instead of ducks i got goslings(i didnt hatch them but any advice is welcome!)

[hennyandpenny]

okay here is the story. last week time frame my riding instructure's female duck hatched out about 11 ducklings, my trainer didnt really want any more ducks so awfers (i dont care how its spelled) us some, so my mom calls up my dad and yadayada some time later it comes to the very roundabout coonclusion of "no". the ducklings were less than a day old okay so veeeeeeeeeeeeeery cute. so i teased him saying 'should of gotten the ducks, now im going to have to find a wild one...or take an unplanned swim in the pond in my jeans with all of my electronics' lets just say he was highy amused. so today i went out to the coop and walla two goslings about the size of 16 week old pullets were in my run and freaking out. so i put them in my containment pen and no papa or mama goose have been around looking. my chickens are doing the glare... and my parents said okay, actually my dad was scowling and grumbling... but i now need 2 know... what do i do now? what should i feed them what should i give them....any advise is welcome....

 

[larkflying]

If they have all their feathers, they shouldn't need a heat lamp. If you still see patches of fuzzy fluff, they'll need a heat lamp. Keep them somewhere dry and covered, with water they can dip their beaks into (small buckets?), and unmedicated chick starter to eat, if possible. Waterfowl feed is better, but hard to find and possibly expensive. Try to feed them chunks of grass if you can get some for them . ..

 

[hennyandpenny]

thankyou they dont have any feathers but are biggish(never had geese can you tell?) it is warm in ohio so is it okay if i dont use a heat lamp? i dont have any sockets in the barn and a heatlamp might blow it up and barn might catch on fire... ya so no heat lamps in the barn! i do have a pair of geese that are hatching there goslings sometime soon... but they r sooooo cute! and my chickens are now thinking im crazy

but i already new that. i am making the run bigger so maybe i can rope in part of the pond and have a goose area. for them where they can do there thing and maybe have a shelter for them but that might take alot of time... o well we are doing it! and thanks for the advice!

elizabeth

 

[larkflying]

If they don't have a heat lamp or parents, I'm not sure how they will do . . . maybe the adult geese will take care of them for you? If it is very warm at night it might be okay (60's or higher). They are pretty young if they don't have feathers - my 4 week olds just started having feathers grow in, so yours are probably more like 2 weeks.

Maybe someone else will have other ideas for heat if heat lamps aren't an option . . .

 

[Miss Lydia]

thankyou they dont have any feathers but are biggish(never had geese can you tell?) it is warm in ohio so is it okay if i dont use a heat lamp? i dont have any sockets in the barn and a heatlamp might blow it up and barn might catch on fire... ya so no heat lamps in the barn! i do have a pair of geese that are hatching there goslings sometime soon... but they r sooooo cute! and my chickens are now thinking im crazy

but i already new that. i am making the run bigger so maybe i can rope in part of the pond and have a goose area. for them where they can do there thing and maybe have a shelter for them but that might take alot of time... o well we are doing it! and thanks for the advice!

elizabeth

Can you post a pics so we can better determine their ages? and congrats on the goslings. Hopefully when your geese hatch theirs they will accept your 2 new ones.

 

[laturcotte1]

If they have no feathers they need to be kept warm. Put them in a box, cage and bring them in the house, garage, basement somewhere warm. If the mother goose will take them she will let them under her wings for warmth, I don't see that happening though.

 

[hennyandpenny]

i had to let them go, they are living with the two other geese on the pond i think their eggs are starting to pip, i cant really get a good pic but they are youngish the male goose(ganger?) is hissing at me if i so much as walk by the pond so i think all is well. i let them go because they werent eating and drinking water.