Advice needed - gosling hatching, imprinting

[felys]

Hello friends and goose experts...

I need advice on gosling imprinting. My gosling is in the midst of hatching from egg. Externally pipped and slowly making its way out.

He or she is the only egg that reached this point due to unfortunate circumstances.

I read that goose that imprint on humans will not mate. But I do want him (hopefully him) to breed. Hopefully with my other female goose that is about 6 months old, in future.

With the age difference, I obviously cannot put them together now.

How do I let this new gosling know that he is a goose and later mate with other goose?

I attach a screenshot from a website that I found through Google... That I am not sure is correct or not...

Thank you in advance

 

[sourland]

Provide him with a mirror so that he knows he is a goose. I had a human imprinted gander as a kid. When he was 2 or 3 years old I bought a half a dozen goslings. Within days he adopted them and eventually paired with one of the females.

 

[felys]

Provide him with a mirror so that he knows he is a goose. I had a human imprinted gander as a kid. When he was 2 or 3 years old I bought a half a dozen goslings. Within days he adopted them and eventually paired with one of the females.

Thanks. I'll try that.

The gosling hatched .. currently still in the incubator drying off. Poor thing is crying

 

[Goosebaby]

He or she will be fine. Geese are pretty adaptable, even if they’ve been raised by humans they figure out that they’re geese when they see other geese and spend time with them, but it doesn’t affect how they feel about their humans. Age doesn’t play much of a factor either, they’ll still adjust even as adults.

Geese bond based on who they’re around the most, bonding is something that can evolve as social dynamics change and new idividuals come into their life.

If you raise them and spend a lot of time with them that makes you their parent, they’ll still bond with other people and other birds regardless of their relationship with you.
Once they become adults and breeding season comes they’ll most likely start propositioning you, this won’t affect their ability to bond with other birds, it’s just a temporary hormonal thing, they’ll even get frisky with inanimate objects, things will go back to normal after breeding season.

If you stop spending time with them they take it personally, and may decide it’s because you don’t like them, and they may decide to not like you as much.


Some bird species like sandhill cranes and kakapo won’t breed with their own kind if they’ve imprinted on humans or so I’ve heard “I wouldn’t know, I don’t work with these species” but domestic geese are more socially adaptable so it isn’t a big risk.
That being said, geese are all highly individualistic so there’s always the chance there are some out there who could be that way, but I haven’t seen it.

 

[felys]

He or she will be fine. Geese are pretty adaptable, even if they’ve been raised by humans they figure out that they’re geese when they see other geese and spend time with them, but it doesn’t affect how they feel about their humans. Age doesn’t play much of a factor either, they’ll still adjust even as adults.

Geese bond based on who they’re around the most, bonding is something that can evolve as social dynamics change and new idividuals come into their life.

If you raise them and spend a lot of time with them that makes you their parent, they’ll still bond with other people and other birds regardless of their relationship with you.
Once they become adults and breeding season comes they’ll most likely start propositioning you, this won’t affect their ability to bond with other birds, it’s just a temporary hormonal thing, they’ll even get frisky with inanimate objects, things will go back to normal after breeding season.

If you stop spending time with them they take it personally, and may decide it’s because you don’t like them, and they may decide to not like you as much.


Some bird species like sandhill cranes and kakapo won’t breed with their own kind if they’ve imprinted on humans or so I’ve heard “I wouldn’t know, I don’t work with these species” but domestic geese are more socially adaptable so it isn’t a big risk.
That being said, geese are all highly individualistic so there’s always the chance there are some out there who could be that way, but I haven’t seen it.

Thanks for the information... I'm glad to know that. I don't want them to be too dependant on me. Cos I work full time, they will be spending time out in a fenced garden most of the time.

 

[Goosebaby]

Also bonding or imprinting isn’t a sudden thing, it takes time and is something that requires maintenance, so if two geese don’t hit it off immediately it’s normal.
Just like with people though, sometimes they just don’t like each other and there isn’t much to do about it. When introduced to each other at a young age that’s less likely to happen though.