I bet you have never thought of raising geese on the homestead or farm as being something worthwhile. I hadn’t either but a friend suggested it so I had a look into these often maligned birds to see what they could offer.
Geese have great vision and make a lot of noise when hawks or foxes are around. They have a reputation as being somewhat difficult to handle but used in conjunction with other systems around the farm they can be a fabulous addition to the homestead. Knowing your context for the use of geese and how they will integrate into your operation will have you taking advantage of their traits and behaviors while getting the most out of the animals. Are geese worthwhile? In the right context and with the right systems in place, I would say definitely they are worthy of your consideration.
Good Lawnkeepers
A mob of snow white geese or soft grey birds with their elegant long necks and orange feet make beautiful looking lawnmowers. In fact, just 4 geese will eat as much grass as a single sheep. You don’t have to shear geese either unlike sheep. Geese are soft footed and tread lightly on your lawn or pasture where as sheep being a hoofed animal will compact your ground making it more difficult to grow lawn and pasture.
Geese need good quality grass, so don’t just put them in a dry old pastured paddock and expect it to be a manicured area any time soon. Geese need feeding grounds that are fairly short as their beaks are designed to crop short grass and they love lush grass. Unlike sheep, geese are hardy and don’t need drenching, shearing nor do they become flyblown. They won’t destroy your yard or creek banks.
Food
Geese are grazing animals – vegans – just like cattle. They won’t eat bugs or worms like chickens and ducks. They do love grain though and will strip the seeds heads of long grass or grain crops. They are also fantastic high jumpers, able to leap up and steal whatever is hanging in the orchard. They do however only need supplemental feeding if the grass is a bit light on or in die back. Giving them a small can of corn each night before tucking them into bed will keep them satisfied. To help them grind the grass in their gut they shovel up sand or dirt with their food. If you don’t have any bare earth you may need to provide them with grit or sand.
Noise
There is no other way to say this. Geese can be extremely noisy in large numbers, to the point where you almost need to don earmuffs to feed them. This is one large drawback and they don’t have what you would call a melodious call. It is more like a group of footy fans trying to yodel after too much of the happy juice. But in smaller numbers they are bearable, – the geese that is not the footy fans.
Company
Geese tend to need the company of other geese and are extemely devoted. A lone goose will try to quickly establish a one-sided relationship with another animal or human if it does not have the company of its own kind. So best to buy them in pairs at the very least.
Mating
Geese are much more civil than chickens when it comes to mating. Unlike roosters the mating of gander to his goose is a gentle affair and includes mutual consent. A pair will faithfully bond for life. They begin breeding when two years old and are normally monogamous. A gander can mate with four to five geese if you have more females than males. A word of warning though – if you have more males than females there will be lots of boy brawls for months at a time during winter and spring.
The goose will usually lay only 1 clutch of up to 10 eggs per year unless you swipe them for eating. Depending on the breed you may get up to 50 eggs a year using this method. Geese are ferocious protectors of their young so don’t be tempted to pick up that cute and fluffy gosling unless you want to experience the fury of its parents.
Water
Geese are water birds by nature and look stunning when on the water. They mate on water, they like to shovel up sand and grit from river beds and their eggs need to be humidified by the mothers wet belly regularly. Their wet feet act as a natural air conditioner to cool themselves on hot days. They need large amounts of fresh water – so if you are thinking of keeping geese you will need a decent size pond or river. Some people will tell you they only need enough to be able to wet their feet and heads but unless you are planning on hosing them down in the hot weather and never having any babies it is probably better to provide them with plenty of space within the water.
Normally, wild geese will migrate to a cooler climate (their down of feathers would be quite hot I imagine) but domestic birds are bred to waddle not fly so they have to be able to handle the climate year round. If you have a creek or dam you can build a number of smaller water baths from childrens wading pools. Just site them where you will get the optimum advantage from their poop and water on the ground.
Herding
Geese are the easiest animals to move around. If you have a big mob they can split into two groups which will have you running back and forth like a Kelpie. So keep your mob small and they will easily move in front of you with out any fuss. Walk calmly behind with arms slightly extended or a stick calmly waved to and fro. You will soon have them doing what you need. Getting them to go through unfamiliar gateways can be a problem, but quiet persistance and allowing them space and time to think about it usually sees them through. In times of old, a local boy or villager would often be given the job of herding the geese out to pasture each day. (ah the simple life)
Poop
These birds are prodigious pooers. But unlike duck and chicken poop it is not offensive. Goose poop is just processed grass and is very loose. It disintergrates quickly either after rain or sun. The goose pen will provide copious amounts of lovely slushy manure to add to the compost pile. So positon your coop close to the veggie patch or composter for reduced work. In summer when the poop dries out it is perfect for adding directly to your veggie patch as a fine top dressing. It is also useful in small amounts when making your own pulp paper. It gives a lovely natural and even fleck to the paper.
Some farmers claim cows and geese don’t mix as their copious droppings foul the pasture and fussy cows won’t eat the grass. I have never experienced this and I feel the gooses calling card is to short lived to be a problem.
Types
Geese come in a variety of types and sizes. Toulouse, Embden and Chinese are some of the most commonly kept breeds. For some Pilgrim or Scottish geese are much more appropriate due to their passive nonaggressive natures. It is true that some geese make excellent guard animals due to their aggressive behaviour when strangers come calling. If you are looking for this trait the common birds are for you. If not then perhaps the Scottish Goose is more to your liking. An added benefit of the Scottish Goose is the males are white and the females grey making telling them apart easy.
The Toulouse is the giant of the goose world. They are grey and white and often weigh as much as 12kilograms or 25 pounds. Embden are white beauties and slightly smaller. The Chinese goose is very attractive and exotic looking with slender neck and a knob on the head where the beak joins. They are often an unusual brown colour.
Lodgings
You can keep ten birds per acre on poorer pastures and up to 20 on good grass similar to that you would keep a cow on. Foxes wil always be a problem so you must pen them at night. Whether you have a city or country property, foxes are determined and your shelter will need to be sturdy. Ensure they have a large water container for the hours they will be locked away for their safety. If you want to fatten them for the plate, they will need appropriate shelter to keep them warm in the cooler months – otherwise they will be burning precious energy to keep warm.
Geese love dry bedding and protection from the elements, but do yourself a favour and make it easy to clean out. During thunderstorms and rain events most animals will head for shelter – but don’t be surprised if your geese are out in the paddock whooping it up. They love a good storm.
Nesting
Around midwinter the ganders will start arguing and becoming quite protective of their ladies and by late winter geese start touring their territory. Like newlyweds out touring display homes, geese check out all the likely nest sites that might suit. If you what a goose needs are, you can provide them with ready-made maternity wards to ensure they don’t go off nesting in the reeds down at the creek and end up on the Fox’s menu.
Large tea chests or 44 gallon drums on their sides lined with plenty of dry straw or grass makes a good spot to nest but they will want to be secluded as well. Anywhere that can be fox-proofed at night is a good idea. They are extremely vulnerable and unable to defend themselves for the 30 days it takes to hatch the goslings. This is the time when the ganders will fire up if there is any threat perceived or otherwise to Mother Goose.
She will lay an ever second day until there are 8 -16. She will then sit on them having scraped the dirt or nesting material into a small depression. She will rise daily for a small feed and her necessary ablutions – during this time she will have covered the eggs to keep them hidden until she returns.
Babies
A newly hatched gosling is as cute as can be but don’t be tempted to pick one up or you will experience the rath of two very protective parents. As with chooks, the mother goose is best left alone while the little ones are hatching. If she is disturbed and has to get up and stomp about in agitation or defensiveness then squashed babies are a certainty.
The goslings can survive for a day or two under mum without being taken out to feed. They have enough yolk in their bellies to tide them over. They will start pulling and tugging at blades of grass imitating mum and dad almost immediately. Make sure there is some shallow water for them to drink or paddle in. You can try giving them wheat or chicken kibble but it is really not necessary and the parents are more likely to gobble it up before the young ones get the chance.
Gosling Care
Goslings get waterlogged! Strange as it may seem baby goslings are not yet waterproof. A good shower of rain or a waddle through wet grass can be the end of them. When they get soggy they cannot keep up with the others and fall by the wayside. They will die of cold if not rescued.
Early spring mornings after rain is the worst. Hunting through long grass to find soaked goslings is not my idea of a fun time. They appear wet through, comatosed and yellow. I warm spot such as under a doona or close to a hotwater bottle with a towel over it for an hour or so will dry them out, warm them up and have them ready to rejoin the rest of the flock.
If they get to cold goslings can appear dead to the point where they are stretched out and stiff but a little gentle heat can revive them. Mum will often shelter the goslings until the rain stops only to lead them off for a walk through long wet grass. So keep a close eye on them until they are roughly a month old.
Be sure to keep them safe from Mr Fox as well.
Catching Geese
Besides a mean bite Geese also pack a punch. They use their wings to deal the blow and it can really hurt. To disable both defence systems at once takes a fast confident action and practice. Simply grab the neck loosely (not a stranglehold) then quickly gather up the body with the other arm being sure to pin the wings down. Never drop a goose but rather lower them down and let them go. To do otherwise could result in broken bones for the goose and injury to yourself.
Meat
If you watn to know how to kill and dress a goose I suggest you do an online search or speak to a butcher. Goose meat is a lot like any other bird and tastes similar to turkey. They are good meat birds and require only simple preparations. That is after you catch them.
