Gray goose and its varieties

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The gray goose is the ancestor of all European domestic breeds. The bird still lives in the wild and, fortunately, did not have time to get on the pages of the Red Book. The area occupies almost the entire northern hemisphere, from Northern and Central Europe to the Far East, from North America to parts of China. Tamed more than 2000 years ago, presumably in Egypt or the Middle East. Since that time, poultry has been the second largest livestock in the world after chickens.

Content

Wild gray goose
Large gray goose
Tambov gray geese
Kuban breed
Mirgorod geese
Hungarian geese

Grey goose

Wild gray goose

Wild gray geese are birds that live near water bodies, swim well, but get their main food on land. Individuals nest in different regions of Europe and Asia, fly to the south for the winter. In the tundra regions and in northern Europe, the bean goose lives, which in appearance is similar to the gray one, but belongs to a different species. The wild gray goose in the photo and video resembles a domestic one, but its size is smaller and its body is more muscular.

Here are the main parameters of this type:

Body length - 70-90 cm.
The weight of wild gray geese is 2.1-4.5 kg, females are smaller than males.
The wingspan is 147-180 cm.
Feathers are gray with a brown tint, a wavy pattern on the tummy and neck, on the back the tips of the feathers have a white border.
The beak is pink or orange.

The large wild gray goose feeds mainly on plants. His diet includes green grass, cereals, berries, algae. Wild birds swim and dive well, but prefer to spend most of their time on land.

Geese arrive at nesting sites when there is still snow around. The mating season begins a little later, with the onset of warmth. The nest is built only by the female, she chooses dry places, but surrounded by maximum water. He uses reeds, twigs, dry grass, and his own down as a building material. There are 4-12 eggs in a clutch, they are incubated exclusively by a goose. Chicks appear after 28 days, dry out under the wings of their mother, and after 1-2 days they can swim and search for food on their own.

Around the end of June or the beginning of July, wild geese begin to molt. During this period, neither young animals nor wild birds can fly, therefore they hide in secluded places. In August, the feathers grow, the chicks mature, and the geese again gather in flocks. From about mid-September (in warm regions in October-November), migration to the south begins.

This species can be tamed by catching it during the molt period, but the birds do not lose their instincts and fly away in the fall. The next year they may well return to the person. To keep the geese from flying away, they need to clip their wings.

How long do wild geese live? Their life expectancy in the wild is 4-5 years. In an area where conditions are favorable, birds can live up to 8-10 years. Hunting for this migratory species is allowed, but only in a certain season, for each region it is different. To shoot you need to have a license.

Large gray goose

The breed of large gray geese began to be created in the 30s of the last century in Ukraine. It was finally formed only after the war.When creating the breed, the Toulouse and Romny varieties were crossed. Sometimes this bird is also called the "gray cardinal". Here is a brief description of the large gray goose and its appearance:

The head is large with massive outlines, the beak is wide, orange with a pink speck at the tip.
The neck is medium in size.
The body is wide.
The chest is deep and well muscled.
There are 2 fat folds on the tummy.
The feathers on the back, neck and head are darker than on the sides and breast; the belly is white.
Males weigh 7-9.5 kg, Females - 6-6.5 kg, goslings at 9 weeks - 4.5 kg.
The number of testicles per year is 30-40 pieces, the mass of one is 160-180 g.
The hatchability and survival rate of chicks is 75%.

You can take a closer look at what a large gray goose looks like in the photo. This breed has many virtues. Chicks recover very quickly, which significantly reduces the time of their keeping and feed costs. Good feeding and care can increase egg production up to 60 pieces per year, and the survival rate of chicks - up to 80-85%. A well-fed gander is a real giant weighing 10-11 kg. A large gray breed of geese feeds well on foie gras liver. It can be kept both in a paddock and in pastures, it does not need a reservoir.

Breeding large gray geese is not particularly difficult. Females are excellent hens, the percentage of fertilized eggs is high. On average, 15 goslings are obtained from one goose in farms per season. If you connect breeding in an incubator, the number of young animals can be increased. It is profitable to carry out fattening up to 9-10 months. During this time, 2-2.5 kg of grain and 6.5-9 kg of juicy feed are used per kilogram of weight. For a successful business, the livestock should be about 50-100 pieces.

Tambov gray geese

At the very beginning of the war, Ukrainian geese were taken to the Tambov region to the Arzhenka breeding plant. Experiments on crossing the Ramen and Toulouse birds continued there. Then the breed was cultivated exclusively "in itself", imprinting was used. Thus, a new ecotype of a large gray breed of geese was formed. The birds were named “Tambov gray geese”. Now these two ecotypes are called Borkovsky, or Ukrainian, and the steppe geese Tambov gray, or Russian.

Large gray geese of the steppe type were raised on pastures without reservoirs. Their selection was taking into account the conditions of detention. The large Tambov gray goose tolerates frost better, grows well even on scarce feed. In appearance, the varieties of the same breed differ little. Here is what the gray Tambov goose looks like and a description of this breed:

The head is large, flattened, with an orange wide and shortened beak.
The neck is medium in size.
The body is powerful, widened, the chest is deep.
The wings are well developed, the legs are medium, muscular.
Plumage of uneven shade, slightly lighter on the sides and on the breast.

The food characteristics of both varieties are similar, some even believe that this is one type of breed. The birds surpassed their Romny and Toulouse parents in terms of economic value. Gray Tambov geese are well suited for growing for the sake of goose fat and liver. Even on meager feed, the carcass is juicy, fat accumulates in large quantities in the folds on the belly.

The liver reaches 350-450 g with good feeding. Hungarian, Italian, Dutch and Landes varieties have better performance indicators than the large gray goose, but the survival rate of these breeds in the northern climate is lower, they are more susceptible to various diseases, and are more demanding in terms of keeping conditions.

Kuban breed

The Kuban gray goose is a relatively new breed that competes with large gray geese, primarily in terms of egg production. The founders were the Gorky and Chinese geese. This means that the blood of not only wild gray birds flows in the veins of the Kuban people, but also the dry-nose, or wild gnarled goose. The gray Kuban domestic goose has the following characteristics:

the head is large (up to violations of the proportions of the body);
beak with a small bump at the base;
the neck is short, beautifully curved;
the breast sticks out with the wheel forward;
legs are short, muscular;
from the crown on the back to the tail itself there is a black stripe (a characteristic feature of the breed).

Geese of the Kuban gray breed are inferior in terms of mass to their large relatives. The weight of the Kuban gray geese at 2 months is only 3.55 kg. An adult male has 5.5 kg, and a female - 5 kg, but the number of eggs is much higher, up to 80 pieces per year. One egg weighs on average 140-160 g. The popularity of the breed is due to the fact that it perfectly tolerates frost, dampness and rarely gets sick. According to this indicator, the Kubans are significantly superior to both the Tambov and Ukrainian large gray geese. They are bred in Siberia, in the Far East, and imported to the Urals region.

Mirgorod geese

Mirgorod white and gray geese are another breed that is bred on the territory of Ukraine. It has no industrial value, it is grown more often in private farms. Used for crossing with other breeds. Here is a characteristic and description of Mirgorod birds:

The head is mediocre, there is a wallet under the throat.
The beak is short, orange in color with a gray or black mark on the tip.
The neck is plump, of medium length.
The chest is wide.
Compact body.
The legs are short, which makes the geese look squat.
The weight of the male is 5.4 kg, the female is 4.5 kg, the young at 5 months is 4.5 kg.
The number of eggs is 14-16 pieces per year.
The hatchability and survival rate of chicks is 80%.

Both feeding large gray geese and the correct diet of Mirgorod geese can significantly improve body weight indicators. Geese sometimes reach 7 kg, and geese - 8 kg. The main advantage of this Ukrainian breed is unpretentious maintenance, good tolerance to harsh climatic conditions. The poultry house does not even need to be insulated for the winter. Despite this, the number of livestock of the Mirgorod geese is declining. They are being replaced by more productive varieties.

Hungarian geese

The Hungarian breed is often used to improve the weight of large gray geese. She divorces herself. She came to Russia back in the 80s of the last century. At the moment, it is most often found in Bashkiria. Some Bashkir farms are specifically engaged in preserving the gene pool of the breed.

Hungarian geese were obtained by crossing Pomeranian and Emden geese. Today the breed looks like this:

The head is average, with an orange beak.
The neck is shortened.
The case is compact and extended.
The chest is wide and deep.
Legs are short, massive, orange metatarsus.
The plumage is white.
The weight of males is 7 kg, females are 5.6-6 kg, two-month-old goslings are 4.2 kg, three-month-old ones are 4.8 kg.
Egg production reaches 40-42 eggs per year.
The hatchability of goslings is 65-70%.

The Hungarian breed is often used to obtain a liver, which, with good feeding, weighs 450 g. Hybrids are also created on the basis of these geese. They are crossed with Lands, large gray and other breeds. These hybrids are getting very good reviews from poultry farmers wherever they go. Growing the breed is profitable because it is of industrial importance. In the conditions of private farms, these birds are also raised.

As you can see, many breeds were bred on the basis of the wild variety. Some of them are now losing their relevance, new ones appear instead. Large gray geese, Kuban, Lands, Hungarian are very promising. At the same time, the livestock of their "parents": Toulouse, Pomeranian, Emden, Romny - is decreasing. After familiarizing yourself with the main characteristics of birds, you can choose which breed is best for you.