Detailed Explanation of Artificial Breeding Methods and Technical Points for Wild Geese
The wild goose, also known as the wild goose, swan category, is a large migratory bird and a national second-class protected animal. Wild geese are full of enthusiasm and can encourage their companions, using calls to encourage their flying companions. The wild goose belongs to the class Aves, family Anatidae, and is the general term for various species in the subfamily Anserinae. Common ones in China include the swan goose, greylag goose, bean goose, white-fronted goose, etc. Goose flocks form in groups of 6, or multiples of 6, and a goose flock is a collection of some families, or rather some groups. Below is an introduction to how wild geese undergo artificial breeding.
Wild geese require 3 years to reach sexual maturity, are monogamous with one male paired to one female, and pair for life, with both parents participating in raising the young geese. Under artificial rearing, they reach sexual maturity at 8-9 months, with a male-to-female ratio of 1:2-3. Wild geese come into estrus in spring and mate in water. During courtship, the male goose swims around the female goose in the water, continuously shaking his head up and down, while extending his neck to sip water as if drinking and swimming toward the female goose. Once the female goose responds with the same movements, the male goose moves behind the female goose; the female goose sinks her body slightly, and the male goose mounts the female goose's back, pecks at the feathers on the female goose's neck with his beak, vibrates his wings, and mates. After mating, they play and swim together in the water or go ashore to preen their feathers. The female goose begins laying eggs 10 days after mating, with each egg weighing about 150 grams.
In the wild, wild geese build nests and breed in spring, generally laying 7-25 eggs, hatching on their own in 31 days. Under artificial domestication conditions, a male-to-female ratio of 1:1 is appropriate. Generally they mate after the Spring Festival, begin laying eggs 10 days later, laying 1 egg every 2-3 days; in the first year they generally lay about 15 eggs, and thereafter from years 2-6 this can increase to about 25 eggs.
Artificially raised wild geese lay 1 egg every 2-3 days, with an annual egg production of 90-120 eggs. Management methods and incubation conditions are similar to those for domestic ducks and domestic geese, only the number of times and duration of incubation are slightly increased. For breeding units with larger scale and greater numbers of breeding eggs, it is best to use incubation equipment for artificial incubation.
Incubation
Small-scale goose farms can let the wild geese incubate on their own, or use a mother goose as a surrogate incubator. Large-scale goose farms need to use artificial incubation, with an incubation period of 31 days. Select fresh breeding eggs of appropriate size, normal egg shape, color meeting breed requirements, and clean surface, disinfect by formaldehyde fumigation (add 15 grams of potassium permanganate and 30 milliliters of formaldehyde per cubic meter, at a room temperature of 24℃—27℃), then place in the incubation room (22℃—24℃) to preheat for 6—8 hours before setting for incubation. The temperature during the early incubation period is 38.3℃—39.0℃, the middle period is 37.5℃—38.0℃, and the late period is 37.0℃—37.5℃. The relative humidity is 75%—80%. Turn the eggs once every 2—3 hours, with a turning angle of 90 degrees; when turning eggs, the movements should be light, steady, and slow, to avoid causing rupture of the yolk membrane blood vessels, separation of the allantoic chorion from the shell membrane, and causing embryo death. In the late incubation period, cool the eggs 2—3 times per day, with a cooling temperature of 25℃-27℃; if the room temperature is too low, it will affect development due to “flashing of the eggs.” During the incubation process, candling must be carried out 2 times, respectively on the 8th day and the 28th day after incubation, to detect infertile eggs and mid-term dead eggs; after the second candling, move the embryo eggs into the hatcher. Hatching begins on the 30th day and ends on the 31st day.
Goose house conditions
The goose house should be warm in winter and cool in summer, with sufficient sunlight and good ventilation. It can be divided into a brooding house, a fattening house, and a breeding goose house. The brooding house should be insulated and moisture-proof; the fattening house should be equipped with perches, with troughs and drinkers beside them; the breeding goose house should be relatively large, with land and water exercise yards outside, and a 1.8—2 meter high fence net around the exercise yard. The land exercise yard should be dry without standing water, spread with 5 cm thick sandy soil, and planted with trees or crops for shade; the fence net of the water exercise yard should extend straight to the bottom of the water, with mesh openings suitable so that the head of a wild goose cannot get through. There should also be grassland with abundant plants for grazing.
Management methods for wild geese during the breeding period
1. The molting period for breeding geese is about June to August each year after egg laying ends. During the molting period, in order to make the breeding geese molt neatly, first, control the feed, feeding only 0.5 to 1 liang per bird per day; if the forage is good, do not supplement feed, to encourage the wild geese to molt neatly. Second, you can pull out two hard wing feathers, three on each side, six in total, leaving one longest hard feather on each side. (Keep the long feathers at the tips.) After the feathers have molted completely, feed a little better; if the grassland is good, feed less, if the grassland is poor, feed more, about 2 liang per day; it is best to feed complete-price feed, and feeding rice grain is also acceptable.
2. For raising wild geese, in January of each solar calendar year, about one month before egg laying, nutrition should be strengthened; it is best to feed nutritionally complete full-price feed, about 3 liang per bird per day, to promote good physical condition in the wild geese without making them too fat. Around February, appropriately increase the feed, about 4 liang per bird per day, feeding once in the morning and once in the evening. Pelleted full-price feed is best; if using mixed powder feed, it is best to mix with water and feed wet; the amount of water added should be such that after mixing, it forms a ball when squeezed by hand and disperses when the hand is opened, avoiding sticking to the throat and waste.
3. For raising wild geese, breeding geese need deworming once every two or three months, and the last deworming of the laying period should be carried out one month before egg laying. Inject disease-prevention vaccines before egg laying. Generally, inject gosling plague vaccine one month before the geese begin laying, and inject avian influenza vaccine in the second week.
4. For raising wild geese, half a month before the breeding geese begin laying, laying nests must be built for the breeding geese. Laying nests can be made from thin wooden boards or plywood about 5 cun wide, nailed into frames 1.1 chi long and 1 chi wide, with no bottom board and no cover, with straw padded inside each frame, or straw can be woven into round basins, paper boxes, or plastic basins, then padded with clean straw to make a laying nest.
5. After egg laying begins, in order to prevent the wild geese from laying eggs outside, gradually increase the time kept indoors and delay grazing; around the peak laying period, generally do not graze until 10 to 11 a.m. Even when grazing at 11 a.m., some geese still lay eggs outside the goose shed, so it is necessary to use 4 bamboo poles or branches 4 chi long near the goose shed, tie one end with rope, then spread the four legs open, cover the top with straw tied at one end, and pad the bottom with clean straw to make a laying nest; building a dozen or so near each goose shed is sufficient.