We hatched a couple of geese this year to see what goose husbandry is about. The geese are HUGE. This is a two week old turkey and a two week old goose. Turkeys are already bigger than chickens, so this goose is Godzilla-sized compared to a chicken. It's an embden goose, probably normal for a goose, but a lot bigger than what we're used to hatching and brooding. 
Friday, May 8, 2009
Turkey and goose
We hatched a couple of geese this year to see what goose husbandry is about. The geese are HUGE. This is a two week old turkey and a two week old goose. Turkeys are already bigger than chickens, so this goose is Godzilla-sized compared to a chicken. It's an embden goose, probably normal for a goose, but a lot bigger than what we're used to hatching and brooding.
Next weekend I'm getting three burbon red turkey hatchlings, so I'm setting up brooder boxes today and getting ready for them. This will be our first experiment with turkeys. The guy I'm getting them from says they should be 18-20 lbs by Thanksgiving. Is that about what you expect with your turkeys? I wonder how big that goose will get?
ReplyDeleteMy first year the turkeys dressed out at 14-16lbs for toms, 12-14lbs for hens. This last year they dressed at 11-12lbs for toms, 8-10lbs for hens. Colder weather? I don't know what they weight live. Keep them on full feed to get the largest bird, but heritage birds will never get as large as broad breasted. That's why I keep them. The bourbon reds are especially tasty.
ReplyDeleteThanks! We'll see how it goes. This is our first time raising an animal whose intended end is to be food on the table.
ReplyDelete