Embden and Toulouse?

[GagaForGeese]

Hello everyone!
I'm considering getting my first geese soon, and after doing some research I'm leaning toward a male French Toulouse and female Embden, from Metzer Farms.
However, I read an article saying that Embden and Toulouse are incompatible and would likely not breed, and would have sterile offspring if they did.
Is this true? the article was odd and had conflicting information, it didn't seem very trust worthy.

Aside from this, any suggestions on breeds and gender ratios? I primarily want them as pets, but it would be fun to maybe watch them raise some goslings (and maybe make back some goose expenses by selling some eggs in the spring).
Do you think five geese would be to many for a beginner who just wants some cuddly pets, or would it be better to pay the small order charge and only get two or three?

I have experience with ducks and chickens (I used to have a cuddly rooster I was particularly fond of), but all I know about geese is what I've read.
Thanks for your time and any suggestions / tips!

 

[Goosebaby]

I don’t have Embdens but Embden and Toulouse are both domesticated Anser anser, they can breed just fine.
A. anser can also breed with A. cygnoides derived breeds “Africans, Chinese, Kohlmogory” because they are very closely related sub species.

I don’t have expierience with Embdens but they are one of the largest and heaviest breeds. Sometimes really large geese can have issues breeding with very small breeds, but French Toulouse range from medium to large so I don’t think that it’s much of an issue.

I do have expierience with Metzer’s French Toulouse, as that’s what most of my geese are or are crosses from.
Metzer’s French Toulouse as listed are Toulouse geese that they sourced from Toulouse France, which adds some interest to their genetic history. However keep in mind that it’s also Metzer romantasizing what is essentially your run of the mill production Toulouse while adding in some genetic variability by bringing in geese from France that have a rather vague genetic past....one of mine I’m pretty sure some cygnoides way back in his ancestry.....
Besides that I don’t breed for shows or looks so personally I really don’t care about that, I absolutly love mine, but it’s something you might consider if you’re going to get them for selling goslings, they don’t sell for as much as Exhibition Toulouse and they really aren’t show quality like Exhibition Toulouse.

Other than that if you decide on them you’ll love them along with any goose in general. Geese are hilarious little characters with unique personalities. Personally I think you should start with two, starting with four can be a handful, even still, you can start with two and before you know it you can easily end up with 10 if you like the first two, so consider yourself WARNED!

Geese are more cleanly than ducks in my opinion also.

 

[gooseapplefarms]

If you just want a few geese to keep as pets, I suggest getting smaller breeds because they'll require less feed.
If you think you might hatch some out, maybe consider a more rare breed than Embden or Toulouse and keep all of one kind so they breed true.
How many you should get depends on your budget and space. Geese really shouldn't be stuck in a coop or a run all the time, they need a nice are to eat grass and roam around.

Overall, they're pretty low maintenance and they make less of a mess than ducks IMO. You just have to put them up and let them out every single day. They really don't put themselves up at night, especially if you have a pond, they'll want to stay on the pond.

 

[GagaForGeese]

Thanks for the information guys!
I was considering the larger breeds because I was hoping predators might think twice about going after a larger bird, though I know it won't deter them entirely, also why I had chosen French Toulouse, because Metzer has them listed as slightly larger than regular Toulouse. Feeding cost is something important to consider though.
Does anyone have trouble with hawks going after large geese?

As for space, I live in rural area so they'll have plenty of space to play during the day.

 

[Isadora]

I wouldn't worry about hawks going after Toulouse geese so much because of their larger size but certainly their size will not deter a raccoon or a Fox or a Coyote.
I don't know if you have eagles in your area but they are large enough to get a goose.

 

[gooseapplefarms]

The one (and only) thing geese will guard against, or at least warn other birds about, is birds of prey. I don't think most types of raptors are going to attack geese unless they're especially small, so I think you'd be fine with medium sized geese.

Other predators will easily kill geese. In my area that's raccoons and foxes at night. During the day, my birds free range, and the only thing that pesters them is the occasional escaped domestic dog.
When it comes to housing, if I had to do it over again, I would underbuild my coop (quality wise) and surround it with a portable electric poultry fence. In fact, I have all my coops surrounded by electric now. Still put some kind of wire or roof on the top of the coop, owls take a lot of baby birds.

 

[Goosebaby]

Thanks for the information guys!
I was considering the larger breeds because I was hoping predators might think twice about going after a larger bird, though I know it won't deter them entirely, also why I had chosen French Toulouse, because Metzer has them listed as slightly larger than regular Toulouse. Feeding cost is something important to consider though.
Does anyone have trouble with hawks going after large geese?

As for space, I live in rural area so they'll have plenty of space to play during the day.

You won’t usually have an issue with hawks, red tailed hawks and goshawks in my area have never bothered mine. However geese are vulnerable to every other kind of predator.