Goose ostracized from flock

[alrosenb]

I have a flock of 2 ganders and 6 geese and they've always gotten along very well. Just recently one of my geese started limping (I think from slipping on ice) and both the ganders and the geese started biting her and not letting her in the coop. I put her in a pen for a couple days to keep her from being harassed by the other geese and let her heal up. She is walking much better now but the other geese still won't let her in the coop and the poor thing is all alone. How do I help her integrate back into the flock?

 

[Miss Lydia]

I have a flock of 2 ganders and 6 geese and they've always gotten along very well. Just recently one of my geese started limping (I think from slipping on ice) and both the ganders and the geese started biting her and not letting her in the coop. I put her in a pen for a couple days to keep her from being harassed by the other geese and let her heal up. She is walking much better now but the other geese still won't let her in the coop and the poor thing is all alone. How do I help her integrate back into the flock?

Make sure she can see them and them her. and maybe wait till she is not limping at all. any outward sigh of weakness like limping makes the rest of the flock want to keep her away from them because in the wild they would be easy prey for a pred with a weak member. If you have one that is nicer to her put her in with her so she has company and it will also make it easier for the rest to accept her back into the flock. And maybe once she is 100% start a rotation of putting one at a time in with her so they can all get use to each other again.
@alrosenb

 

[alrosenb]

Thanks for the advice!

 

[Gray Farms]

Make sure she can see them and them her. and maybe wait till she is not limping at all. any outward sigh of weakness like limping makes the rest of the flock want to keep her away from them because in the wild they would be easy prey for a pred with a weak member. If you have one that is nicer to her put her in with her so she has company and it will also make it easier for the rest to accept her back into the flock. And maybe once she is 100% start a rotation of putting one at a time in with her so they can all get use to each other again.
@alrosenb

Excellent advice!! I'd recommend finding another goose that tolerates her for a companion before reintegration as well.

 

[alrosenb]

So confused now! I kept the ostracized goose in a separate pen until she was all healed up. The whole flock could see her but when I let her out again she was still ostracized. Now two geese are ostracized and the first goose was being mated today. So I guess she's good enough to sleep with but not good enough to bring home?!?!?

I don't know if there is something going on with the flock dynamics. I have my original pair. Then after a failed hatch last spring I brought in a few more geese of which I kept one gander and two female geese. The three remaining geese are the daughters from a later, successful hatch. The ones that I bought were adopted by my original gander and he wouldn't let me near them.

(I did not reintegrate as suggested yet because they are mating now and I was worried about dusrupting them while mating and egg laying are happening, but I am planning on doing that once mating season is over.)

 

[buff goose guy]

I have a flock of 2 ganders and 6 geese and they've always gotten along very well. Just recently one of my geese started limping (I think from slipping on ice) and both the ganders and the geese started biting her and not letting her in the coop. I put her in a pen for a couple days to keep her from being harassed by the other geese and let her heal up. She is walking much better now but the other geese still won't let her in the coop and the poor thing is all alone. How do I help her integrate back into the flock?

Someone might have already suggested this, but you could put her and another goose in a pen for about a week together, those two being separated should form a bond(it has worked for me before with mallards and geese) and then release those two back into the flock together, and they should be fine.

Ps. bitter sweet if it doesnt work, because both will be rejected but they'll have each other .

 

[softmentor]

Are they starting to settle into nets? How are the nests arranged? Could the problem be related to them starting to go broody and arguing over mates and nets space?????

 

[alrosenb]

Only one is laying right now and she doesn't have a secluded nest. She doesn't have a full clutch yet and she seems to leave the two alone. I know I should have separate nesting boxes for them but my husband just had surgery and I just had a baby so we're winging it for now.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Sometimes gander will only choose 1 mate maybe 2 at the most the rest will be 3rd party so what I'd do is get your pairs or trios separated once you know who is pared with who. Then place these 2 in another enclousure I doubt they will ever be accepted into the flock now. So you'll either have to get another gander for them or think of re homing. Are they picking on them or just ignoring them and keeping them away?