BREEDS AND VARIETIES 



give an average egg production for a breed is at 

 best only an approximation. These approximations 

 often serve, however, to show some well established 

 contrast between the different breeds with respect 

 to their egg laying ability. The Toulouse is a fairly 

 prolific breed of geese and individuals should aver- 

 age from 12 to 36 eggs, the majority laying about 

 20 eggs. The Embden is very similar to the Tou- 

 louse in laying ability although probably on the 

 whole not quite so good a layer. The African is 

 generally considered a good layer and is said to 

 average from 20 to 40 eggs. Some breeders state 

 that the pure African are not as good layers as this, 

 being about equal to the Embden and that the better 

 lajdng Africans really have some Brown Chinese 

 blood in them which has been introduced to increase 

 prolificacy. The Chinese is the most prolific breed. 

 The birds of either the White or Brown variety 

 should average from 60 to 100 eggs. The eggs laid 

 by the Chinese are smaller than those of the Tou- 

 louse, Embden or African. The Wild or Canadian 

 and the Egyptian geese are small layers. They 

 rarely lay more than one sitting during a season and 

 the eggs will as a rule range from 4 to 8 in number. 

 Size of Goose Eggs. Goose eggs are decidedly 

 larger than duck eggs. There is a considerable va- 

 riation in size, depending upon the breed. The eggs 

 of the Toulouse, African and Embden are of about 

 the same size and will vary fronii 6^ to 8 ounces each. 

 The eggs of the Chinese are smaller and will weigh 



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