The Accidental Smallholder Forum
Livestock => Poultry & Waterfowl => Topic started by: mojocafa on January 12, 2015, 11:31:13 am
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I have a trio of buff backed geese, the goose has chosen his gander and they are not being very pleasant to the other gander. What will I do...
... Keep her separated and she can live alongside chickens or try to rehome
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Are the two pied geese both girls? I was going to say you have to separate ganders in breeding season but then it looks like you've got only one gander and two geese? I'd keep an eye on the situation. In theory you should be able to have one gander, two geese and he should look after both of them. If it doesn't work out, yes, you'll need to rehome her because geese need other geese really (apparently in Switzerland it's actually illegal to keep a solitary goose) so it wouldn't be fair to keep her with the chickens long term.
H
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Start again... :thinking:
The gander has chosen his goose! And life for the other goose is not good, she is free ranging alongside ducks and chickens but is honking a lot! When with the other two they keep chasing her away!
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Or get another gander and have two pairs? Would need to have separate houses though....
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When we have had more geese than Ganders the Ganders have always covered the spare geese and have gone on the hatch goslings out.
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Have they always been together or is one goose a recent addition? Geese are a bit stand-offish with "strangers" and can take months to accept them, even when introducing a gander to spinster geese!
If this is the case then give them a bit more time, if not then find a friendlier home for her, maybe?
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I got them as a trio about 6 month ago, it's only now that this is happening
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can you increase the number of geese by hatching out some goslings? it might help.
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how odd! never heard of this before, I have always kept my geese in a mixed flock and they just get on with it! There is the odd squabble but nothing more serious than just establishing the pecking order. I personally would not separate them unless the aggression is really bad... it may just be hormones and deciding who is going to get first dibs on nesting spaces etc... if you keep them apart it will be much more tricky to reintroduce them later on. I hope it all works out!
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Cheers folks, will keep an eye on things, will try keeping them together a bit longer
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Ours are in a mixed flock too. nine geese and five ganders. There's usually a bit of squabling just before the breeding season but they get on fine otherwise. I wouldn't split them up because it will take a good while to get them back together again. Sounds like you might have one goose and two ganders there which would be bound to cause a bit of scrapping.
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Yep that may well be the problem, two boys?
Never seen the girls falling out like that
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No I'm sure I have two girls as they are both buff backed, boys are white.
It's predominately the boy chasing away a girl
Away to do some googling,
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ahh yes that could be the problem! I just thought they had been sexed when you got them! With buff backs both sexes are the same colour so one could be a male. Its pilgrims and west of englands that have white males and the grey/ grey and white girls.
You may well have been sold two males and a female :( I would recommend learning how to vent sex (its veryyyy easy) and this way when you buy young geese or goslings you can just sex them before taking them home!
Youtube has vids on this, it works for ducks too.
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Aha - so all buff backs are buff backed? I'd assumed they were autosexing like my woe. So the white gander isn't a buff back at all? Where did you get them?
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the one in front be a gander by the look of him. which one is being bullied? does it act like a goose or a gander with you?
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Aha - so all buff backs are buff backed? I'd assumed they were autosexing like my woe. So the white gander isn't a buff back at all? Where did you get them?
Yup all buff backs are buff backs, they are not autosexing! The white gander would be a different breed!
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Oooh nooooooooo, have I been fleeced! Wobble or bloomer didn't you get geese at the same time from the same guy?
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Does anyone have shetland geese? Have I got Shetlands or buff backs or a shetland boy and a buff back boy.
Totally confused?
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Ok, click on the photo, the middle bird has a different tail, I bet this is the girl and the other two are boys
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See, your instincts were right - they came out in your very first post! So off to find another goose or two.....or get back to that breeder!
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O m g
What I thought was a boy is in a run with chickens and I have just found an goose egg which would suggest its a girl after all
:thumbsup:
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Oooh nooooooooo, have I been fleeced! Wobble or bloomer didn't you get geese at the same time from the same guy?
Sorry, just seen this (and I take it you were after me? ;) ). Our geese are just common as muck commercial white geese. I can't even say they're Embdens for sure, though they pretty much meet the description.
I'd LIKE to get some different geese, possibly a rare breed something or other, I just haven't got around to it yet. Also our current geese lay so prolifically and over such a long season, I'm loathe to get rid of them in favour of something inferior!
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Only way to be suree is to vent sex them not to hard to do
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Which one had you separated out? I'd have thought eggs were a pretty good way to sex for sure! No need to upend her....