p Broody Geese._ A goose which shows a desire to sit, can be
broken up quite easily by confining her to a slat-bottomed coop without
any feed, but with plenty of water to drink, for from 2 to 4 days. After
being broken up she will generally commence laying again after an
interval of a few days.
_Hatching with an Incubator._ While it is more difficult to hatch goose
eggs in incubators than it is hen or duck eggs, this can be done by an
experienced operator with a fair degree of success. The incubator should
be operated at a temperature of 101.5 to 102.5 degrees F., with the
thermometer so placed that the bulb is on a level with the top of the
eggs. Beginning with the third day, the eggs should be turned twice a
day as with hens' eggs. Beginning about the tenth day, the eggs should
be cooled once a day, and they need more cooling than hens' eggs
require. They should be cooled down to a temperature of about 80 to 85
degrees. All goose eggs whether in incubators or under hens or geese
should be tested once during the hatch. The best time to do this is
sometime between the tenth and fourteenth days, when any infertile eggs
or dead germs should be thrown out.
_Moisture for Hatching Eggs._ Where eggs are being hatched in an
incubator, there is need for the use of considerable moisture. It should
be added first at about the end of the first week of incubation and
should be repeated a couple of times during the second week. This can
best be done by sprinkling the eggs liberally with water heated to about
100 degrees. Beginning with the 15th day and until 2 or 3 days before
the eggs are ready to hatch soak them in warm water for from one-half a
minute to a minute once every 2 or 3 days. For the last 2 or 3 days do
this daily.
When the eggs are being hatched by chicken hens or geese in nests
indoors or in boxes or barrels and in dry weather, moisture should be
added in the same manner and with the same frequency and amount as in
the incubator. When the nest is on damp ground, it is not necessary to
use any moisture on the eggs.
_Hatching._ Goslings as a rule hatch rather slowly and somewhat
unevenly, especially when under hens. For this reason it is well to
remove each gosling as it hatches from under the hen or goose and place
it in a covered, cloth-lined box or basket and keep near the stove
until the hatch is completed. As soon as the hatch is over, the goslings
that have been removed from the nest can be put back under the hen or
goose which is to be allowed