The Lubbock avalanche. (Lubbock, Tex.) 1909-1922, 1922-08-22


stock in the fall II Is customary 70
allow the matings 10 remain the
same year after year, unless for any
reason unsatisfactory. I'm dctermin-
ing the sex Of geese remember that
the male is usually larger and coar-
ser than the female; the male has
"a shril cry while the goose has q
coarse. harsh cry The abdomen Of
the female Is full and expanded and
In the ease Of the male the abdomen
Is more flat. The underline 81 the
abdomen viewed from the side Is
another way of distinguishing sex,
in that in the case Of the female,
the underline Of the abdomen view
cd from the end II the breast bone
90 the vent, appears well rounded
like "a curve In the case " the
male. the abdomen appear. 10 have
more II straight line.
Geese are usually mated in The
proportion of one male 10 four fe-
males. We have always found u
more satisfactory 60 mate 100 trios
or pairs, and 20 keep the different
mating epmate during the breed
iag season to prevent the males
from fighting Always use fully
matured males and females that are
wo years or older Immature
breeding stock .s very undesirable,
and win not produce strong of
spring Females may bee kept until
they are seven and eight years old.
Males should not be- kept much over
siX years.
Feeding
We have found a good pasture
with plenty 81 grass very necessary
90 raise geese profItably One acre
for 30 geese is about the proper
amount Of range and pasture. They
will pick up the greatest part Of
their living. + they have plenty Of
pasture. When the pasture gets
short, IL should be supplemented
with grains and wet mashes. Do
not get the breeding stock too fat,
which must be watched when feed
ing breeding geese because L viii
cause poor fertility and poor hatch
os. Heavy oats rs a good grain
feed for breeding geese A small
amount 81 such other grains as
kafrir. milo, corn or wheat may be
fed as a variety The greatest part
Of the feed should be- bulky stuff
like r0urhage. grass, clover, alfalfa.
eneilagc The silagc must not con-
tain too much corn and must be
entirely free from mold When u
is desirable 90 start the geese 90
laying. the following wet mash may
be- given In the morning 3 parts
q 0 Ill
and one-fourth part Of meat scraps.
II possible add vegetables or other
roughage 10 The mash. Grit and
oyster she'll should be kept avail
able All the time. Plenty Of fresh
water Of course, also is
very necessary at all times.
Feeding Coslings
Do not feed little geese until they
are Al least 30 hours old, or older
We have fed stale bread soaked IN
milk or water 20 which has been adj
ded 10 per cent hard boiled eggs
chopped up fine. We feed this four
times a day but always feed il very
sparingly They are fed this with
some chopped green food until they
are three 20 four weeks old Grit
and drinking water is kept before
them al ali times. After the goslings
are four weeks old. il they can run
on a green pasture. they are grad
uallv weened from the regular feed
ing 70 only one feeding a day. When
they are older If the pasture is a lit
tie short we feed a wet mash once
a day Of wheat bran, ground oats
al nrsfu ,
per cent Of meat scraps. Whole
grains are not fed until goslings are
fully feathercd.
Incubation
The period of incubation ranges
from % 20 80 days. Many ways
Of Matching geese eggs are in use.
Some people let the goose set on the
eggs, many more people set the eggs
under common hens, and a few use
turkey hens. A very few use in
cubators In the case Of common
hens. only Z 70 6 eggs are placed
under her In the case of turkey
hen or goose, as many as 10 and
N eggs are SET under one hen.
when the eggs are set under a COM
mon hen, they should be turned by
hand the same as in an incubator,
because the eggs are too large for
the hen % turn. Be sure to see 90
% that plenty Of insect powder on
sodium fluoride is used 70 get rid
II all lice before goslings hatch. In
the case Of artificial incubation. or
the eggs of the ground or
in a dry place, we have found Il
wise TO use moisture by sprinkling
the eggs with water after the first
week. The water should be about
100 degrees, and after the 18th day,
The eggs should be soaked in water
u above temperature, for about a
every two or three days. In
......f. tha trafahafar ~ fauanarn-