African Geese

African Geese are some of the largest domestic geese, the

Ganders weighing up to 12.7Kg. They are close relatives
beak, being a descendent of the Swan Goose (rather than
the Greylag that other breeds of geese are descended
from). They lay far less eggs than Chinese geese,
normally producing somewhere between 20 and 40 eggs
per year.

American Buff Geese

are very similar in appearance to Brecon Buff Geese and
are marked like Toulouse Geese but are buff, rather than
grey. The American Buff and Brecon Buff, side by side
are almost identical in appearance but the bill and legs /
webs are a bright orange on the American Buff rather
than the pink colour found in the Brecon Buff. The
American Buff is slightly heavier and the eyes are a
slightly different shade of brown.

Brecon Buffs
are hardy and make a good broody and look after their
young very well, although care should be taken with
broody geese as they can run themselves down too much.
As young goslings fledge, their bills should turn pink.
Bills should not be orange, there are many Buff Geese
around that have orange bills. There should be no white
feathers under their chin, in their primary or secondary
feathers.

Buff Back / Grey Back Geese

are pied medium weight geese, originating from the
Northern part of Europe. Grey Back Geese are easy to
confuse with Pomeranian Geese In the UK, they are
two different breeds.
The English Buff Back and Grey Back are dual lobed
geese, usually orange in the bill, and the same shape as
the English Embden and commercial Embden geese.
They have a separate class at the larger shows and the
two types were standardised in the UK because they
could not be shown in the same class.

Chinese Geese
are known as Hckergnse in Germany and Oies de
Chine in France. The Chinese Goose is a descendent of
the wild Swan Goose. They come in two colour varieties,
grey and white. The grey Chinese Geese look similar to
African Geese who are also descendents of the wild Swan
Goose however they are a much lighter build.

Czech Geese
are very short and stocky and one of the lightest geese at
only 4.5 to 5.5 Kg. They are a lively goose and keep
active and alert. These Geese were developed in Germany
but the original birds came from Bohemia, an area
occupying the western two-thirds of the former
Czechoslovakia, now called the Czech Republic.

Roman Geese
are small chubby white geese with a short neck that carry
a large amount of meat on them. They are slightly bigger
than Czech Geese and slightly smaller than Diepholtz
Geese. They are originally believed to have come from
selected strains of Italian geese created as far back as
350BC during Roman times.

Sebastopol Geese
are medium weight geese, known for their long curled
feathers that make flight almost impossible for
them. They have striking blue eyes. There are two types
standardised in the UK, the Buff and White varieties
although grey and saddle backed varieties exist. In North
America, only the White variety is standardised.

Steinbacher Geese
are small, lightweight, proud looking geese that look
similar to Russian Fighting Geese. Steinbacher Geese
came from the Thuringia region in eastern Germany and
were originally bred from a cross from the local, regional
geese and Chinese Geese. Their most distinctive feature
is the orange bill with a black bean. They have orange

Germany, they are called Steinbacher Kampfgnse.

Toulouse Geese
originate from the countryside around the city of
Toulouse in Southern France. The French created this
has been, and still is, a delicacy in France. Forced feeding
used in the production of foie gras production is
controversial, due to the procedure of forcing a tube
down the throat and the health consequences of an
enlarged liver. European countries now have laws against
the sale of foie gras and the force feeding of animals
although France continues to ignore these laws.

West of England Geese

(like Pilgrim Geese) are an autosexing breed. These two
breeds are the only true autosexing geese that can be
sexed at hatch.
Ganders are white and geese are grey and white. Both
goose and gander have a slightly pink-orange bill, legs
and webs. The West of England Goose was first
standardised in the UK in 1999.