Toulouse Geese

A Heritage Breed Of French Decent

The Toulouse is a heavy goose breed. They have massive, deep bodies with a large pendulous dewlap. Although Silver Prairie Stock & Poultry Farm focus on the slightly lighter Exhibition type without dewlaps. The breed is recognized in Buff and Gray varieties, and they lack the knob of the African breed.

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They have a deep keel which nearly touches the ground. Usually they carry themselves nearly horizontal. The Toulouse goose are known for their large square, broad bodies. The American Livestock Breeds Conservancy has divided the Toulouse goose into three sub groups. And the sub groups are Exhibition, Production and Standard Dewlap.

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The Exhibition and Standard Dewlap types are the massive birds. And the Exhibition type have more exaggerated features. And the Production type is the slightly small gray goose usually sold by hatcheries. On average standard weight for Toulouse male is 9-9.5 kg and 7-8.5 kg for females. Silver Prairie Stock & Poultry Farm works with the Standard Exhibition Toulouse exclusively.

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Toulouse goose breed is heavy in size and mainly used for meat production and also for exhibition. The breed is an important meat producer and with its oversized liver, a source of foie gras. And the fluffy feathers of this goose breed are a good source of down feather. The breed is poor layer and not suitable for egg production.

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Like the other heavy goose breeds, the Toulouse are typically docile. They are known for their large square, broad bodies and fast growth rate. They gain weight rapidly when there is an abundance of food and no or little room for exercise.

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The geese with the dewlap variety lay 20-35 eggs per year. The Standard Exhibition type without dewlaps that are produced by Silver Prairie Stock & Poultry Farm, lay 25-40 eggs per year. Their eggs are extra large in size and white in color.

Toulouse geese are not good foragers. It is also incredibly important that producing birds are not overweight during the breeding season.