[HesterF]

My two year old gander has become a little unsteady on his feet. I first noticed it yesterday afternoon, gave him his afternoon feed and cleaned out his water in the hope it was something simple but he's still unbalanced today. He can walk around OK, it's just when he stretches his head up or something he topples over backwards a bit and has to take a step backwards.

I've left a message with the vets and will try and get some direct dosage wormer because I don't think they eat enough pellets at this time of year for Flubenvet to work.

Any other thoughts? There probably is ragwort in their area although not a lot - would that affect him? I swapped the ganders over on Easter Monday so he is in a different area to the one he was before (and with a different goose) so I don't know whether that's relevant. They also chew at the weed matting around the trees but again not sure whether that would make him wobbly and that's certainly not a new habit. Other than that mostly it's grass with a few docks, nettles, dandelions and thistles and probably other general grassy weeds but nothing too tall.

[chrismahon]

Like you HesterF, I suspected worms to be the reason. But you really should clear all the ragwort in the area. I thought it was a legal requirement to keep ragwort under control anyway? Not sure if he would eat it or what the effects would be but I wouldn't take that risk myself. Has he a crop impaction?

[HesterF]

I do try and clear the ragwort whenever I see it but the field next door has it all along the fenceline so unless we take to killing it their side too, it'll continue to seed our side. I didn't think geese have crops? I think they sort of fill their necks in the same way chickens and ducks fill their crops at night. That's my understanding from my goose bible anyway. He's certainly still eating and drinking OK.

I'm still waiting on the vet to ring back - glad it's not urgent (hopefully!).

[shygirl]

i think the law is to not allow ragwort (or thistles and docks) to spread onto someone elses land.
if it was poisoning from ragwort, it would liver failure, though i dont know the symptoms of that in geese.

[chrismahon]

You are quite right HesterF. They don't have a crop as such they just have an enlarged 'throat' which they fill.