Yeah, toulouse are not a good goose if you want to raise meat birds. Their value is in companionship and exhibition. If you want a bird that would be better for meat and show, there are breeds that are more economical and easier to raise. I remember the first toulouse baby that hatched here... she hatched under a broody sebastopol and I took her in tucked in my shirt feeling so blessed and full of wonderment. She was beautiful from the very first second I saw her.
This year I hatched successfully in the incubator for the first time. They grow very fast. The youngest ones hatched in mid-June and everybody has outgrown the brooder already. The youngest goslings sleep in a coop inside the shop and know the routine. In the morning I let them out and they march in a line to the door to the pasture, in the evening I tell them it's 'bedtime' and start to herd them towards the door and they all march right in.
Geese are quick learners.
Celtic is good to point out that not every bird may be of the quality that should be bred. With the ones that are young, you won't be able to get more than a basic idea until they are a year of age or more.
The same gosling I spoke of earlier was taken to a fall show because I really liked her head and neck but her keel was crooked (which is a big fault for this breed) and I knew two people very experienced with toulouse would be there. At this time she was 7.5 months old. Both really liked her and advised me that young birds often go through periods when their keels are crooked, as they grow quickly, and told me to keep an eye on it. As of March, her keel is straight and she looks wonderful, and she is still growing!
I really like that white african gander out with the group. He's pretty.
