- Jan 25, 2008
- 3,832
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It's been raining all day. We went to the used bookstore in search of textbooks. We, Adam and I, left 15 minutes later empty handed and as we piled into the small '93 Honda Accord and went to pullout of the small, crowded parking lot, I happened to notice a large white goose on the empty overgrown lot next to the used bookstore. It was odd to see a goose here, it is a highly developed area on Bragg Blvd, Bragg Blvd itelf is a 6 lane very busy road. I watched the goose and told Adam to look. After watching for a few seconds, I asked Adam to park the car. He did and soon we were standing in the empty lot looking at, not one, but three geese.
They were domestics, the white and grey one very obviously domestics. Sooo, in the rain Adam and I devised a way to run them into the corner of some chainlink fence. Adam looked at me, being the less experienced with birds, and asks "Grab their feet just like chickens?" I explained " No, with waterfowl you aim for the neck usually and then restrain the wings, but the neck in the control points." So we advanced on the geese. They walk calmly in front of us making sure to stay only 6-8 feet away, just out of our reach. They reached the corner and Adam and I stalked a little closer, with our arms wide spread trying to look as much like an inpenetrable barrier as possible. I went to grab one and it ran, SNAG! I got it's neck in my right hand. I expected a fight and a struggle, I expected a dramatic show of feathers and honking, because this is the first time I have actually dealt with geese. What did I get? A big grey goose who stood calmly with her neck in my firm, but gentle grasp. I was surprised. I had dealt with my own turkeys before and expected a struggle equal to the turkeys and got less of a struggle than I get from my week old chicks. I pinned her wings and held her neck, Adam fearful we were hurting her supported her body. Guess were the goose got to sit? LOL In the trunk of the car. I expected to be confronted by an ignorant bystander or an overzealous animal lover, but we weren't everyone went about their day as though two people were grabbing geese and throwing them into a truck was an everyday deal. Once the goose was securely into the trunk, we trekked back onto the concrete field overgrown with grass and puddles.
We repeated the same process, except it took two more attempts to run them into a corner, because they were getting wise to it. We managed to get the two remaining geese into another chainlink corner. The large white goose immediately rushed by with those wings outspread as though he were flying away. I went to chase him, predatory response, and Adam hollars "Get the little one". Oh yeah, the little one was still penned in the corner. Hiding with his beak in the corner like a little kid who thinks you cannot see them because they cannot see you. Adam grabbed that one and it put up a bit of a struggle until we could control the wings. Goose 2 down. We walked back to the car, Adam carefully popped the trunk and we place little goose 2 in with the first. Very carefully shutting the trunk, we looked for the last one, the Big White.
Again we tried to walk him into the corner, he wouldn't go for it. We would get 30 feet from the 90 degree corner and he would turn and rush by. We needed 3 or 4 people for this one, but we only had ourselves. After the third time the goose "flew" rushed passed us, to our horror he continued toward the 6 lanes of heavy, fast-moving traffic.. I flinched, I just knew we were going to watch this animal get hit. He crosses all three lanes and gets to the metal divider, luckily he crossed between red lights when there was no traffic. He is scared now, and runs along the gaurd-rail with the flow off traffic. I fear for the worst as the goose goes to come back across. He scares me for another 10-15 minutes as he, now confused and scared, goes back and forth across the 3 lanes of heavy traffic, these times not between redlights. Several close calls, and several times I look away. Adam stands by the roadside, and I yell for him to come sit in the car, hoping that the goose would come away from the road. The goose is now 2,000 feet from the original location and weaving in and out of the lanes of traffic in his confusion.
I had given up and was ready to go home. We had 2 out of 3 abandoned geese and I did not want to watch the last one get hit. Neither was a willing to go into traffic after it, Bragg Blvd is notorious for dangerous and crazy drivers, and the roads were slick from the steady rain of today. Our lives were not worth that of a goose. Adam was still standing by the road, I call him back to the car again. Ever the optomist and calls back "If it gets hit, we'll just have goose tonight.." As much as he was playing, he was completely serious...
He comes back to the car and we watch through the rain. We start the car and pull out, driving to the nearest parking lot near the big white goose. He had found another vacant lot and had finally decided to get away from traffic. We were glad, but the new lot did not have a fence or a building. After chasing him through a flock of Canada geese we walked him to the nearest building, which to our blessing, had a chainlink fence around their AC unit. The goose was getting tire now, having run from us AND from the traffic. Once in the corner, the clever critter went to rush by me once again. This time I was determined and knew the chances of getting him cornered once again were slim. I clotheslined the bird with my left hand. I had him by the throat. He had try to run by me so hard that he had flipped himself on his back. Once caught he settled down and didn't fight much. Into the truck goes the big white goose..
On an adrenaline rush Adam and I laughed, we couldn't believe we just caught 3 abandoned geese and had them in the trunk of our small car. We were soaked and flushed all at once. We sat in the car for a moment, settling down and then home we went. Our new friends are now settled down in a horse stall, with a large tub of water and a pan of feed, which they all ate their fill. They were incredibly light, which made me think they were malnourished, which may also explain the lack of fight.
What breed or cross are they? I know they are domestics, but I am unsure about the breed. I've seen the coloring before on African and Chinese, but that's all I know. And the little one has me completely stumped, I thought perhaps she was a Canada cross... Also, can you tell their sex by looking, or do they need to be vent sexed?
**Pics coming as soon as they load, in a few minutes*
Here is the small one. It(She/He??) has me stumped as to what it is!
**The white one has black/gray markings on the back of his neck, if that helps ID him**
-Kim
They were domestics, the white and grey one very obviously domestics. Sooo, in the rain Adam and I devised a way to run them into the corner of some chainlink fence. Adam looked at me, being the less experienced with birds, and asks "Grab their feet just like chickens?" I explained " No, with waterfowl you aim for the neck usually and then restrain the wings, but the neck in the control points." So we advanced on the geese. They walk calmly in front of us making sure to stay only 6-8 feet away, just out of our reach. They reached the corner and Adam and I stalked a little closer, with our arms wide spread trying to look as much like an inpenetrable barrier as possible. I went to grab one and it ran, SNAG! I got it's neck in my right hand. I expected a fight and a struggle, I expected a dramatic show of feathers and honking, because this is the first time I have actually dealt with geese. What did I get? A big grey goose who stood calmly with her neck in my firm, but gentle grasp. I was surprised. I had dealt with my own turkeys before and expected a struggle equal to the turkeys and got less of a struggle than I get from my week old chicks. I pinned her wings and held her neck, Adam fearful we were hurting her supported her body. Guess were the goose got to sit? LOL In the trunk of the car. I expected to be confronted by an ignorant bystander or an overzealous animal lover, but we weren't everyone went about their day as though two people were grabbing geese and throwing them into a truck was an everyday deal. Once the goose was securely into the trunk, we trekked back onto the concrete field overgrown with grass and puddles.
We repeated the same process, except it took two more attempts to run them into a corner, because they were getting wise to it. We managed to get the two remaining geese into another chainlink corner. The large white goose immediately rushed by with those wings outspread as though he were flying away. I went to chase him, predatory response, and Adam hollars "Get the little one". Oh yeah, the little one was still penned in the corner. Hiding with his beak in the corner like a little kid who thinks you cannot see them because they cannot see you. Adam grabbed that one and it put up a bit of a struggle until we could control the wings. Goose 2 down. We walked back to the car, Adam carefully popped the trunk and we place little goose 2 in with the first. Very carefully shutting the trunk, we looked for the last one, the Big White.
Again we tried to walk him into the corner, he wouldn't go for it. We would get 30 feet from the 90 degree corner and he would turn and rush by. We needed 3 or 4 people for this one, but we only had ourselves. After the third time the goose "flew" rushed passed us, to our horror he continued toward the 6 lanes of heavy, fast-moving traffic.. I flinched, I just knew we were going to watch this animal get hit. He crosses all three lanes and gets to the metal divider, luckily he crossed between red lights when there was no traffic. He is scared now, and runs along the gaurd-rail with the flow off traffic. I fear for the worst as the goose goes to come back across. He scares me for another 10-15 minutes as he, now confused and scared, goes back and forth across the 3 lanes of heavy traffic, these times not between redlights. Several close calls, and several times I look away. Adam stands by the roadside, and I yell for him to come sit in the car, hoping that the goose would come away from the road. The goose is now 2,000 feet from the original location and weaving in and out of the lanes of traffic in his confusion.
I had given up and was ready to go home. We had 2 out of 3 abandoned geese and I did not want to watch the last one get hit. Neither was a willing to go into traffic after it, Bragg Blvd is notorious for dangerous and crazy drivers, and the roads were slick from the steady rain of today. Our lives were not worth that of a goose. Adam was still standing by the road, I call him back to the car again. Ever the optomist and calls back "If it gets hit, we'll just have goose tonight.." As much as he was playing, he was completely serious...
He comes back to the car and we watch through the rain. We start the car and pull out, driving to the nearest parking lot near the big white goose. He had found another vacant lot and had finally decided to get away from traffic. We were glad, but the new lot did not have a fence or a building. After chasing him through a flock of Canada geese we walked him to the nearest building, which to our blessing, had a chainlink fence around their AC unit. The goose was getting tire now, having run from us AND from the traffic. Once in the corner, the clever critter went to rush by me once again. This time I was determined and knew the chances of getting him cornered once again were slim. I clotheslined the bird with my left hand. I had him by the throat. He had try to run by me so hard that he had flipped himself on his back. Once caught he settled down and didn't fight much. Into the truck goes the big white goose..
On an adrenaline rush Adam and I laughed, we couldn't believe we just caught 3 abandoned geese and had them in the trunk of our small car. We were soaked and flushed all at once. We sat in the car for a moment, settling down and then home we went. Our new friends are now settled down in a horse stall, with a large tub of water and a pan of feed, which they all ate their fill. They were incredibly light, which made me think they were malnourished, which may also explain the lack of fight.
What breed or cross are they? I know they are domestics, but I am unsure about the breed. I've seen the coloring before on African and Chinese, but that's all I know. And the little one has me completely stumped, I thought perhaps she was a Canada cross... Also, can you tell their sex by looking, or do they need to be vent sexed?
**Pics coming as soon as they load, in a few minutes*
Here is the small one. It(She/He??) has me stumped as to what it is!
**The white one has black/gray markings on the back of his neck, if that helps ID him**
-Kim
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