Do geese make good pets

[BlueO]

Hi simple question. I would like to get a pair of geese next year. But I have ducks and I’m going to get chickens. Does anybody know if geese make good flock member or should I give up and put it out of my head.

 

[peafowl_Lover]

I got my goose Dandelion as a gosling. So she is friendly. This was when i brought her to a show. She came first place!

 

[rootandbloom]

My Sebastopol goose and Toulouse gander are super friendly and puppylike. They live happily with ducks and chickens and don't bother anyone. They run over to check out guests but they don't bite. They run to me and the kids because they want to follow us all around. They only let me pet them though and definitely act like I'm "mom." They will sit on my deck and peck at the sliding glass door until I give them attention. The gander gets so excited to see me he flies over and crashes into me making a ruckus. They're my favorite birds. My setup is: large coop all birds sleep together in at night, free range on 23 acres with pond during the day.

 

[New duck mommy 2021]

I really didn’t think I wanted a goose
But somehow when I went to get my ancona duckling my Stella ended up in the car too ( may 4 /2023)
She was 4 weeks old and not for sale
My friend hatched them for herself and even did dna testing
My daughter who is 29 years old
Somehow got me convinced to take Stella and Jess convinced to sell her
( we banned her from future pick ups )
Stella grew up with the ducks , she thought she was one
Very friendly girl. She loves cuddles , jumping on my lap
Kisses and pets
A few weeks back I saw her trying to mate with my ducks
A different lady I knew happened to have 3 mature ganders same breed She brought him over and he immediately ran to Stella. Hasn’t left her side since
I was worried about a gander being older and new to us
But he has been great
I caught him trying to mate her yesterday ( he missed the target ) and she started to lay eggs last Saturday ( so far 5 eggs )
So even with them in a cycle of mate and eggs both are not aggressive towards us or the 19 ducks
They are all out together in the day but night time I do have separated pens in the coop
I wouldn’t want to chance those geese getting my ducks in an enclosed pen
I also have a few drakes that like to fight now and then so every little group has their own safe place at night
Stella and Gary will make noise if the boys fight
They stand over them yelling like crazy
So I’m not sure if a predator came what they would do
Probably just yell
My two are Pomeranian saddleback
Stella is buff and Gary is grey/ brown
In spring / summer if they go back into a cycle I would love to hatch a few from them
The temperament is perfect !!

 

[Goosebaby]

Chicken math applies to geese. I started out with two, somehow I now have 11. They have individual personalities and are amusing, they can be very loving if you spend time with them.
I would say they make excellent pets, but like other birds they aren’t as easy keepers as dogs.

From my experience geese will generally tolerate ducks “I don’t have chickens,” but it’s not always a peaceful flock when you mix them, it has a lot to do with everyone’s individual personalities and hormones.

Currently my geese and ducks get along fine as long as the ducks don’t invade the personal space of the geese, keeping a two foot distance keeps the geese comfortable.
several years ago this wasn’t the case, I had some ducks decide to bully some of my geese and the geese only put up with it for so long until ”Friday” my goose that was getting the worst of the bullying put a stop to it by beating my drake within an inch of his life.
for a long time my geese were hostile to ducks in general but they’ve since recovered from it and are fairly tolerant now.

So you can keep a multi species flock but:
make sure they have adequate space so birds can get away from a potential attack.
Keep an eye out for discord in the flock, if you have one that keeps starting drama maybe separate that one with a friend from the others.
Keep separate night pens/coops for different species.
Ducks are more instinctual than geese so breeding hormones make them extra spicy and they really don’t understand the concept of not poking the dragon.
Geese get hormonal usually between late fall and winter and it lasts into spring, their ability to reason takes a dive and violent intrusive thoughts are more likely to control them, so ducks and chickens are more likely to trigger them.

 

[BlueO]

Thank you all very helpful

 

[peafowl_Lover]

Thank you it's better to have atleast 2 geese because they will get lonely I only have 1 because her sister clover passed away from unknown causes. Dandelion spends her days trying to bite the hens and the ducks through the fence! I will get another goose soon.

 

[Callender Girl]

I have two American Buff geese, which are generally fairly docile as a breed. Gussie and Golly were the last two goslings in a brooder at the local farm store. They weren't the breed I initially wanted, but they were so darned cute.

They are loose with my runner ducks and chickens during the day, but house in their own separate shelter. They are not aggressive with people. However, occasionally I will annoy them and I get the stretched-neck, hissing reaction. It passes quickly when I return the gesture (good thing I don't have any close neighbors to watch my impression of a haughty goose). And, they get agitated when I steal their eggs in the spring.

They don't hurt the ducks, but have a tendency to "herd" the runners. Ducks will be minding their own business, lying quietly, and the geese will -- for no apparent reason but their own enjoyment -- walk up behind the ducks, who immediately get up and move, single file, somewhere else.

It's a mixed bag with chickens. Gussie and Golly sometimes nip at my Buff Orpington, but appear terrified of my Colombian Wyandotte who will chase the much larger geese across the yard.

On the down side, the geese nibble at everything. I need to replace some wood trim along the patio doors because chunks are missing. I already threw out a wooden loveseat that they enthusiastically munched on.

I think they have a sense of humor. Gussie once snagged one of my cleaning gloves and made me chase her through the yard to get it back.

Some people want geese as guard animals. Mine wouldn't care if an eagle grabbed every other bird on the property. But, the geese are good at sounding the alarm when there's an eagle or hawk overhead, and few visitors get past them without some very loud honking.

I love all of my critters, but honestly, the goose girls have the most personality of all the poultry.

If you decide to get geese (and I think it's a great idea), you're right, you really should get at least two if possible. My girls rarely leave each other's side, and when they do, they start calling to one another to make sure they know where their sibling is.

 

[Jenbirdee]

i have 2 geese 2 chickens and 12 ducks. my ducks and chickens get along ok, but i keep my geese separated by a fence all the time. i tried putting them together but the geese were attacking the ducks.
not everyone has the same experience. but that’s my situation. i love my geese they love me too i play with them they like toys and treats . but they don’t like the other people in my family. a person needs to spend a lot of time with their geese before the geese learn to trust them.

 

[Iain Utah]

For me, the worst offenders have been roosters and an occasional muscovy drake. I have had a few bad tempered production bred ganders over the years, but other than a gander on gander fight, they did not hurt other birds.