Best guard goose breeds?

[TwistedTayy]

We had a dog attack on our property which killed 4 of my ducks and injured a bunch of others to varying degrees. When I arrived on scene, my two Pilgrims (~8 weeks old, male and female) were separated and each guarding part of the total flock. I believe that if they weren't there, there would have been a lot more carnage and I am so proud of them! I definitely didn't choose Pilgrims for their guarding ability... mores BECAUSE they were smaller and quieter. I now have a greater appreciation for the guarding ability of geese however. I was thinking about getting some hatching eggs of some sort of breed so I was open to suggestions. I live kind of in the city so I dont want too loud like Chinese... but maybe a couple African or Toulouse?

 

[HeatherKellyB]

I don't have any advice but I just wanted to applaud you for having a pair instead of keeping one goose by themselves. Hopefully this will bump your post back to the feed and someone with knowledge will see it.

@Miss Lydia has geese and may be able to help

 

[keith14]

We had a dog attack on our property which killed 4 of my ducks and injured a bunch of others to varying degrees. When I arrived on scene, my two Pilgrims (~8 weeks old, male and female) were separated and each guarding part of the total flock. I believe that if they weren't there, there would have been a lot more carnage and I am so proud of them! I definitely didn't choose Pilgrims for their guarding ability... mores BECAUSE they were smaller and quieter. I now have a greater appreciation for the guarding ability of geese however. I was thinking about getting some hatching eggs of some sort of breed so I was open to suggestions. I live kind of in the city so I dont want too loud like Chinese... but maybe a couple African or Toulouse?

Most geese can be kept for guarding if not all. It just depends on how well they have established as a gosling. For a quiet goose, I would get an Embden.

 

[GranderTheGander]

Sorry for your loss and sorry, I don't understand . . . how can geese "guard" other birds from dogs that kill? I know they can certainly honk out warnings of impending danger, but how could they stop a dog attack, unless the dogs had a real fear of geese . . . a fear I can't picture dogs on a killing rampage would have. Such dogs would kill a goose as easily as they killed a duck.

 

[Faizan Ali]

Geese usually won't protect other fowls and are not the best guard animals but Chinese I think will be the best for atleast alerting you. You should get a guard dog if you can or fence your area if you can afford it. Geese cannot stop dogs. Dogs can kill goats, sheep's and even alpacas and will just do so for the fun. The only thing stopping me from getting geese is my dog.

 

[Callender Girl]

I am sorry to hear about the dog attack and your losses. I hope the injured ducks are able to fully recover.

My geese aren't guard animals but are certainly willing to let me know when someone approaches. They are American Buffs, offer a good bluff of bravado but are really big scaredy cats and are USUALLY pretty quiet. Except when the runner ducks settle in on the space by the house which the geese consider there own. Then, there is a mighty loud, but not very pretty, chorus of quacking and honking.

 

[TwistedTayy]

Sorry for your loss and sorry, I don't understand . . . how can geese "guard" other birds from dogs that kill? I know they can certainly honk out warnings of impending danger, but how could they stop a dog attack, unless the dogs had a real fear of geese . . . a fear I can't picture dogs on a killing rampage would have. Such dogs would kill a goose as easily as they killed a duck.

Geese usually won't protect other fowls and are not the best guard animals but Chinese I think will be the best for atleast alerting you. You should get a guard dog if you can or fence your area if you can afford it. Geese cannot stop dogs. Dogs can kill goats, sheep's and even alpacas and will just do so for the fun. The only thing stopping me from getting geese is my dog.

As mentioned by @Callender Girl its more about bravado and bluster. I know full well that dogs kill for sport. When I came upon the scene that day I knew it was a dog before I saw the dog. Firstly there were three laying dead with not a whole lot of carnage (Admittedly that’s relative) and secondly there were 3 dead And others injured. Most predators (in the day) would grab one and take it... coming back for another at a time. They are too exposed. My pilgrims are TINY lol compared to other geese and they were brave enough to stand their ground and hiss, honk and bluster at the dog. I definitely don’t believe a goose would be able to hurt a predator but the idea is the same as with guineas... the predator looks at them like ”eh not worth the trouble”. We are kinda on the edge of a country city, with a subdivision behind us and single family homes on other sides so there’s plenty of other places for food.

I know of a few cases in Europe where Geese are used to guard warehouses against people overnight and go out in the daytime. It’s kind of the same idea of using security dogs. If someone enters with a weapon but they are on the lookout for people and are suddenly confronted by a dog (much less a charging goose) that delay from surprise causes them to make mistakes and allows time for the human counterpart to apprehend the intruder. It’s said that dogs can also be bribed while geese cannot. No one expects geese to physically stand up to the intruders, predator or human, but just to make it look like they will.

Out of 19 ducks, my two little pilgrims saved 15 (all birds are juveniles too) so with those odds... I can’t discount the efficacy. I could have been left with none.

I’m looking for something more territorial and bigger than pilgrims that I could possibly crossbreed with the pilgrims.

Also, @Faizan Ali, lol I actually have two dogs already... a Treeing Walker Coonhound who would happily eat all the bird if given the chance (backyard and bird area are fenced separately) and a German shepherd who doesn’t care for the ducks or geese at all. She will go out with me and help me herd the ducks in their houses at night. In fact when we came upon the scene she corralled the intruder dog into the gooses run where I was able to trap it until calling it’s owners. She was very pleased with herself. The intelligence of animals amaze me. But she’s my protector and not a flock protector. If we were on more than 2 acres (were on just less), an LGD would be on the agenda for sure. So it’s just not right for us... right now lol But in the plans for the next property.

 

[TwistedTayy]

I don't have any advice but I just wanted to applaud you for having a pair instead of keeping one goose by themselves. Hopefully this will bump your post back to the feed and someone with knowledge will see it.

@Miss Lydia has geese and may be able to help

Thanks for the bump and shoutout! I actually incubated them... started with 7 eggs and two hatched but aware of the risk of having only a single egg hatch, I had bought the meat ducks (closest things to goose size I could find because goslings orders were booking 6-8 weeks in advance) for the lone goose to grow up with. Luckily I was blessed with not only two goslings, but a male and a female!

@Miss Lydia has been active and very helpful on my other threads and everyone else’s. She’s definitely the mother hen we all turn to when we’re in need. I definitely would have struggled so much starting this venture if not for BYC.

 

[Miss Lydia]

All I can say is my geese are wimps. When a red tail attacked my bantam hen the geese,ducks were all so terrified they had literally formed a fence up against the gate going into our back yard. Loud yes but to protect against a predator with teeth not so much. Someone is going to give up their life. It’s a miracle your 8 week old goslings survived along with the rest of the ducks that weren’t killed. I agree a LSGD would be best and good sturdy fencing.

 

[Faizan Ali]

All I can say is my geese are wimps. When a red tail attacked my bantam hen the geese,ducks were all so terrified they had literally formed a fence up against the gate going into our back yard. Loud yes but to protect against a predator with teeth not so much. Someone is going to give up their life. It’s a miracle your 8 week old goslings survived along with the rest of the ducks that weren’t killed. I agree a LSGD would be best and good sturdy fencing.

I agree. My neighbours keeps geese with pigeons and chickens. Chase or catch the chickens and pigeons the geese will not be bothered, go after a goose they will panic and wht not.