Wet goose?

[BrukeyBrooke]

Just adopted a second goose, really a first goose for my gander since he thinks he’s a duck… anyhow, isolation was brutal and introductions are going swimmingly I’ll ask later about encouraging them to bond, but for now, my biggest question is about her feathers. When my gander swims, his feathers look dry almost instantly; the water just falls off. I think this is a sign of health. When my new girl swims, she looks soaked for quite some time. See this pic where she looks like a wet dog. (That water was clear an hour ago, for the record.) Is this poor health? Aging? (She is reportedly three years old.) Something else?

 

[Goosebaby]

Just adopted a second goose, really a first goose for my gander since he thinks he’s a duck… anyhow, isolation was brutal and introductions are going swimmingly I’ll ask later about encouraging them to bond, but for now, my biggest question is about her feathers. When my gander swims, his feathers look dry almost instantly; the water just falls off. I think this is a sign of health. When my new girl swims, she looks soaked for quite some time. See this pic where she looks like a wet dog. (That water was clear an hour ago, for the record.) Is this poor health? Aging? (She is reportedly three years old.) Something else?

She might not be preening enough, their waterproofing comes from the oil in their preen gland which they rub all over their body, that’s my best guess anyway.

 

[BrukeyBrooke]

Good point. I will keep an eye on that.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

Congratulations on your growing gaggle!

Wet feather can have a number of potential causes, diet and oil gland issues being a couple. This site has more info on the condition that you may find helpful.

 

[BrukeyBrooke]

Congratulations on your growing gaggle!

Wet feather can have a number of potential causes, diet and oil gland issues being a couple. This site has more info on the condition that you may find helpful.

Great info! Thank you! I’ve seen her trying to preen and reach back to her oil gland. Her prior owner didn’t feed her proper waterfowl food nor maintain clean grounds. I imagine it is a combination of things, and I will keep an eye on her. Thanks again!

 

[The goose girl]

When my geese just swim, water falls off their bodies. One good shake, and they look dry as toast. But when they really get into it with hard core bathing (rigorous splashing, lots of honking and wing-flapping, underwater swimming), they look as wet as your goose, and it takes them a while to dry - at least an hour, depending on weather conditions.

Could it be your new goose is bathing more intensely than your gander? Now that she finally has access to clean water and clean conditions, she'll want to take advantage of it. Also, her plumage is probably a bit damaged from the lack of clean grounds. Molting season will take care of that!

 

[BrukeyBrooke]

Thanks again for the replies, especially the article from FoodFreedomNow. I did some more inspecting and watching, ruled out any bugs, determined this is probably from poor diet and dirty conditions at her prior home. I was able to get her in to an exotic vet (our normal place has one who sees exotics, but she was booked out a few weeks). She got a clean bill of health. Cadie girl is a little underweight, and the vet approved of our feed, suggesting she’ll probably look amazing after a few months of good diet. I was thrilled by how thoroughly she checked out my new goose, and I feel good about adopting this pretty girl.

 

[FoodFreedomNow]

That's great news! Cadie lucked out, coming home with you. Glad you found an avian vet you like, too. Best to you and your new goose!

 

[GeeseGoose]

She might not be preening enough, their waterproofing comes from the oil in their preen gland which they rub all over their body, that’s my best guess anyway.

I agree. She probably doesn’t “gussy up” frequently enough