Injured young Am Buff gander

[Miss Lydia]

Whew, long day..........sorry it's so late getting back to you. I had a friend come over this AM and help me hold him while I soaked his foot and cleaned it off. After close inspection and getting it cleaned up I was relieved to find that there was no cut or puncture and the sole of his foot is fine. It appeared that he had raked the toe across something and skinned the top the full length of it. I had got him into an empty, covered run, so I bedded him down in deep shavings yesterday and put him and his girl in there. I used antiseptic spray that was also a kind of bandage/sealant so I think it is at least somewhat protected from the dirt. I think I'll also be able to spray it daily without having to go through the big production of this AM. He was a very good boy all things considered and aside from getting slugged in the lip with a wing all went well and without incident. I feel very relieved that it's going to heal well since there is no break or deep wounds.
Thank you so much for your help it means a lot to me. I am very fond of my geese and it would have broken my heart to have lost him or had something really bad happen to him.
Gratefully......Nancy

Thats great news!!! so glad it wasn't serious. Now sometime when your out with the camera how bout some pics of the beautiful couple.

 

[lilcrow]

Thats great news!!! so glad it wasn't serious. Now sometime when your out with the camera how bout some pics of the beautiful couple.

Oh gladly

 

[Miss Lydia]

Oh gladly

They are beautiful thanks for sharing.

 

[lilcrow]

Most certainly, and thank you for asking. I always love to show off my birds and to have someone actually ask to see them is even better.
Thanks again for everything.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Most certainly, and thank you for asking. I always love to show off my birds and to have someone actually ask to see them is even better.
Thanks again for everything.

Hows your gander doing?

 

[lilcrow]

Hows your gander doing?

Well.......................I'm upset with myself, he's re-injured his foot. He was doing very well and there was no limp and it appeared that the scab was beginning to slough off. I finally let them out of their enclosure day before yesterday and was very happy, they were breeding for the first time! at least to my knowledge, and all was well at least at that moment. I let them out yesterday morning and he was limping again. On inspection it looks like he's knocked the top of that knuckle and it was bleeding. I put them back in their enclosure, this time I put down clean straw and let them stay in their own kennel in the hope that they wouldn't pace so much (SHE wouldn't pace so much). I put some triple antibiotic ointment on it thinking that would help to moisten and soften the scab so it wouldn't be so stiff and painful. I hate to do it, but I guess I'm going to have to keep them confined until it is healed. They HATE!! being closed in, but if I turn him out I'm sure it will just happen again. They wander the entire property and it seems as if they walk almost constantly when they are out, well either walking or playing in the wading pool. I feel just sick that I was so foolish, but it won't happen again. I just hope this didn't cause a worse injury than before.
I've noticed that their behavior is changing slightly, not as interested in taking food from my hand, exploring new areas of the property and he is generally more skittish around me (go figure) and she lets me pet her often and I think I'm seeing breeding behavior when I do pet her i.e., lowered posture, wings out slightly to flatten her back, and of course actually witnessing their attempts at breeding. I'm assuming that they are preparing to find a nesting area and beginning to get serious about breeding. Is there a way that I can discourage them from going off on their own to find a nesting sight? I can't safely let them nest in an unfenced or unsecured area, and how aggressive should I expect him to become as time goes on? I've become so attached to these birds I can't stand the possibility that something could happen to them. I know lots of folks have a laissez faire attitude about their birds, but I just can't turn a blind eye to where they go and what they do. I worry too much.
Well that's the good and bad of it, thank you so much for asking and having concern for them.

 

[RURU]

What lovely Americans. If you are afraid of them 2 getting hurt you might want to make the a pen to stay in while breeding and have a run so they can go out and eat grass. Our geese can get their selfs into trouble stumbling over rocks and other items that can cut them....
We have a lot of rocks around here where mine are always stumbling over and sometimes limp for a few days because they might have pulled something. Or they cut the bottom of the foot and get bumble foot from the dirt and water they play in. I keep mine in their pen from night time lock up until about 10:00 am then they go play for the afternoon.
They come down when it gets close to going back in the pens for feeding.

I also use bagbalm for cuts on their feet. My one new sebbie girl I got cut her foot cut and I put the bagbalm on for about 4 days and it cleared it right up. But only put it on at bed time in the pen so she would not be walking too much...

Miss Lydia is wonderful person and always there to help anyone who needs it!!!

 

[lilcrow]

What lovely Americans. If you are afraid of them 2 getting hurt you might want to make the a pen to stay in while breeding and have a run so they can go out and eat grass. Our geese can get their selfs into trouble stumbling over rocks and other items that can cut them....
We have a lot of rocks around here where mine are always stumbling over and sometimes limp for a few days because they might have pulled something. Or they cut the bottom of the foot and get bumble foot from the dirt and water they play in. I keep mine in their pen from night time lock up until about 10:00 am then they go play for the afternoon.
They come down when it gets close to going back in the pens for feeding.

I also use bagbalm for cuts on their feet. My one new sebbie girl I got cut her foot cut and I put the bagbalm on for about 4 days and it cleared it right up. But only put it on at bed time in the pen so she would not be walking too much...

Miss Lydia is wonderful person and always there to help anyone who needs it!!!

Thanks for the ideas, I hadn't thought about bagbalm but it does seem to cure everything I've used it on. Your birds schedule sounds like mine, they go to bed at dark, I shut them up until about 8 or 9 am and then I let them back out. I'm afraid they're going to have to take a break from their free ranging until he is healed up.
Thanks again.

 

[RURU]

I did not keep Vanessa up just made sure to treat her foot at bedtime so she would be off it for the night. Then let her out and she limped a bit on it. But by putting a nice amount on to coat the area good at night it worked great. She was fine after 4 days.. Geese heal much quicker than humans do.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well.......................I'm upset with myself, he's re-injured his foot. He was doing very well and there was no limp and it appeared that the scab was beginning to slough off. I finally let them out of their enclosure day before yesterday and was very happy, they were breeding for the first time! at least to my knowledge, and all was well at least at that moment. I let them out yesterday morning and he was limping again. On inspection it looks like he's knocked the top of that knuckle and it was bleeding. I put them back in their enclosure, this time I put down clean straw and let them stay in their own kennel in the hope that they wouldn't pace so much (SHE wouldn't pace so much). I put some triple antibiotic ointment on it thinking that would help to moisten and soften the scab so it wouldn't be so stiff and painful. I hate to do it, but I guess I'm going to have to keep them confined until it is healed. They HATE!! being closed in, but if I turn him out I'm sure it will just happen again. They wander the entire property and it seems as if they walk almost constantly when they are out, well either walking or playing in the wading pool. I feel just sick that I was so foolish, but it won't happen again. I just hope this didn't cause a worse injury than before.
I've noticed that their behavior is changing slightly, not as interested in taking food from my hand, exploring new areas of the property and he is generally more skittish around me (go figure) and she lets me pet her often and I think I'm seeing breeding behavior when I do pet her i.e., lowered posture, wings out slightly to flatten her back, and of course actually witnessing their attempts at breeding. I'm assuming that they are preparing to find a nesting area and beginning to get serious about breeding. Is there a way that I can discourage them from going off on their own to find a nesting sight? I can't safely let them nest in an unfenced or unsecured area, and how aggressive should I expect him to become as time goes on? I've become so attached to these birds I can't stand the possibility that something could happen to them. I know lots of folks have a laissez faire attitude about their birds, but I just can't turn a blind eye to where they go and what they do. I worry too much.
Well that's the good and bad of it, thank you so much for asking and having concern for them.

Have you walked your property trying to find what he is hurting his foot on? I know thats not always easy, I am always looking for things when I'm out, we have had so much rain that i am finding screws that have washed up out of the ground, Thank goodness I'm the one finding them. If your goose has a nice place in which to lay inside an enclosed house then make sure she has plenty of bedding in which to lay and nest, they like privacy so try to make sure it's in a quiet area and just maybe they will use the house for laying, My goose is now laying her 9th egg and she has laid everyone in the duck house. When your goose starts to lay leave that egg so she gets into the habit of laying inside, you can even buy fake eggs and make her a nice setup with plenty of bedding then place the eggs in there and hopefully she'll get the message, I have ducks and chickens laying and i think that has helped My goose decide where to lay My flock doesn't like to be closed in either but sometimes it's for their own good, like RURU said letting them out later in the morning will help because when she starts to lay she will lay in the morning most likely. Keep up with updates please and hopefully he'll continue to heal with your TLC. Once they start to lay eggs are close behind.