Geese as Protectors?

[snowydiamonds]

The key word is territorial which in my case means my wonderful geese killed my favorite crested magpie duck the summer before last while I was out fishing for the day. I came home to find feathers in their pond and while raking out the feathers I found my poor girl duck I keep mine penned separately from all other animals, especially since the reason I became a proud owner of geese was because my first two goosey girls nearly killed their previous owner's beautiful BO rooster named Fred. Mine alert and give me time to see what's going on out in the yard but I would never want them to face an enemy, that is for my dogs and I to do. I don't think my geese would be able to fend off the large Alaskan Ravens once those predators put it in mind to steal young birds because the Ravens work as a team, one distracts, another moves in, etc. I'll never trust my geese w/any of my other fowl, any time of year but it works as long as I keep each pen separate.

 

[noahsgeese]

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My gander does the same thing! He fight our rooster! And my gander is a very good protecter of my goose and our chickens!

 

[Bleenie]

I just recently bought 2 white chinese goslings to raise with my baby ducks for 'protection' in the future. I know they're smaller geese but i just need alarms, in case something is going on and i'll know to run out and check things out.

I am going to get a few more from a local breeder(private breeder) he sells his babies to the local feed store but i could buy some for $2.50 next time they hatch, i dont know exactly what breeds, possibly mixed but i did see some white chinese in his huge flock. they were all very pretty anyway.

 

[danielle82]

estrogen.files :

That's all I really want - a notification system. What would you recommend, catnip? I guess I also need a cold hardy goose since I live in the "great frozen north".

my geese always let me know whenever any of the neighbors have opened any of their doors, talkative things.
I have touloose and embden, just hatchery stock, and they did very well in the cold. i thought that they'd go in the chicken coop with thye chickens, and they didn't seem to do that, so I built them their own little goose house, and even during the cold winter they spent very little time in it. Just waddling around in the snow. I thought that their webbed feet would get cold, and that they'd prefer to be in their warm house, but they seemed to not notice the snow

 

[estrogen.files]

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I have touloose and embden, just hatchery stock, and they did very well in the cold. i thought that they'd go in the chicken coop with thye chickens, and they didn't seem to do that, so I built them their own little goose house, and even during the cold winter they spent very little time in it. Just waddling around in the snow. I thought that their webbed feet would get cold, and that they'd prefer to be in their warm house, but they seemed to not notice the snow

Crazy birds!! Thanks for the ideas.

 

[rainplace]

As someone who has a mixed flock of ducks and geese, they are not anymore alert than the drakes we have in our yard. The dominate gander mostly has an eye to the sky, but it's always the quiet drakes I hear first when there is danger near-by. Nothing gets by them. We lost three ducks in as many days recently. The first to go was our most dominate drake, a little bantam. He was the most protective of his girls and the most willing to face anything head on if he perceived anything out of the ordinary. After he was gone, we lost two females. The last female to go was seen being picked off by a bald eagle. There was no alert sound until the eagle was almost at the ground. I'm surprised Rommy didn't notice what was happening till it was too late, maybe he figured he and his woman were safe and there wasn't much point. Now that breeding season is in full spring, the flock has separated themselves out into little groups and they don't roam around in a large flock anymore. However, the recent attacks have now made the flock aerial predator-wise. The last loss was our fat cat, who weighed in at a whopping 14 pounds. My other cats won't go into the field anymore.

The point is, don't rely on prey animals to guard your flock. Most predators come in quick and you often won't have the time to react, or you won't be around. The key is to make the area they live in as safe as it can be and expect losses.

 

[CMV]

I have to post my two cents here because I got geese as "flock protectors" and had a not so good experience with them. First, geese are loud most of the time, but when one of my ducks was actually attacked and killed by a hawk, it was as silent as the grave out in the yard. No warning at all. Not one peep from the normally very raucous group. I have to go out several times a day to check and see what they are screeching about, but the ONE time I would expect an outcry there was nothing. Second, the geese were more of a menace to the smaller birds in the flock than any predator has ever been. I had to closely watch the watchers because they would attack the ducks at random times, and I know some ducky deaths would be on their heads if I hadn't run out and stopped their attacks.

I would really reconsider using them as flock protectors. They aren't well-suited to the job.

 

[estrogen.files]

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Thanks for the advice. Some more to think about.

 

[estrogen.files]

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Wow. That about the cat is amazing! I have outdoor cats and we have lots of hawks and eagles around here, too. I was planning on chicken tractor-ing the chix and adding the goose to the mix, too.

Thanks for all the input - it's given me lots to think about. Sorry to hear about the losses you have all suffered. Makes me sad.

 

[Kim65]

For what you describe, a couple or few geese will be a good idea. I only have two, but they set up a racket and will head off cats and a single dog that isn't particularly brave. They are good at fending off predators of the air like hawks and owls, but wouldn't be much of a match against an eagle. There are MUCH easier prey than a full grown gander, once they spread their wings and act all agro, it's pretty intimidating.

I'd rely on my geese for "first line warnings" only, and perhaps feral cats or possums or young raccoons. If they set up a honk fest in the middle of the night, you could get out there more quickly to see what's going on.