Goose or gander?

[MoparGirl89]

We bought 2 Toulouse geese from our local farm supply store with a gaurentee they were both female. My husband and I are both questioning weather the one is actually a gander or not? Could some one help? The he? Is the one with the thicker neck and bigger head.

 

[HuskerHens18]

"Behaviors can vary by breed, but the general pitch of geese voices can be a gender indicator. According to Metzer Farms, the gosling's voice changes into its adult tone around 4 months of age, and males generally are noted to have a cry that's more ear-piercing. The female usually will sound more hoarse and less shrill."

Does that help?.. I don't own geese anymore so I'm unfamiliar with sexing them

 

[Miss Lydia]

Very true and just the opposite from sexing ducks. Thicker neck usually means goose long thinner neck is usually gander. Goose carriage lower to the ground gander taller and lobes aren't as low and don't hang low like goose. I'd say in 3rd pic that one is female in back.

 

[SkyBlueEmu]

I'd say it looks like a gander but the only way to know for sure would be to vent sex the goose. Metzer Farms has a good video on how to do this(

). Or alternatively you could wait until the spring and see which geese start laying eggs. My ganders are also more agressive than my geese.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Boy that's for sure once they get to breeding age.

 

[MoparGirl89]

Thank you for the replies. I figured we had ended up with a pair somehow. How aggressive do the ganders get during breeding season? Are their signs before they get cranky or do they just turn one day? Our kids help with all the daily flock chores, I dont want them to get hurt.

 

[SkyBlueEmu]

Thank you for the replies. I figured we had ended up with a pair somehow. How aggressive do the ganders get during breeding season? Are their signs before they get cranky or do they just turn one day? Our kids help with all the daily flock chores, I dont want them to get hurt.

Ganders and geese may get agressive during the breeding season, though they usually will honk and hiss to tell you not to get too close. If they do bite, it doesn't hurt that much since they don't have teeth. It might be scary for a young child for a goose to charge at them though so if your kids help with the geese you should probably watch to make sure nothing happens. Geese will honk loudly, hiss, and sometimes their heads will shake (like a vibrating motion) when they are excited or angry. Ganders aren't too agressive if you "train" them and learn to know the signs your geese show when they get angry. It also depends on the personality of the gander as to how agressive they can be. All birds tend to get cranky during the breeding season when they are broody, but I wouldn't worry to much about ganders being agressive until you have a problem. If you haven't noticed any agressive behavior from the goose you suspect is a gander, I wouldn't worry too much about it.

 

[Iain Utah]

I agree with MissLydia. The thicker neck is usually female, and the one you fear may be a gander looks to me to be a female.

Some hatcheries are excellent at vent sexing, but not uncommon to get boys from feed stores that are sexed "female". Your pair are getting old enough that vocal pitch and behavior reliable to determine gender.

While I agree that most geese only bluff people about being aggressive, I respectfully disagree about a goose bite not hurting, not to mention being scary for someone not confident with animals. They may not have teeth, but can strike and pinch very hard and leave a pretty decent bruise. If safety is a concern, find a light stick the length of child's arm for child to use like a walking stick, and tell child to use ONLY if necessary. Even the most aggressive gander during breeding season will respect a stick and give proper space.

 

[Gooseopolis]

We have two Chinese Geese and I was thankful they arrived with bands indicating male and female since they were only two days old. They are 10 weeks old and ai am blown away how fast they grew!! Love them so much. Your geese are beautiful!!

 

[Sunshine Flock]

I was going to say I'd gander a guess they're all geese. But apparently a gander is a boy goose? If that's true, then why are the girls referred to as geese? They're not all geese?

Sorry for the intrusion. I love your photos!