Ducklings + Goslings

[Wild Hair]

That's no good. I've been working on my fence and will be expecting it to keep out predators. I don't feel like my geese will be protecting my flock in the sense they ward of predators. I just felt more comfortable leaving my ducks a couple blocks away with a few big geese in there. I know how curious and stupid some of the local folk can get. But I also know that a big goose that doesn't want you around can be very intimidating. It would go the same, I feel, for cats and skunks.

 

[jake and pippa]

I think guinea hens can be the most effective at raising an alarm. But then again many people don't like having them because they are so noisy. Your neighbors may object. In my case my husband objected, and they were eaten and not replaced.

 

[jake and pippa]

I agree that the geese will ward off stray people. Many people are afraid of geese, especially those that were chased as children. Even though my geese are very protective of their young they never threaten me.

 

[DuckGirl77]

I think a good fence will keep out the daytime predators. I'm not worried about my welded wire fence I have for the chickens, but my ducks have to be in their coop by 7:00 p.m. or someone has to be outside with them since they are either in a chicken wire fence or free ranging, not in a good fence. I'd feel safer somehow with a couple geese, though.
Maybe guineas are something to look into. I'll have to look them up.

 

[Wild Hair]

I'm in the middle of making my 5 1/2 ft chickenwire fence dig-proof. It will have an additional foot of fencing sloped out like a security fence to deter climbers. At night I plan on shutting the ducks up in a box, in a smaller, more predator-proof, room. The geese will stay in the room as well, just not locked in a box. It's being built in an old lean-to that's attached to an older garage. I plan on herding them out each night to graze for an hour or so and locking them in their safe-room around dark.

 

[jake and pippa]

Our three geese and their six goslings graze all day every day within an electric netting which can be moved and is solar powered. Sometimes they just get to go out and play unescorted. We do have deer netting around a large part of the property so they can't wander too far, within that area we have some woods and fields and unfortunately garden that they can reach. Our geese prefer grass over just about anything. Actually their favorite food appears to be dandelions.

 

[Wild Hair]

Sounds like your poor geese have it rough!

 

[chwychuro]

Just thought I'd update a photo of Cosmo. Just to make sure she still may be a she and still looking like yours. She's also starting to get a stripe down the back of her kneck and a small dewlap is forming

 

[Wild Hair]

She does still look a lot like our Gloria. Here's my most recent photo of her. Her dewlap isn't nearly the size of Gilbert's. And his neck is so much longer than hers. She also does more sticking out her neck than the male.

You can see her sticking her neck straight up next to my male who's got his neck all scrunched up. Then you see her sticking her neck out forward which is what I was talking about above. She does it so much more than Gilbert.

 

[DuckGirl77]

They're so big! Are the ducklings feathering out as quickly as they are?