Help me with choosing the right breed!

[jnj10000]

Hello,

I have recently posted a question regarding growing Muscovy and Roman Tufted, but I found that my vendor no longer has any geese of that breed... So I was forced to choose among a couple breeds which he recommended for meat (and yes, I am keeping them for meat): Dewlap Toulouse, Emden, and African. So here my questions go:

1. Which one of the above breeds are the hardiest(both against disease and cold; I live in a fairly cold region)?

2. I am NOT interested in the breed that gains weight fast and has a high feed-to-weight conversion ratio; rather I wish to have birds that are smaller, but produce a better QUALITY meat (even if this means I have to feed them more). Is there any that fits this bill in my list? If not, what breed do you recommend?

3. I plan to harvest about 3~4 geese each year, between Oct.~Feb. How many geese and ganders do I need to achieve this? (I wish to keep them as my breeding birds. A little surplus of eggs will be appreciated, however.)

4. For the birds mentioned as the answers to questions 1 and 2, will they stay in peace with my Muscovies? (I have one drake that is, well, somewhat protective, and 3 hens that are quite docile.) Are there any potential hazards in keeping geese and ducks together? (e.g. disease)

5. Which one of them are excellent foragers that are capable of feeding themselves from the lawn? (It's not that I am not going to feed them; I have a good clover field that my Muscovies currently enjoy a lot, and I wish the same from the geese. I heard that Toulouse are docile, in fact too docile that they don't move around too much, rendering them a rather inefficient forager. Is it true?)

6. Lastly, if I get more livestocks in future (most likely some chickens, and less likely sheep and goats), will they all play well together?

Thanks! And have a wonderful day!

Oh, plus, how do I keep these f****ing rats away from my birds? They climb all over the fences and invade my ducks' feeding boxes... Any ideas?

 

[Ultra]

1. Embden. They will all taste the same, but Embdens have more breast meat and have a more presentable carcass

2. Embden. If you want them smaller, process them younger. You don't have to let them grow to 25+lbs

3. For 3-4 meat birds a year, you only need one mating pair of Embdens. An embden hatched in May will be ready to process by October and make a nice, big table bird. Embdens also have good fertility and make good parents. They will start laying in February, so you'll have lots of eggs until you allow them to brood in May.

4. Geese and ducks flock together all the time. My Embdens get along fine with my Indian Runners and Pekins. Plus they all eat the same feed.

5. Embdens are the best foragers amongst the breeds you listed. They thrive on green grass and will eat weeds if you introduce weed cuttings to them as goslings. I only give them a cup of feed in the morning per bird and they forage the rest.

6. Geese are traditional farmyard animals and will adapt to being around many different kinds of livestock.

As for your rats, get a couple kittens and raise them to be mousers (basically feed them some dead mice when they are young and they will get the idea). If they are around your flock as kittens, they won't bother them as adults, either.

If you need a more immediate solution, rat poison. Just make sure the bait is somewhere your ducks can't get to it.

 

[CelticOaksFarm]

I agree with Ultra on all points concerning the breeds you listed.
Remember geese only lay in the spring, so you wont have eggs all year
Rat...remember to pick up the food in the evening and put it away where they can not get to it. Your birds dont need it available night.
Have a game plan in place for extra hatchlings if you are only wanting to process a couple of birds a year.


We raise American Geese and French White Muscovy as well as Bresse (American White), and some Cornish x chickens all for processing. The first three breeds are sustainable, the X are ordered in batches when we want to grow them out.

 

[flockman]

I plan to raise American buff geese for the same purpose. Of the 3 choices I would say African or Embden. I would choose the Embden as they are not as loud. Either one would do the job.