The goose is the only domestic bird that can live almost entirely on grass. That makes geese profitable wherever there’s a meadow: in summer most of the ration comes free. But the savings only appear if the pasture is managed properly.
How much grass a goose eats
An adult goose eats 1.5–2 kg of fresh grass a day. From 3–4 weeks, goslings on pasture already find a large share of their ration themselves. But grass is bulky, and on grass alone birds grow slower than with supplementary feed.
How much you save
On good pasture with young grass, grain and compound feed use can be halved, and for adult geese outside the laying season even more. The figure depends heavily on the grass:
| Pasture | Supplement |
|---|---|
| Young, lush grass, clover | A little grain or feed in the evening |
| Tall, coarse grass | Almost as much as indoors: geese eat it poorly |
| Burnt-out meadow in a drought | A full ration |
Geese eat young grass 5–15 cm tall. Mow or graze the pasture in rotation, or within a month it will overgrow and become useless.
How many geese per hectare
A good meadow carries 20–40 adult geese per hectare per season, more for goslings. It’s easier to split the pasture into 3–4 paddocks and move the flock every 1–2 weeks: grass has time to regrow, and parasites in the soil die off without a host.
When to let goslings out
- in warm, dry weather — from 2–3 weeks, for a few hours;
- from 4–5 weeks — all day, indoors at night;
- keep goslings in during rain and morning dew until they’re feathered: they get soaked and chilled.
What else the pasture needs
- Water. A goose can’t swallow grass without water. A drinker or pond nearby is a must.
- Shade. Geese overheat faster than you’d think.
- Predator protection. At night, bring the flock into a house or a secure pen.
- Grit. Without small stones the gizzard grinds grass poorly.
How to work out the gain
Compare feed use per bird over the season with and without pasture. The difference multiplied by the feed price and the number of geese is your saving. Subtract fencing, mowing and water costs. What’s left tells you whether to grow the flock. Before slaughter geese are often moved onto grain finishing — see fattening geese.
See what the grass gave you
If you log the flock’s feed use in EggPulse, the difference between spring and summer shows in numbers, not by eye. Feed costs go into your finances, so the pasture saving also shows in the cost per goose.
