Chinese goose

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The Chinese goose is a breed of domesticated goose descended from the wild Swan goose. Chinese geese differ from the wild birds in much larger size (up to 5-10 kg in males, 4-9 kg in females), and in having an often strongly developed basal knob on the upper side of the bill. The knob at the top of the beak is more prominent on males than females. By 6–8 weeks of age, the knob is already pronounced enough that it can be used for sexing. Chinese geese are a close cousin of the African goose, a heavier breed also descended from the Swan goose.

Chinese geese appear in two varieties: a brown similar to the wild Swan goose, and white. While many domestic Chinese geese have a similar body type to other breeds, the breed standards as defined in the American Poultry Association’s Standard of Perfection and other sources call for a slimmer, taller fowl.

Chinese geese are among the better laying breeds of geese. A female Chinese goose can lay 50–60 eggs over the course of the breeding season, although there are reports of Chinese geese laying up to 100 eggs during that time.

The brown is a tall and graceful bird with black knob on head and black beak; long and slender neck. They are good weeders and ‘watch dogs’. The white variety has an orange knob and beak with orange – yellow legs. Both colours are good layers.

Classification

Light

Appearance

Brown or grey has a brown stripe extending from the base of the knob to the to the body. Colours are a variation of brown. Brown is more common in Australia. There is also an all white variety.

Weight

Gander	4.5 – 5.4 Kg
Goose	3.6 – 4.5 Kg