- Jul 18, 2012
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Hello, this is my first post, but I have been lurking on this site for some time and I'd love to have input on this one.
I have one goose who is about 6 months old and we recently bought 3 other geese(to replace her partner that had been killed by the dog) from ideal and 5 ducks (unfortunately one duck didn't make it through the mail). We showed the babies to the older goose thinking she might be motherly but that was wrong. Luckily she just snapped and didn't hurt anyone. As the babies have been growing any chance she could get she'd get into the babies pen and chase them, but never really tried to hurt them. We just had to move them out of the small pen because they needed more room and the older goose at first chased them around especially when they tried to get in "her" pond, but soon came around to the baby geese and even would lead them into the pond. But if the ducks came near she would chase them off. I figured she would get used to them being around and would stand watch around the pond making sure she let them in. The sad part to this story is sometime last night she got a hold of one and plucked her back. Luckily the only blood was from her broke blood feathers. :'(. It was a sad sight this morning.
The babies are much faster than my awkward African goose, so if I built them a box only they could get into so they could hide from her it would be okay? I've been watching her all day and she even let them on her pond today and is being nice. I think it might have been the small space in the coop last night and her being protective over the baby geese who are always next to the ducks because they were raised together. I actually think the baby geese get between "mom" and the ducks when she gets mad xD.
Only reason I want to keep them together is that the pond is in the big pen and I don't want to keep any of them out of it. Sad day for waterfowl without water.
Any advice, other than eating them, would be much appreciated.
I have one goose who is about 6 months old and we recently bought 3 other geese(to replace her partner that had been killed by the dog) from ideal and 5 ducks (unfortunately one duck didn't make it through the mail). We showed the babies to the older goose thinking she might be motherly but that was wrong. Luckily she just snapped and didn't hurt anyone. As the babies have been growing any chance she could get she'd get into the babies pen and chase them, but never really tried to hurt them. We just had to move them out of the small pen because they needed more room and the older goose at first chased them around especially when they tried to get in "her" pond, but soon came around to the baby geese and even would lead them into the pond. But if the ducks came near she would chase them off. I figured she would get used to them being around and would stand watch around the pond making sure she let them in. The sad part to this story is sometime last night she got a hold of one and plucked her back. Luckily the only blood was from her broke blood feathers. :'(. It was a sad sight this morning.
The babies are much faster than my awkward African goose, so if I built them a box only they could get into so they could hide from her it would be okay? I've been watching her all day and she even let them on her pond today and is being nice. I think it might have been the small space in the coop last night and her being protective over the baby geese who are always next to the ducks because they were raised together. I actually think the baby geese get between "mom" and the ducks when she gets mad xD.
Only reason I want to keep them together is that the pond is in the big pen and I don't want to keep any of them out of it. Sad day for waterfowl without water.
Any advice, other than eating them, would be much appreciated.
