Content
Contrary to the first impression, the Governor's geese do not trace their family back to pre-revolutionary times. This breed was bred quite recently by a complex reproductive crossing of the Shadrinsky and Italian geese. Work on the breeding of the breed has been carried out since the beginning of the XXI century. For 11 years, scientists from the Institute of Poultry, Agricultural Academy named after TS Maltseva and zootechnicians of the Makhalov breeding farm worked on the breed.
In the process of breeding, experts selected for productivity, frost resistance, viability and unpretentiousness. The idea was a success. Geese of the Governor's breed do not need insulated poultry houses, live in Spartan conditions and are able to quickly gain weight.
Description
The photo shows that the Governor's geese have a compact body and a dense build. A medium-sized elongated head with a straight profile. The bill is orange, wide, short. The eyes are oval, dark. The neck is short and thick. The back is wide, slightly arched. The wings are small, tightly attached to the body. The tail is relatively long, slightly raised. The chest is wide and convex. Legs are short, well muscled. The belly is well developed. Metatarsus orange, medium length.
The color is white. The plumage fits snugly to the body. In the description of the Governor's breed of geese, it is noted that they inherited their down from the Shadrinskys. The branched structure of the down allows the Governor breed geese to live in the open air all year round.
The breed was bred as meat and egg, but the meat characteristics of the Governor's geese are higher than the egg ones. The weight of the Governor's gander of the weighted type at 9 weeks reaches 4.35 kg, the goose at the same age weighs 4 kg. While egg production is only 46 pieces. for 4.5 months of laying. Some farmers, according to reviews, also receive fluff from the Governor's geese. But the last is a very laborious task, given that it must be plucked from a live bird very carefully and only during molting.
Dignity
The breed turned out to be extremely successful and meets the needs of Russian farmers. Advantages of the Governor breed:
- good feedback on feed (2.7 kg of feed is consumed per 1 kg of weight gain);
- high hatching of goslings in an incubator (up to 95%);
- good preservation of young animals: an average of 94% of goslings survive to adulthood;
- high viability of the adult livestock;
- fast weight gain by young animals;
- polygamy of ganders.
Often, even having a harem of 3-4 geese, the gander often prefers only one female. Governor's ganders are free from this drawback. Due to its polygamy, the Governor's gander pays attention to all its females. This increases the yield of the fertilized hatching egg.
After fouling with a feather, the spots disappear. They have nothing to do with autosexuality.
disadvantages
In the descriptions of the Governor's geese, the mass of adult birds is silent. But we can assume that with a mass of almost 4 kg at 2 months, an adult gander of the Governor's breed will weigh at least 7 kg. This suggests that with high hatchability in an incubator, egg fertility is nevertheless low.
Also, nowhere is it mentioned about the desire of the Governor's geese to become hens. In this breed, this property can be safely attributed to disadvantages, since with low egg productivity, it would be possible to allow the birds to hatch the goslings on their own.
But the Governor's breed of geese was created for breeding in industrial poultry farms and the presence of an instinct for incubation was not part of the breeders' tasks when breeding the breed. Thus, an incubator is required to breed the Governor's breed.
Content
A photo and a detailed description of the conditions for keeping geese of the Governor breed can terrify an unfamiliar person.
In the “homeland” of the Governor's breed in the “Makhalov” breeding plant, geese are kept outdoors all year round in pens between the poultry houses. In case of severe bad weather or severe frost, geese can take refuge in unheated buildings. The rest of the time, down to -25 ° C, the Governor's geese live on the street. There, in the corrals, there are feeders with hay equipped for them.
In the poultry house, the floor is covered with deep bedding. The room has natural ventilation. Drinking bowls are arranged in such a way that geese can only stick their heads into the water. In this way, the litter is protected from moisture and remains dry.
During the unproductive period, that is, in winter, the Governor's geese are fed once a day with oats. Water is also given only once a day. The rest of the time the geese quench their thirst with snow outside. For better assimilation of feed, pebbles are placed for geese. In this case, tough hay and oats are rubbed in the stomach by gastroliths and are well absorbed.
At the start of the reproductive season, the Governor's geese in the herd are given complete freedom of mating. But this does not apply to those birds that are used for further breeding. Free mating is possible only for an industrial herd producing offspring for slaughter.
But this method of keeping, like the photo of the process, confirms that there is not a word of untruth in the description of the geese of the Governor's breed regarding their frost resistance and unpretentiousness. These are really very convenient birds for keeping in a private house. They are especially good for beginners.
Diet during the reproductive period
If in winter the Governor's geese can be fed once a day and only with hay and oats, then during egg-laying such a meager ration cannot be dispensed with.
About a month before the planned breeding season, the Governor's geese begin to feed not only oats, but also other grains and legumes. The best option is compound feed for geese of egg-bearing breeds. This feed is already saturated with all the necessary vitamins and minerals.
If there is no specialized feed, the geese are given ground grain of wheat, corn, barley, soybeans, and peas. Hay at this time is better than alfalfa. When the grass begins to grow, the geese are transferred to fresh green forage.
This is especially true for raw dry wheat and legumes. When swollen in the goiter, this food can clog the esophagus. If possible. It is better to boil wheat.
In addition to grain and grass, the Governor's geese need vitamin and mineral premixes. The pebbles are kept in the pen all the time.
Nesting
Even if the Governor's Goose does not languish with the desire to hatch the offspring, she will prefer to lay her eggs in a secluded, quiet place where no one will disturb her. In the absence of such places, eggs are laid anywhere. In this case, there is a great risk of losing products.
To arrange a nest for Governor breed geese, it is enough to make boxes with high walls and lay straw on the floor. The best option: the number of nesting sites exceeds the number of geese in the herd. If there are fewer nests, several geese may start laying eggs in the same box. In the case of hatchery egg collection, this situation does not matter. Knowing which eggs are from which goose is important if breeding work is underway.
Testimonials
By the spring, the geese were ripe and pleased with the eggs. Their eggs are very large, but they are really not enough. Although it was enough for me.
Conclusion
This breed is still little known in Russia. Among private owners, it is not particularly advertised, although in the photo the geese of the Governor's breed look very attractive. At the Makhalov breeding farm, the Governors' is the main source for the production of goose. Since geese are slaughtered there in massive quantities, it becomes profitable to collect down from slaughtered carcasses. The down of geese of the Governor's breed is highly valued abroad. But the volumes of supplies must be appropriate. But amateur private traders can collect down on blankets, pillows and even feather beds.
