INDIANA BYC'ers HERE!

[Chaneys Ranch]

@jchny2000
Could you give us some "Goose 101"?

-Do they coop with the chickens or need separate housing?
-If they can house with the chickens, do they roost? If not, where do they sleep?
-Do they eat the same feed as the chickens?
-Can you have just one with a flock of chickens...or do you need to have at least 2?

Mine have cooped with the chickens, but I seem to have better protection if they free range. They sleep by the coop area at night. Anything that shouldn't be there gets run off. I do worry about stray dogs and coyotes. This coming fall, we are changing coop design and housing. I plan to have a regular fenced area for the geese and pekin.
I had a few younger goose roost but they won't once mature. Geese will ground nest in the middle of the coop. Broodies will pick a corner.
If you have an all flock blend, its fine for them. Layer ration would be ok for geese but likely not the ganders.
A lot of people only keep one usually a goose. Some folks prefer 1 gander. I'm not comfortable with a small goose flock, just like any other guardian animal they need a helper.
If its only 1 flock or you have 5 like me, the geese will watch for areal predators the same. Since I rotate free range, the geese know all the flocks.

Heard from the Cotton Patch breeder, because I e-mailed again. They didn't have a good year. The wait may be a long time. Has to be a female, so I think hatching eggs are out.

Goose hatching eggs are almost always damaged during shipping though, and it doesn't matter how good they are packaged. It's the size of the egg, with everything sloshing around inside during shipment.

Thats too bad! Agreed, I have never had a goose egg that was shipped, or even picked up locally hatch. Its such a heavy dense egg.

Here's Wilbur napping beside his wheelbarrow. He stays by it a good majority of the time.

@jchny2000 Do any of your geese get attached to things?
View attachment 1532310

Love Wilbur!
LOL yes my big utility cart! I prefill all my feed buckets. 7 cows, 10 goats, about 40 chickens, 8 guinea, 9 Muscovy and 6 ducks. Every day at feeding time, Gee is waiting by my cart often snoozing. He escorts me and the feed wagon around. He doesn't try to get to the buckets. He just wants to walk and talk. Its our time to discuss how our day is and give him some pets on his chest. Gee is my only white Chinese & is a real pet, I adore him. Gee also won't tolerate any other goose invading our time.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

The last of the Cornish x roosters had their final day today. I processed 11 chickens in less than 5 hours. My brother carried the birds and was the "bad guy" I did the rest. Several were 7lbs dressed weight! Cooling in our big fridge tonight. Friday I will start looking at the remaining Cornish x hens. (we pick camper up Today!) Some are small, do dust bathe and are candidates to join my dark Cornish rooster Beefy's Flock. They are 16 weeks, old enough to be added. Beefy no longer has my EEs and 2 of his hens are broody. His other 3 hens need aprons on asap, he is obviously over breeding.

Electric fence went down late this afternoon, I check it morning and evening. When I check the volts this is always a GASP feeling! I would hate to see Moose get out, he is huge. He thinks cars are for playing with and butts everything even our big tractor. I saw my tiny baby bull calf in the adult bull/buck pasture and went running! Luckily Moose & Tron wasn't a bit interested in us or the calf. Dixie called him to her when she saw we were herding him back into the NW pasture. He is a lil stinker doesn't obey his mom so well. We found a large tree limb on all 3 lines so its fixed now.

 

[JanetMarie]

Love Wilbur!
LOL yes my big utility cart! I prefill all my feed buckets. 7 cows, 10 goats, about 40 chickens, 8 guinea, 9 Muscovy and 6 ducks. Every day at feeding time, Gee is waiting by my cart often snoozing. He escorts me and the feed wagon around. He doesn't try to get to the buckets. He just wants to walk and talk. Its our time to discuss how our day is and give him some pets on his chest. Gee is my only white Chinese & is a real pet, I adore him. Gee also won't tolerate any other goose invading our time.

I wondered if attachment to things was a goose/gander thing. Wilbur escorts the wheelbarrow everywhere, then wherever it stops he preens it a little. He chases others away from it, except for my Chinese goose, Lucy.

 

[Indyshent]

Ugh. Yard feels extra empty without the birds. Rodents are suddenly crazy here. Its been all-out war against mice--despite having a cat and two dogs. Thought about getting into some nice mouse - eating descendents of T-Rex again, but nobody exactly breeds chickens to kill mice. I do recall my Wyandottes having particular zest in pest control though.

 

[Soon2BChixMom]

Ugh. Yard feels extra empty without the birds. Rodents are suddenly crazy here. Its been all-out war against mice--despite having a cat and two dogs. Thought about getting into some nice mouse - eating descendents of T-Rex again, but nobody exactly breeds chickens to kill mice. I do recall my Wyandottes having particular zest in pest control though.

Maybe you need some ducks for mice control.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Ugh. Yard feels extra empty without the birds. Rodents are suddenly crazy here. Its been all-out war against mice--despite having a cat and two dogs. Thought about getting into some nice mouse - eating descendents of T-Rex again, but nobody exactly breeds chickens to kill mice. I do recall my Wyandottes having particular zest in pest control though.

Muscovy are the best mouse control I've ever owned, aside from my barncats Tigger and Sassy. My more heritage breeds like BR, BO and DC do great on rodents also. Some of the cornish X hen are doing a fine job on mice too.

 

[Faraday40]

How do you "know" if chickens are eating mice? Do you actually witness them hunting / eating? or Do you find some mouse-ish remains?

 

[Faraday40]

Good Morning!

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

How do you "know" if chickens are eating mice? Do you actually witness them hunting / eating? or Do you find some mouse-ish remains?

Yes, I see them doing it, and fighting over mice. Its a daily thing with all the feed we store and some of our land is overgrown. They find nests and adults all day long. Our turkeys used to catch chipmunks, it upset me. I know they are a problem too but I always loved them as a kid. Rodents like mice sure find a feed source. I store our feed in a huge broken chest freezer. I see several mice in there daily, and let my cats get them.

 

[Chaneys Ranch]

Good Morning!

[/QUOTE She is so precious! How many does she have?

She is so precious! How many does she have?