Are his feathers growing right?

[Miss Lydia]

Are you sure about the age? Sellers sometimes misinform. If you're absolutely positive about his age being six weeks, he does have a serious problem.

At six weeks they're supposed to look like this - my goose at five weeks, six days:


How do the other two look? Is he very different from them? If none of them are looking age-appropriate, they're probably not getting enough to eat.

Have you tried weighing him/them? At six weeks they should weigh about 8 lb. Mine weighed 8 lb. 6 oz. when she was six weeks old.

Her other 2 died from unknown causes.

 

[Carrosaur]

The other two, before they died, were maybe always a little less feathered than Pear, and much smaller. He's given food 24/7 and water, he doesn't have access to grass all day because we now think that the other two died from an impacted crop, as there was gas all in their stomachs like there was food that couldn't get there.
Do you think I got a bad hatch? Like these three were just destined to be a little behind?

 

[Carrosaur]

These are his feathers right now, he also has them on his belly.

 

[Miss Lydia]

These are his feathers right now, he also has them on his belly.

Honestly he doesn't look that far behind, so don't give up on him.. Geese are grazers and grass is their main diet, but some grasses are to tough for them to process so i have been doing some research on what is best to grow and haven't found alot of info but have so far planted winter rye for back i n the fall winter, it's finished now then i have perennial rye planted and they have been munching on it but since we have so much shade it's not doing real well so now i have sown some red fescue seems it does pretty good in our mt climate. It takes shade pretty good and is a soft grass. If your not letting him graze then i'd get Romaine lettuce for him daily because they really do need alot of greens. I don't know what kind of grass you have growing there but maybe they got hold of some tough long blades and couldn't process them. I found Sams club has big bags of Romaine for less than 5.00 a bag mine get a head a day. And then they forage when they want but grass is growing right now and getting established so they aren't getting as much as they were a week ago.

 

[Carrosaur]

Will try to get lettuce for him. I feel bad that he can't eat grass but I just can't lose him like I did Apple and Peaches.
It's good that he doesn't look as far behind as we thought. His tail feathers are growing really fast and so are the ones on his stomach.

 

[livininbrazil]

The other two, before they died, were maybe always a little less feathered than Pear, and much smaller. He's given food 24/7 and water, he doesn't have access to grass all day because we now think that the other two died from an impacted crop, as there was gas all in their stomachs like there was food that couldn't get there.
Do you think I got a bad hatch? Like these three were just destined to be a little behind?

Carrosaur, he´ll be fine. His feathers are fine, he´s just a little slower than some, like I already said, mine are slower to feather out than some others on these threads.


Here´s one of my girls, at about 4-5 weeks old. I have to say, too, that I´ve never noticed any feather development difference in mine between male and female.
But as regards not letting him on grass..he really should be on grass, it´s the best thing. However, they need grit. If the others had impacted crop, then I imagine they didn´t have access to grit?

 

[Carrosaur]

No, they never had grit. I just remembered seeing that if they lived outside 24/7 they could find grit in the ground....

 

[livininbrazil]

No, they never had grit. I just remembered seeing that if they lived outside 24/7 they could find grit in the ground....

Well, they will if it´s to be had, but if it´s thick grass, it won´t be available, so you´d need to give it. I give mine builder´s sand when they´re contained, but when they´re free-range they get the gravel out of the stream, and also they come up and eat the builder´s sand!

 

[Carrosaur]

Will pick up grit as soon as I can!!

 

[RURU]

This gosling looks fine except a bit on the small size. Make sure this baby get plenty of greens. Romaine hearts goslings just love them and chick grit to help baby digest the lettuce.... Keep offering different things to this baby to get it use to more than just lettuce. Give small apple pieces, watermelon, dandelion greens, grass you clip and bring in if you do not let it free range. You would not believe how much one gosling can eat of romaine hearts! Give red or green grapes cut up.