Detailed Explanation of Key Points and Methods for Lion Head Goose Farming Techniques
Preparatory Work Before Brooding
Brooding is the most meticulous part of goose rearing and management. To achieve ideal brooding results, it is very important to do a good job of the preparatory work before brooding.
1. Design the size of the brooding room according to the rearing scale. Generally, within 3 weeks of age, raising 15 to 20 geese requires 1 sq m of indoor area (including passages and space for work tools), and it must also be possible through operation to achieve ventilation and air exchange.
2. Equip heating equipment properly. At present, there are two commonly used heating methods. One is the self-warming method, that is, placing the goslings in baskets and covering them with quilts and other coverings to achieve warmth; this method is more time-consuming and labor-intensive and can only be used for small-group rearing. The other is the artificial heating method, that is, using a heat source (such as a heated pit with fire, coal stove, infrared lamp, electric heating tube or electric heating plate, etc.) to achieve warmth. There are many artificial heating methods. A practically useful method is now introduced, namely the infrared lamp heating method for raised-net rearing off the ground. This method uses No. 14 lead wire to make netting with a mesh of 1.7 cm × 1.7 cm. Each pen net is 140 cm long and 130 cm wide, and the net is about 40 cm above the ground. The iron railing around the net is 35 cm high. The four sides are first tightly enclosed with woven plastic cloth. Each pen net uses one 250-watt infrared bulb.
3. Equipment configuration: For each net unit, it is necessary to provide 2 water troughs (small chicken drinkers), 2 feed troughs (large chicken feed troughs), two pieces of plastic sheeting for feeding measuring 50 cm × 50 cm, and one piece of thick cloth or woven plastic cloth for warmth measuring 2.2 m long and 1.4 m wide.
4. Disinfection: After the equipment is fully assembled, clean and disinfect it (fumigate with 20 ml of formalin and 10 g of potassium permanganate per cubic meter of room space), then set it aside for use.
5. If conditions permit, plant some green feed.
⑥ For the equipment of medium and large gosling houses, water surfaces and exercise yards, the ratio of exercise yard, water surface and indoor area can be configured at about 2:1:1.
Rearing and Management Techniques
Lion head meat geese can generally be marketed after 70 days of rearing. To achieve the best economic benefits, scientific methods must be used for rearing and management. The rearing and management of meat geese is usually divided into three stages, namely 1 to 3 weeks of age as the brooding period, 4 to 8 weeks of age as the medium gosling period, and 9 to 10 weeks of age as the large goose period (fattening period). The key management points of each stage are described as follows:
1. Management during the brooding period: Newly hatched goslings have poor adaptability to the external environment, so a suitable temperature and humidity environment should be ensured so that the goslings can grow healthily. The quality of management in this period will directly affect the brooding effect.
① Grouping: Using the raised-net rearing method, divide each net unit into two small compartments. Each small compartment can hold 25 goslings. From the second week onward, remove the middle partition to form one large pen (50 in total). From the third week onward, the density can be appropriately reduced according to the outside weather conditions and the growth of the goslings. If the weather is good, another 5 to 10 can be moved to a spare pen. At the same time, the indoor temperature can be gradually lowered until by the end of the week it is close to the outside temperature. Generally, by the beginning of the fourth week, heating can be stopped and the goslings can be transferred to the medium gosling house.
② Keeping warm and preventing dampness: The heating method is to place one 250-watt infrared bulb 50 cm above the middle of every two small compartments, and use the prepared thick cloth or woven plastic cloth to tightly cover the infrared lamp and the entire pen. Before the goslings enter the brooding room, preheating should be carried out so that the temperature inside the house reaches 30°C to 32°C. Keeping warm and preventing dampness are a pair of contradictions during the young gosling period. To resolve this contradiction, the following measures must be taken:
First, adjust to a suitable density. If the density is too high, the goslings' down will easily become damp and the bad habit of feather pecking is likely to occur. If the density is too low, it is not conducive to keeping warm.
Second, pay attention to observing the behavior of the goslings. If they are evenly distributed and calm, it indicates the temperature is normal. If they cheep loudly and are restless, the temperature is too high. If they huddle together and make sharp, harsh calls, the temperature is too low. If the temperature is too low, first check whether drafts are entering the brooding room, then check whether the heat source is insufficient or whether the coverings are not tight. If the temperature is too high, never open all the doors, windows and coverings at once, otherwise the goslings may easily catch a chill and catch cold. The correct method is to adjust the position of the heat source higher, then uncover part of the coverings to adjust to a suitable temperature.
Third, keep the room dry. The drinkers must be placed flat so that water does not overflow. Feces on the floor should be cleaned frequently. Litter (such as dry river sand, sawdust, etc.) can also be spread on the floor to help absorb moisture. From the second week onward, open part of the doors and windows at noon on fine days to remove indoor moisture and harmful gases such as hydrogen sulfide. If conditions permit, a buffer space can be set up in the brooding heating room for a better effect.
2. Management during the medium gosling period: After the goslings stop needing heat, they enter the medium gosling period, and the goslings are transferred from the net to the ground (medium gosling house). Geese at this stage can basically adapt to the external climate, but attention must still be paid to keeping warm when the weather is relatively cold. At the beginning, the indoor temperature is maintained at 20°C, and as the days of age increase it gradually transitions to normal temperature. This period is also the main stage for geese to grow their skeleton and feathers. On fine days, let the geese move freely and bathe by the outdoor water pool to exercise their physique and receive sunlight, so as to promote the absorption of calcium and phosphorus. Start with 2 to 3 hours per day, then gradually transition to free outdoor activity during the day and transfer back indoors at night.
3. Management during the large goose period: After lion head meat geese are reared to 9 weeks of age, the main wing feathers have grown to 10 cm to 15 cm, and they should be transferred to the fattening period. Management in this period is mainly to limit the range of activity of the geese as much as possible, so that they consume less heat and grow more meat, achieving the fattening effect. The method is to appropriately increase the rearing density and limit the time in water (if conditions permit, they can be transferred to raised-net rearing, with 3 to 4 geese per sq m), but sufficient drinking water should be provided. After 10 to 15 days of fattening, they can be marketed. Medium and large geese are all reared on the ground, so the goose droppings in the house must be cleared every day, and litter should be added at night to ensure a dry indoor floor environment. The outdoor exercise yard should be cleared once every 2 to 3 days, and disinfection work should be done well.
Disease Prevention and Control
Goose FarmingThe farm must do a good job of environmental cleaning and sanitation and regular disinfection every day to eliminate sources of infection, and formulate an immunization program according to the disease situation in the surrounding area and on the farm, so as to achieve prevention being more important than treatment and to carry out good prevention and control of common diseases, promoting the healthy development of geese.
1. Gosling plague: Gosling plague is a major infectious disease of geese, and it poses a great threat toGoose Farmingproduction. In recent years, not only young goslings but also older geese (over 50 days of age) can also be infected and develop the disease. The most effective way to prevent this disease is to produce antibodies through immunization of female geese and pass them on to the offspring. For goslings without maternal antibodies, the preventive method is to inject one dose of attenuated gosling plague vaccine at 5 to 7 days of age, and a second immunization of 1.5 doses at 15 days of age. Practice has proved that immunized goose flocks can effectively control the occurrence of gosling plague. If the disease occurs, anti-gosling plague serum can be used for treatment.
2. Goose infection with duck plague: Duck plague often occurs after 20 days of age. Once geese develop the disease, the mortality rate is relatively high. The preventive method is to inject duck plague vaccine at 12 days of age, 10 doses per gosling, and a second immunization at 21 days of age, 20 doses per gosling. Immunized goose flocks can effectively prevent the occurrence of this disease.
3. Feather pecking: Feather pecking is most common in raised-net rearing. There are many causes, such as long periods of overly strong lighting, high rearing density, excessively high temperature, and deficiency of certain trace elements, all of which can lead to its occurrence. If feather pecking first occurs, the cause should immediately be analyzed and identified, and timely treatment should be given according to the cause.