Keeping Ducks And Geese

Keeping ducks and geese can be a fascinating hobby for the whole family. From producing eggs for food and painting, quills for writing, birds for exhibition or even eating, ducks and geese can add a new dimension to the garden or smallholding. They make wonderful pets: geese act as guard dogs and ducks are a gardener's best friend, keeping the pond free of weeds and rescuing crops from a slimy slug massacre. With detailed information on 40 of the most popular breeds, Keeping Ducks and Geese shows how to select the right breed for you, what you need to get started and how to care for your birds so that you get the best out of them from the outset. A lavish lifestyle section provides recipes for using the rich eggs, family activities, duck and goose folklore, and much more.

Full of information and practical advice, this book is suitable for those thinking about keeping ducks and geese, those who have recently become duck and goose keepers and want to learn more, and for the more experienced keeper. With over 290 photographs, this book provides everything you need to know, including: legal requirements; land, fencing, housing, equipment and security. There is a comprehensive list, with accompanying photographs, of over eighty duck and goose breeds. Information is available to help decide what breeds will suit you best and acquiring your first birds. Further topics covered include: feeding and nutrition; health and welfare; breeding and rearing; raising for meat, slaughter, plucking and preparation for cooking, plus recipes.

Choosing and Keeping Ducks and Geese provides a comprehensive overview of care and feeding requirements and all necessary equipment for keeping these popular and easy-to-maintain animals as pets. The all-inclusive guide provides extensive identification sections of 26 duck and 13 goose breeds and outlines how to incubate, hatch, and care for new ducklings and goslings. The author, an expert on ducks and geese, explains how to enter your purebred pet into a show, how to prepare the animal for competition, and identifies some of the standards that judges may be looking for when examining these beautiful birds. The eye-catching photography provides an up-close look at these lively animals throughout the text.

With just a little land and available water, you can raise a variety of domestic fowl, from friendly ducks and characterful geese to guineafowl, dainty quail, placid turkeys or even peafowl. Illustrated with the author's charming watercolour paintings, this book is packed with practical tips on keeping domestic fowl and selecting the right breed for your circumstances. Covering 65 domestic breeds of ducks, geese, guineafowl, quail, turkeys and peafowl, the book gives an insight into the individual personalities and attributes of each kind of bird. The breed profiles are written in engaging text and include the history and place of origin, colour combinations, differences between male and female birds, the appearance of hatchlings and the numbers of eggs to expect. As well as selecting an appropriate breed, you need to consider your neighbours, the kinds of bird you can and should keep, whether you want them for eggs or as pets, and whether you want to breed them. The book offers helpful advice on all these issues and also on housing, the provision of water, feeding and the noise and impact your birds will have, as well as preventing and treating common ailments. Whether you are starting out as a smallholder, are interested in raising a few ducks or geese in a suburban or rural setting, or are simply a devotee of domestic fowl there is plenty to captivate you in this book.

Keeping Geese is a complete guide to the domesticated goose. It shows how this intelligent bird has been absorbed into different cultures throughout history, from the taming of the Greylag and the Swan goose to the exhibition of the mighty Toulouse. Written from thirty years of first-hand experience of keeping, breeding and exhibiting these birds, Keeping Geese gives an insight into their habits and behaviour. Pure breeds of geese, hand-reared, are tame, responsive and intelligent and reared well, they will give hours of interest and pleasure for life. Illustrated with over 160 photographs and diagrams, this comprehensive study of geese covers the following and much more: domestication of the goose from the wild, and development of the breeds; why keep geese - as garden pets, eggs, exhibition, table birds; getting started with geese; understanding geese - breeds, physiology and behaviour; management of adult stock; breeding, incubation and rearing goslings; recognizing and treating ailments.

More than ever, Americans care about the quality and safety of the food they eat. They're bringing back an American tradition: raising their own backyard chickens for eggs and companionship. And they care about the quality of life of their chickens. Fresh Eggs Daily is an authoritative, accessible guide to coops, nesting boxes, runs, breeding, feed, and natural health care with time-tested remedies. The author promotes the benefits of keeping chickens happy and well-occupied, and in optimal health, free of chemicals and antibiotics. She emphasizes the therapeutic value of herbs and natural supplements to maintaining a healthy environment for your chickens. Includes many "recipes" and 8 easy DIY projects for the coop and run. Full color photos throughout. The USDA's new study of urban chicken raising sees a 400% increase in backyard chickens over the next 5 years, driven by younger adults.