2020 Gosling Hatch-A-Long

[bgill1215]

Day three on my nine goose eggs, and only one showing the tiny dark spot I'm looking for. I'll give them seven days of course, but... Well I guess if if it turns out there's only one (if it makes the journey successfully) it can be with the ducklings. By the time it hatches they'll likely be almost as big as it is. There're loads of duck itty-bitties doing really well in their incubator next to the goose eggs.

I was looking in The Book of Geese on fertility. Holderread says not to attempt to incubate eggs from breeding stock under two years old. I've read the whole book but I guess I kind of selectively "forgot" that bit...

It's only day 3. Give it some time. I didn't have my eggs until day 5. I also have 2 eggs in there from 1 year olds and both are developing just fine. Out of 14 eggs 10 wre fertile. And 9 have made it to 14

 

[CindyinSD]

Well, hopefully. we shall see. If not this year, then next. Maybe I need another gander... Maybe three geese are just too many for him. If these don't develop I may try some shipped eggs.

 

[CindyinSD]

I Have SPIDERS!!!
Nine eggs with beautiful spiders and two with little red dots!!!

Honestly I was going to wait until seven days but I'm rotating them anyway and candling them takes like two seconds, so... Yesterday there was nothing but a possibly wishful thinking little pink smudge on one egg.

 

[Phillisy]

I didn’t even realize there was a goose hatching thread!
I’m hatching Sebbie’s for the first time this year, and currently have 7 at various stages of development in my incubator.
I’ve been candling so much already this year (chickens, ducks, and geese) that I’m now able to tell if the ducks and geese are developing within the first 24hrs gotta love bright candlers, white eggs, and the keen eyes of impatience.

 

[servpolice]

Update on the 2 gozzies, growing fast! Still think male and female

Love the photos everyone is posting!

 

[Gray Farms]

Two more this morning

 

[CindyinSD]

So sweet!

 

[Pyxis]

My geese are finally laying! Got the first egg today. I'll collect a few and then set them.

 

[servpolice]

 

[ColtHandorf]

@Pyxis @Miss Lydia @Gray Farms and all the other gosling experts out there...

So the seven babies are doing amazing. They follow Georgia and Golly around everywhere (I now know how my short friend feels when she's walking behind me...lol). They've gotten a little braver and pop in and out of both the chain-link fence and the welded wire fence to graze on grass that must be much tastier than the grass in the yard. Their parents do not at all approve of this and I for one will be very glad in a couple more days when they are too big to do it anymore.

All the grazing has led me to my question:

I do have unmedicated starter down for them in low dishes along with several small water containers (don't get me started on Golly and Georgia introducing them to the not so very small med puddle in the center of the yard) but they are grazing, a lot. In fact I'd say that 90-95% of what they are eating is fresh green grass. Is there a problem with that, nutritionally or otherwise? I would like to avoid any leg problems or angel wing if possible with the little sprouts.

Also as a fun observation:

Georgia absolutely hates the barn swallows that nest here every year. She will literally jump up, straight of the ground, bill open and hissing away at them as they swoop around catching little bugs. Golly doesn't seem to mind them and I'm not sure the babies even notice them. But it is quite cute. I know she's trying to protect them from what she sees as a fast-moving over-head threat.

The goslings also surprised me by showing fear of the big scary hose that came out to fill the pool for their parents who are bathing a lot. Golly and Georgia stepped right over it and kept on grazing/walking, but the goslings were quite distressed. lol They'd each bravely get close and leap up and over it to race after their parents. It was super cute.

Edite to add: I also performed a partial egg-topsy on the eighth unhatched egg and just opening the portion with the air cell showed a large amount of fuzzy-grey bacterial or fungal growth. I didn't even bother looking any further and tossed it. But has anyone ever seen that? I know I haven't with chicken eggs.