I have a potential problem...

[kuntrygirl]

Too funny!

I have already purchased my ticket and bought popcorn for the next movie showing.

 

[countrywifeandmomma]

This is hilarious! I can't help but laugh at this post. How stinkin' cute of the gander! And momma goose taking care of the baby ducks as if they were her own. Just to show how smart and loyal they are.

 

[KlaHaYa Gardens]

What comes to mind here are parents who lost babies and go to hospitals and steal them . . . I guess this gander just wants his wife to have all her heart's desire.

Still chuckling . . .

 

[desertdarlene]

There's a young killdeer where I live (hatched last year, already grown) who is trying to steal her new baby brothers from her mom and dad. She had lost her nest a few days before her parents hatched their own nest nearby. So, she hangs around the area where they are raising their chicks, watching them. If her parents aren't looking, she sneaks over and tries to interact with the babies. But, her mom chases her away as soon as she notices what's going on.

Also, we have at least one, possibly two ducklingnappers at our lake. These females hang around new, large broods of ducklings until some of them imprint on her. Then, she takes some of them away from the mom. And, there's also three sister ducks who all have ducklings and I've seen a few hatched out from one sister join the other sister's brood.

 

[rainplace]

The goose stopped sitting on her nest. It was just too much for her worrying about the ducklings running through the fence. I'm not incubating anything this year, so I gathered all her eggs and put them in the compost pile. It's sad sorta, but I really didn't want to interfere with their social dynamics.

As suggested next year I will make sure muscovy babies cannot get in with the geese and will make sure the geese cannot get into the muscovy enclosure. I know the gander can make quick work of the muscovy as seen when one poor dumb hen kept trying to make a nest in the goose enclosure (she's still alive, but he bloodied her pretty well). They do well together as long as everyone respects the space of the geese. I will make sure they have no choice.

It has been fun watching the weird "family" outings that take place now that they take the ducklings out. Three geese, one muscovy hen, and seven little ducklings. Everyone watches out for the ducklings, there's a truce between the goose and muscovy mommas, the second female goose and the gander stand guard and make sure there are no stragglers. The canadians come by regularly for visits and I still have no idea what to make of that. Our little family doesn't let them as close as before but they tend to graze near-by and talk to each other. I like the added eyes.

 

[FarmrGirl]

Quote:
It's so sad about your goose eggs! I had a feeling that once the babies got active (and those Muscovy babies can jump into the most interesting places!) that she would want to keep a better eye on them. Too bad you didn't have an extra broody Muscovy to slip them under. What a change up that would turn out to be

 

[desertdarlene]

Awww, that's too bad. Hopefully next time will be better.

 

[KlaHaYa Gardens]

Rats! (About the goose eggs.)

Well, enjoy your duck/goose family. Take lots of pics. Share the fun stories.

 

[Addicted2Quack]

That post is exactly why there are so many people addicted to waterfowl. Geese are wonderful animals! Great pictures...you should send them to the waterfowl magazine with the story behind it, they will surely publish it. Sorry to hear about the Goose eggs.

 

[rainplace]

I wanted to update this post. It's not a happy ending.

I realize now why so many animals go away from their flocks, herds, whatever, to have their young. It's about imprinting.

The goose tried for a while to keep the ducklings and continue sitting on her eggs. She abandoned the eggs.

The ducklings were bonded with the geese and the duck mother. The duck mother and the goose became stressed whenever the ducklings would follow the other. They would try to stay together, but it didn't work out. The duck mother would want to take the ducklings under the fence to the marsh, and the geese can't get in there. At first goose would honk and honk at the fence, and maybe a single duckling or or two would come out, then duck mom would squeak and maybe one or both would go back. The problem was with the distance the ducklings had to travel to go back and forth. We lost all but one duckling to predation. One day I was at the manger and heard the geese squawking down at the pond and watched one of the ducklings cross an open pasture to go be with them. I did not see that duckling again.