Gosling questions: bedding/grit

[Winnie123]

Hello, I got some Sebastopol goslings from “My Pet Chicken” and the very next day one of them passed away. I THINK it choked on the pine shavings I was using as bedding. I saw it die and it had some (though not a lot) in its mouth. I tried to get the shavings out of its mouth before it died but was unsuccessful. I could also see in its throat a lot of water and mushy duck feed. I thought that pine shavings were supposed to be safe and the place o got them from even encouraged me to use it. Now I am afraid to put ANYTHING other than towels in there lol (especially since I am borrowing my neighbors ducklings to keep her company) I don’t want anything to happen to them. I guess my question is, is it likely that he choked on the shavings or did he just happen to have some in his mouth at the time? Is it possible that he was going to die anyway and ate the shavings because he didn’t feel well (kind of like how dogs will eat grass when they are sick)? Right before he died he was kind of like jumping backwards and looked like he was choking but I’m confused because everything I’ve read and been told says it’s supposed to be safe! He was fine and acting normal/eating and drinking, right up until he suddenly started jumping around and died! What do you use for bedding?

My other question is about grit. Do you mix it in with their food? Or do you put it in there separately for them to get as needed? I am afraid they will eat too much of it at once!

thanks for your help!

 

[Draconias]

I was also nervous about the pine shaving in their brooder. It seemed like my ducklings and goslings were eating the pine shavings. I have started using rubber shelf liner over the pine shavings. It is fairly easy to hose off the shelf liner outside.
Ron

 

[Goosebaby]

Hello, I got some Sebastopol goslings from “My Pet Chicken” and the very next day one of them passed away. I THINK it choked on the pine shavings I was using as bedding. I saw it die and it had some (though not a lot) in its mouth. I tried to get the shavings out of its mouth before it died but was unsuccessful. I could also see in its throat a lot of water and mushy duck feed. I thought that pine shavings were supposed to be safe and the place o got them from even encouraged me to use it. Now I am afraid to put ANYTHING other than towels in there lol (especially since I am borrowing my neighbors ducklings to keep her company) I don’t want anything to happen to them. I guess my question is, is it likely that he choked on the shavings or did he just happen to have some in his mouth at the time? Is it possible that he was going to die anyway and ate the shavings because he didn’t feel well (kind of like how dogs will eat grass when they are sick)? Right before he died he was kind of like jumping backwards and looked like he was choking but I’m confused because everything I’ve read and been told says it’s supposed to be safe! He was fine and acting normal/eating and drinking, right up until he suddenly started jumping around and died! What do you use for bedding?

My other question is about grit. Do you mix it in with their food? Or do you put it in there separately for them to get as needed? I am afraid they will eat too much of it at once!

thanks for your help!View attachment 2627306

I’m sorry for your loss, without a necropsy however it’s hard to say what the cause was so all we can do is make some guesses.

It’s possible he could have choked on the shavings, I’ve used shavings with all of my goslings and ducklings without issue, occasionally they have eaten the shavings because sometimes it’s a weird behavior they can develop but grow out of with age and being offered finely minced grass for forage. The can choke on shavings, but the risk is present with anything they swallow.

You mentioned that he was jumping around and jumping backwards just before death, that could have been panicking and muscle spasms from choking, but it also could have been seizures.
If the gosling was expieriencing seizures it is likely the cause of death, seizures can be caused by a number of issues, viral, fungal, or bacterial, or he could have had a birth defect or genetic disease, chemicals can trigger them or a mineral deficiency like Zinc deficiency can be a cause, others could be Zinc overdose or lead exposure or a vitamin deficiency “Bs, A, & E.”

 

[Winnie123]

I’m sorry for your loss, without a necropsy however it’s hard to say what the cause was so all we can do is make some guesses.

It’s possible he could have choked on the shavings, I’ve used shavings with all of my goslings and ducklings without issue, occasionally they have eaten the shavings because sometimes it’s a weird behavior they can develop but grow out of with age and being offered finely minced grass for forage. The can choke on shavings, but the risk is present with anything they swallow.

You mentioned that he was jumping around and jumping backwards just before death, that could have been panicking and muscle spasms from choking, but it also could have been seizures.
If the gosling was expieriencing seizures it is likely the cause of death, seizures can be caused by a number of issues, viral, fungal, or bacterial, or he could have had a birth defect or genetic disease, chemicals can trigger them or a mineral deficiency like Zinc deficiency can be a cause, others could be Zinc overdose or lead exposure or a vitamin deficiency “Bs, A, & E.”

Thank you for your reply... I was worried I did something wrong by putting shavings in there... maybe I should have started off with the towels for the first few days and then put the shavings in! I think I will always do that regardless going forward! It was the saddest thing watching that poor little guy struggle. He died in my hand, I felt so bad for him.

What about the grit? Do you mix it into their food or offer it on the side?

 

[Goosebaby]

Thank you for your reply... I was worried I did something wrong by putting shavings in there... maybe I should have started off with the towels for the first few days and then put the shavings in! I think I will always do that regardless going forward! It was the saddest thing watching that poor little guy struggle. He died in my hand, I felt so bad for him.

What about the grit? Do you mix it into their food or offer it on the side?

I would offer chick grit to the side so they only take what they want, and honestly you did nothing wrong either. Sometimes things just happen that are out of our control.
I had a partially handicapped goose, she got around fairly well but didn’t do so good on small inclines. Now if someone had told me that my handicapped goose was going to somehow ninja herself up a 5ft nearly vertical bank to eat 20+ moonflower sprouts when I wasn’t looking I wouldn’t belief it for a second. But that’s what she did and she died as a result a few hours later.
It’s normal to blame yourself but in reality there’s a lot of things we can’t predict or control, and it’s impossible to do so so please don’t blame yourself.

 

[Winnie123]

I would offer chick grit to the side so they only take what they want, and honestly you did nothing wrong either. Sometimes things just happen that are out of our control.
I had a partially handicapped goose, she got around fairly well but didn’t do so good on small inclines. Now if someone had told me that my handicapped goose was going to somehow ninja herself up a 5ft nearly vertical bank to eat 20+ moonflower sprouts when I wasn’t looking I wouldn’t belief it for a second. But that’s what she did and she died as a result a few hours later.
It’s normal to blame yourself but in reality there’s a lot of things we can’t predict or control, and it’s impossible to do so so please don’t blame yourself.

Aww, I’m sorry that that happened. Thank you for your reply, I very much appreciate it!