually begin to lay eggs. At this time, it is best to fence off the nests, this will give the geese the opportunity to calmly breed their offspring. Layed eggs must be placed under the hen no later than 10 days from the date of laying. The ideal option would be if all the geese begin to hatch eggs at the same time. This will allow you to get offspring of the same age.

IN summer time years it is best to keep birds in natural conditions. Ravines or swampy meadows are good candidates for goose pastures. The presence of a pond near grazing is only welcome. If this is not possible, the geese will have a great time in the enclosure. You just need to equip such an enclosure with a canopy and make a special trough for swimming. If there is an aviary, the birds do not have to be driven into the house for the night.

Nutritional features and what to feed when breeding for meat

Before moving on to how to feed geese, it should be recalled that birds do not have teeth. Therefore, they grind food in the stomach. That is why it is recommended to mix gravel with the feed. The size of the pebbles should not exceed 6 millimeters, and the gravel content in the diet should be no more than 1%. If this rule is not followed, the birds will not be able to fully digest food, which can lead to diseases.

So, about feeding. As already mentioned, the goose is an unpretentious bird, so in the warm season, with free grazing, it will find its own food. If the bird is kept in an aviary or poultry house, then you will have to take care of the food. Currently, there are three ways to feed geese. These are dry, wet and combined.

With wet feeding, the diet of geese consists of various mixtures, which include ground grain, cake, mineral and fortified supplements. The dry feeding method always contains grain. It is recommended to give sprouted grain in the morning, and whole grain in the evening. In addition, there are special concentrated mixtures. These mixtures can be diluted with broth or skim milk. Combined method feeding consists of adding flour mixtures to the diet.

When breeding geese at home, you should take into account the fact that females gain weight much faster. If a goose becomes obese, this negatively affects its egg production and breeding. Therefore, if the goose is not intended for meat, it needs to reduce its daily ration.

In winter, it is best to feed geese a mixture of root vegetables and grass. The presence of carrots and potatoes in this mixture is recommended. In the cold season, birds need more balanced diet, they need vitamins. Therefore, the daily diet should include:

about 700 grams of green food;
about 500 grams of vegetables;
about 300 grams of herbal flour.

In addition, it is useful to add phosphates to food, table salt, yeast and chalk. The content of these substances should not exceed several grams.

Important! Keep in mind that geese also feed well at night. This feature should be taken into account when preparing your daily diet!

When breeding geese for meat, the diet is not much different from ordinary feeding. About a month and a half before slaughter, birds need to be intensively fattened. Protein concentrate mixed with cereals is best suited for these purposes. You can buy protein food for turkeys. The crude protein content must be at least 15%.

During this period, feeders and drinkers should be constantly filled and placed throughout the house. This will allow the geese to gain weight evenly. During the fattening period, grazing of birds should be stopped. They should get their food indoors and move less. To allow birds to feed at night, it is recommended to leave lighting in the room.

A properly fed goose yields about 5 kilograms of meat. Moreover, subcutaneous fat is practically absent, there is only a small layer.

Features of breeding at home and at the enterprise

Goose farming is a very profitable business, so geese are bred not only in enterprises, but also in households. They are quite unpretentious to the conditions of detention and, accordingly, do not require large financial costs.

Household

You can start raising geese even in your country house. In summer, birds graze freely, so you practically don’t have to worry about food. If there is no suitable place for birds to walk, then you can build a pen and mow the grass needed for food yourself. The most suitable are clover, sow thistle, sorrel and dandelion. We should not forget the fact that Geese cannot eat grass alone, so it is recommended to give them some grain in the evening.

Wooden troughs with a high side can be used as feeders. The size of the feeder is determined based on 15 centimeters of space for each bird. It will be nice if the feeders are placed in several places.

In winter, geese can be kept in any spacious barn. The only condition is a warm bedding on the floor and ventilation. Geese tolerate frost well, but their paws are very sensitive to low temperatures. In a musty and unventilated room, birds can get sick.

After harvesting, the geese can be released into the garden. There they can find something tasty for themselves.

Industrial breeding

In this case, more attention should be paid not to the conditions of detention, but industrial equipment. Geese do not require a specially built housing for them, so they can be kept in unnecessary pigsties or barns. The main thing is that each bird has at least 0.8 meters of area. For 5000 geese, you will need about 60 hectares of area. This includes housing, incubator and pasture.

From necessary equipment You will need machines for cutting and mixing feed, and devices for slaughtering poultry. However, some large farms turn away from the latter, preferring manual labor.

What should not be neglected is the incubator. The presence of such equipment at the enterprise allows you not to worry about increasing the number of geese. Such an incubator, of course, is not cheap, but in the end the costs quickly pay off.

Geese are a valuable source of meat, eggs, feathers and down, although raising them does not require large investments. Keeping geese is accessible even to a beginner in poultry farming, since these birds are unpretentious to feed and living conditions, quickly adapt to a new place and have high immunity.

In this article we will look at the most popular breeds intended for home grown, as well as the features of arrangement and profitability of a small farm.

Note: The area of the goose barn directly depends on the number of birds. There should be approximately 1 square meter of area per individual. Crowded housing leads to a decrease in egg production, weight loss and a decrease in the quality of down and feathers.

It is advisable to set up a paddock nearby, but it will be better if the housing area is located next to a pasture or pond.

Basic requirements for keeping geese include:

The room must be dry and free from drafts, since diseases occur with high humidity;
It is advisable to insulate the roof and walls;
The floor in the poultry house is covered with bedding 30 cm thick. Although geese tolerate low temperatures, but dampness is harmful for them, so in winter you need to carefully ensure that the litter is dry, and it is advisable to remove snow from the paddock;
Nests for females are built in the poultry house. It is better to make them from wood. The box must have a bottom so that the embryo in the laid eggs does not die from the cold.

Figure 1. Layout of the poultry house and its internal arrangement

It is advisable to divide the internal space into several parts in order to isolate aggressive individuals and young animals from the rest of the herd. An example of room arrangement is shown in Figure 1.

Feeding

There are several types of feeding geese: dry, wet and combined. At home, it is better to use the last two types, since in this case the birds can be fed raw or boiled vegetables and food waste. In general, the diet depends on the season. In summer, birds spend a lot of time on pastures, eating green grass, and in the evening it is advisable to give them sprouted grain.

Note: Geese can be taken out to pasture before frost sets in. But if there is a lot of snow in winter, grazing feeding can be continued, since the birds will independently find the remains of grass for food.

In addition to feed, it is necessary to provide sufficient quantity drinking water, which is changed daily.

The diet of geese in winter differs significantly from summer, since the birds cannot find food on their own. In the cold season, birds are fed three times a day: in the morning (immediately after waking up), in the afternoon and in the evening (before bedtime). If you develop a clear schedule and give out food at the same time, over the winter they will not only not lose weight, but will also gain additional fat.

Can be used for feeding in winter(Figure 2):

Chopped bean hay;
Boiled potatoes and chopped carrots and beets;
Silage is a complete replacement for green grass in winter, since it includes all the plants that geese eat on pastures in summer;
Chopped pine needles (spruce and pine needles). This food allows you to replenish your supply of vitamins and increase egg production;
Cake, meal and hay flour are used as protein feed;
Grain mixtures. It is advisable to supply sprouted grain by mixing barley, oats, wheat or its bran and crushed corn in equal proportions.

Figure 2. Diet and basic feed

It is advisable to heat drinking water before dispensing, and to deepen the drinking water into the litter inside the poultry house.

Breeds for home breeding

Breeding geese at home involves right choice breeds There are about 40 of them, but there are breeds that are difficult for novice poultry farmers in terms of breeding.

The most popular breeds for home breeding are:(Figure 3):

Gorkovskaya combines high meat qualities and excellent egg production. In addition, the birds are quite hardy, but geese have a poorly developed brooding instinct.
Large gray considered one of best breeds for newbies. Geese of this breed can be bred not only for meat and eggs, but also fattened for liver. Females are good brood hens, and birds do not necessarily need to set up a pond.
Kholmogory breed also good for beginner poultry keepers. The birds have a peaceful disposition, they adapt well to new climatic conditions and are unpretentious to food. In addition, the birds are distinguished by their high precocity.
Italian white breed has a meat direction of productivity, and birds can be fattened to produce meat and liver.

Figure 3. Popular breeds: 1 - Gorky, 2 - large gray, 3 - Kholmogory, 4 - Italian white

Arzamas and Chinese breed, which are characterized by good endurance, early ripening and meat productivity.

Breeding geese at home

If you plan to breed large livestock, the following video will be useful. Its author is a farmer who has a large population of birds of the most different breeds. After watching the video, you will learn which breeds are best to breed on a homestead farm, how to properly keep and feed geese, depending on the direction of their productivity.

Raising goslings

Breeding and raising goslings is one of the basics of producing productive adult birds. In order for chicks to develop properly and quickly reach maturity, they must be properly maintained and fed.

Geese breeding as a business

Breeding geese is one of the most profitable types agricultural business. But to generate income, certain investments will be required to equip the farm:

Land plot: for maintenance you need a barn or any other building located on a paddock (preferably with a pond). It is better to buy a plot outside the city.
Poultry house: Despite the fact that geese tolerate winter well, for keeping them at night and during the cold season, you need to equip a poultry house. It is insulated, protected from drafts and connected to heating and lighting. Only if these conditions are met can the egg production and meat productivity of the bird be preserved.
Inventory: When building a goose barn, you must immediately provide drinking bowls, feeders and nests. It is better to make nests from wood and place them in shaded parts of the goose nest. Feeders and drinkers should be made of materials that are easy to clean and disinfect (iron, wood or plastic).
Poultry purchase: For people who are starting to breed geese, it is better to buy young animals intended for fattening. After the birds reach the required weight, they are sold, and the proceeds are used to buy productive geese intended for breeding. The breeding business will be profitable only if the breeding of young animals is carried out directly on the farm.

Figure 4. Goose farm profitability

You should also take care of the sales market. First of all, you need to obtain a certificate from a veterinary service confirming the quality of meat and eggs. In the future, you can sell not only goose meat, but also down, feathers and liver (subject to breeding special breeds).

Drawing up a business plan for a goose farm is necessary to calculate the profitability of the business. To set up a farm you will need the following expenses:

Construction or renovation of premises, purchase of equipment and inventory will cost approximately 150 thousand rubles;
It is more profitable to purchase birds in bulk, but it will cost more if you purchase several breeds. On average, the price of one chick is 70 rubles. Accordingly, 500 individuals will cost 3,500 rubles, subject to the purchase of one breed. But it is better to purchase several breeds different directions productivity, so that part of the herd can be sent for meat, and the females can be used as brood hens.
Stern. If on personal plot There is no way to grow and harvest grain, hay and vegetables on your own; purchasing feed will cost about 40 thousand rubles.
To hatch young animals, an incubator, brooder and ovoscope may be required. Their purchase will cost approximately 50 thousand rubles, but all these devices can be made independently from scrap materials.
Registration of documents, certificates and certificates will cost another 30 thousand rubles.
It is advisable to vaccinate the birds, since one infected individual can lead to the loss of the entire flock. average cost one vaccination costs 30 rubles.

Taking into account all expenses, the farm will pay for itself within a year, and the profitability of such a business is approximately 75%. However, it is important to find good market sales, although goose meat is considered one of the best and most in demand.

Poultry farming is a typical and interesting activity for our latitudes. And the goose is a traditionally Russian bird. These birds have been kept at home for centuries, and they are still bred today. Geese do not bring much trouble, and the benefits of raising them are obvious. How to breed geese at home or at a dacha for beginners - we’ll talk about this in our review.

Features of cultivation

Raising geese at home for beginners it promises the following benefits:

Raising geese at home requires raising a high-quality breeding flock that will be able to reproduce healthy offspring. Sexual maturity occurs at 8-10 months, which is quite late compared to other pets. However, offspring can be obtained from the eggs of a good female for 3-4 years. The breeding herd is formed from strong and healthy individuals. Gusaks are selected so that their weight exceeds the average of the livestock by 10%.

The weight of the goose should be at the average level; it is undesirable if the weight is less. The hereditary and exterior qualities of individuals are also taken into account. When forming a broodstock, remember that there should be three times fewer males than females. Experienced breeders select a pair or several geese for males. A herd of several families can be raised in one place.

If the ganders have a tough temperament when kept and they defend their territory, then they are separated and each is given a small pen. In this case, quarrels do not arise in goose families, and high egg production and fertility reign in the breeding stock. To understand the question of how geese are raised at home, you need decide on the method of breeding them. To get young animals, you can use an incubator; an old one will do. traditional method, when in leading role the mother goose appears. We bring to your attention a video about how little goslings are born through an incubator.

Egg culling

If the eggs are selected correctly, the goslings are born after 4 weeks of incubation. For this reason, it is necessary to reject substandard eggs before placing them in an incubator or under a hen. Eggs may look like this:

Irregularly shaped
With blood clots that are visible when x-rayed,
With shell damage, such as a crack,
Large with one highly mobile yolk or two yolks,
With an incorrectly located or very large air chamber that can be seen in the light.

It will be easy for beginners to keep geese at home, since they do not need special knowledge and conditions. These birds are resistant to diseases and are unpretentious. Therefore, raising geese in the country or on your own farm is a common thing. The main requirement that feathered pets have when breeding is good bedding, which is constructed from hay, straw or peat. These birds are frost-resistant, since the subcutaneous fat layer warms them well, but the beak and paws are sensitive to cold, so it is necessary to lay bedding in the goose coop.

If you decide to breed several breeds of geese, then it is better to place them separately. Please note that geese spend most of their time in the wild, so it is not advisable to keep them indoors all the time, since they are able to obtain the lion's share of their diet on their own.

The room: what should it be like?

Breeding birds involves a building that must be clean, dry, and light. In order for each individual to feel comfortable, it needs approximately 1 sq. m. If the room for keeping birds is damp and dark, then this can lead to frequent colds. One should also take into account this peculiarity: with geese it happens evaporation of water from about 10 heads - 2 liters. This indicates that it is necessary to establish good ventilation. The floors of the room are lined with wood or filled with clay; the main condition is dryness, since geese spend the night on the floor.

In winter, the room temperature should be at 0 degrees. The walls and ceiling of the goose barn are insulated with mineral wool; other sealed material is also suitable; in this case, additional insulation is not required. The optimal temperature will be maintained due to the heat coming from the bodies of the birds. Ventilate the room periodically winter time to avoid stale air, which can cause illness. To do this on a short time release the geese into the yard.

Inventory Features

It is necessary to properly place equipment in the room. This will save space and make cleaning easier. For example, it is better to take a feeder with a high side so that the feed is used sparingly. To do this, you can use troughs made of wood or plywood, dimensions based on 15 cm per goose. To avoid quarrels and crushes put up several feeders. For mineral feed, separate containers 20 cm high from the floor are used; geese eat green feed better from mangers installed in the wall.

Buckets, troughs and other containers serve as drinking bowls. You can also make your own from large pipes that are installed on special baking trays. In winter, to prevent the water from freezing, heated water is added to the drinking bowl. Nests are installed indoors a month before the expected egg laying. The size is as follows: width - 40 cm, length - 60 cm, height - 30 cm.

Feeding geese

Successful raising of geese at home depends on the quality of feeding. If the walking area is large enough, then they will not go hungry. These birds are herbivores; one goose is capable of pluck about 2 kg of grass. Particularly preferred are clover, dandelion, wheatgrass, and alfalfa, which grow in abundance in any area. Cereal greens are also used, but geese love them more until they bloom.

Breeding in winter differs in that the green diet is replaced with hay, bran or herbal flour. Of course, you won’t be satisfied with grass alone and it cannot satisfy all the needs of the goose. Complete diet consists of grains; birds prefer oats, wheat, barley, rye and corn. They also love root vegetables, such as potatoes, carrots, and beets. The stomach of geese is able to cope with fiber, while for other birds living at home, this is a difficult-to-digest product.

Due to the fact that feeds containing a significant amount of fiber are cheaper than others, keeping geese is economically profitable. The benefit is that geese use the energy of the food they eat better than other birds living at home. Chickens use energy from feed by 65%, geese by 70-80%. Therefore, goslings grow quickly and without problems. Please note that geese also eat at night, so they need to place feeders with food at night.

In general, there are no problems with feeding geese, especially in the summer, when geese return home from “free bread” only in the evening. Many bird breeders at home release their pets onto the plots after harvesting, as they clean the garden well, eating the remains of root vegetables and greens. The video for beginners shows in detail how geese live at home and what they eat.

Care

The goose is one of those birds that can feed themselves and provide minimal living conditions. That's why they readily bred at home. However, they still need some care.

If you properly care for geese, even in small areas you can raise an excellent flock. In order for the bird to gain weight well, don't skimp on food, you also need to monitor the conditions of detention. In this case, by the slaughter season you will receive a generous reward consisting of delicious meat, fatty liver and fluff.