. The best grown
Toulouse goslings should attain a weight of 16 to 18 pounds by Christmas
or when 6 to 8 months old. Other breeds will weigh proportionately less.
Special attention or special feeding will, of course, increase the
weight over that attained without such feeding.
As a rule the heavier breeds such as the Toulouse do not get their full
growth until they are about 18 months old. After this as geese of both
sexes grow older, they will, of course, fill out more and attain greater
weight.
_Disease._ Goslings are remarkably free from disease and a very large
percentage of all strong goslings hatched should be reared. One of the
principal difficulties is diarrhoea. This is usually caused by faulty
feeding. It may be due to feeding too great a quantity of soft feed or
to giving soft feed in too sloppy a condition. Access to stagnant water,
unclean enclosures or unclean drinking dishes may also cause diarrhoea.
When partly grown goslings which are being given soft feed are troubled
with diarrhoea, this may sometimes be checked by substituting a light
feed of corn daily for a part of the soft feed.
Goslings are sometimes troubled with lameness. This is usually caused by
faulty feeding also, particularly by feeding a ration which is lacking
in something needed, such as some form of animal feed like beef scrap
which may cause a lack of mineral matter in the ration. If the goslings
cannot secure it for themselves a supply of grit or gravel should be
placed at their disposal.
There is an infectious disease of geese which sometimes causes trouble
known as goose septicemia or hemorrhagic septicemia. This is a disease
similar to fowl cholera and may attack either young or mature geese. It
is not often found on farms where the geese are raised in small lots,
but sometimes proves troublesome on farms where a large number of geese
are gathered together for fattening. The geese are often found dead when
one goes to feed them without having shown much preliminary sickness.
The disease is usually fatal. Shortly before they die the affected geese
may acquire an uncertain gait and may twist the head about and burrow it
in the dirt. Treatment is of no avail. If the disease occurs in a flock,
the affected birds should be removed and killed, while the rest of the
flock should be moved to new ground if possible. The ground which they
previously occupied should be plowed and any houses, shelter, feed
troughs, and drinking vessels should be thoroughly disinfected.

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