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This study was conducted to determine the effect of feeding frequency on growth performance, carcass traits, and apparent nutrient digestibility in geese from 28 to 70 D of age. In experiment 1, a total of 240 geese were distributed in a completely randomized design into 4 treatments and 6 replicates of 10 birds each. The treatments were free access to the feeder (ad libitum) and access to the feeder 3, 4, and 5 times daily. Geese fed 3 times daily had a lower ( P < 0.05) BW, ADG, and ADFI and a higher ( P = 0.064) feed conversion ratio ( FCR ) from 28 to 41 D of age compared with the other groups. Geese fed 4 times daily had a higher ( P < 0.05) ADG and ADFI and a lower ( P < 0.05) FCR from 42 to 55 D of age compared with ad libitum fed geese. Geese fed 3 times daily had a higher ( P < 0.05) ADG from 56 to 69 D of age than geese fed ad libitum and 4 times daily. No differences ( P > 0.05) in BW, ADFI, ADG, and FCR were observed between ad libitum and feeding frequency groups from 28 to 69 D of age. Carcass traits and gastrointestinal development were not affected ( P > 0.05) by feeding frequency. In experiment 2, the apparent nutrient digestibility in geese from 71 to 77 D of age fed using different feeding frequencies was determined using the total fecal collection method. Feeding frequency did not affect ( P > 0.05) the apparent digestibility of DM, CP, crude ash, calcium, phosphorous, or ether extract in geese. Our study demonstrates for the first time that compensatory growth can be gained by enhancing feed intake when a lower feeding frequency is imposed on geese. Both ad libitum feeding and fixed feeding frequency for 3 to 5 times daily are suitable for geese from 28 to 70 D of age to achieve optimum production.

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This study was conducted to investigate the effect of stocking density on growth performance, feather quality, serum hormone, and intestinal development of geese from 1 to 14 d of age. A total of 450 one-day-old geese were randomly allotted to 45 battery cage (0.65 m × 0.62 m) pens according to 5 stocking densities (15, 20, 25, 30, and 35 birds/m 2 ). The results showed that ADG and ADFI were reduced ( P < 0.05) as stocking density increased from 15 to 35 birds/m 2 , but increasing stocking density did not influence ( P > 0.05) feed conversion ratio ( FCR ) and body measurement traits. High stocking density significantly decreased ( P < 0.05) the feather quality of back, thoracoabdominal, wing, and tail. No significant difference ( P > 0.05) was found in serum concentration of adrenocorticotrophic hormone, cortisol, corticosterone, triiodothyronine, and thyroxine. The weight of cecum and intestine decreased ( P < 0.05) as the stocking density increased. Increasing stocking density decreased ( P < 0.05) jejunal villus height and villus height-to-crypt depth ratio, and increased ( P < 0.05) jejunal crypt depth and ileal crypt depth in geese. Consequently, the high stocking density could depress the growth and impaired feather quality and intestinal development of geese. Under our experimental conditions, we recommend that the stocking density of geese from 1 to 14 d of age should not more than 20 birds/m 2 .

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