A mature goose is usually a spent breeder and its meat is used in processed products. Gander - a male goose. Almost all ducks are raised indoors to protect from predators and to manage their manure, which is collected and used elsewhere selectively as fertilizer. Most ducks are now raised in Wisconsin and Indiana since land on Long Island, N.Y., where most ducks were formerly raised, has become increasingly too valuable for farming. Ducks are fed corn and soybeans fortified with vitamins and minerals.
Most feed contains no animal by-products.
Geese are raised under cover for the first six weeks of life. Then they are put on the range 14 to 20 weeks where they eat available grass and some grain. California and South Dakota are the main geese-raising states. No hormones are allowed in U. S. duck or goose production. The Food and Drug Administration strictly prohibits the use of hormones in these birds.