A Detailed Explanation of Goose Rearing Methods and Key Technical Points

SummaryBrooding period: do a good job of keeping warm, preventing dampness and starting to feed, with the temperature controlled at around 28-30°C and the humidity controlled at around 55%. Growing period: this is the period when geese grow the fastest, so special attention must be paid to nutrition and the combination of roughage and concentrated feed. Laying period: in order to improve the fertilization rate, male and female geese need to be raised in groups at a ratio of 1:4. Resting period: artificial molting is required, feeding high-protein concentrated feed to promote rapid feather growth.

I. Brooding period

1. Since goslings have just hatched not long ago, the most important things in rearing them are keeping warm, preventing dampness and starting to feed; the temperature should be kept at around 28-30°C and the humidity controlled at around 55%. For every week the goslings grow, their temperature can be lowered by about 2°C, until eventually they are taken off heat.

2. For starting to feed, it is best to choose easily digestible food, such as green grass and palatable feed.

3. During the brooding period, do not put the geese in water to bathe; wait until they are one week old before giving them shallow-water bathing.

II. Growing period

1. The growing period begins in the fourth week after hatching; this is when geese grow most rapidly, and at this time they also begin to molt, put on meat and grow bone.

2. If this happens to fall in summer, do not overgraze, and also pay attention to disease prevention and control and timely vaccination; at the same time, on top of the normal feed amount, add 2-3 supplementary feedings.

3. During this period, special attention must be paid to the nutrition and combination of the feed; when feeding, a combination of roughage and concentrated feed is needed. By routinely observing the geese's droppings, you can clearly tell whether the feed is properly combined: if the droppings are relatively small and firm, it means there is too much concentrated feed and roughage needs to be added; if the droppings are large and loose, it means there is too much roughage and concentrated feed needs to be added.

III. Laying period

1. During this period, besides ensuring the fertilization rate, the nutritional supply for the geese must also be ensured. In particular, the geese need to be raised in groups, with the ratio of male geese to female geese at 1:4.

2. During this period, special attention must be paid to grazing times; in the morning, grazing should be done after the female geese have laid their eggs. Soft straw must be spread inside the goose house, both to entice the female geese to lay eggs collectively and to prevent eggshells from breaking.

3. The laying period requires long periods of light to increase egg production; if there is not enough light during this period, artificial light supplementation is needed, with the daily light duration needing to reach more than 13 hours.

IV. Resting period

1. After the laying period comes the resting period; at this time the female geese are severely lacking in physical strength and nutrition, causing their feathers to become messy and unkempt, so they must be forced into artificial molting, and when artificially molting, it is best to do it in batches.

2. When molting, the geese will walk unsteadily, be unwilling to sleep, be unwilling to eat and so on; when this happens, there is no need for excessive concern, but at the same time pay attention to cleanliness, dryness, ventilation and other aspects of the goose house.

3. Adding some high-protein concentrated feed to the diet can make the feathers grow out quickly.