just got a pair of canadian geese need help

[maransfan16]

last week i bought a pair of canadian geese at an auction and the card said they were tame and couldn't fly so i don't know if that means they were pinioned already or if i need to have them pinioned how do i tell? also i am thinking it is a male female pair (at these auctions they say pair just cause there's two animals) because the male is noticably larger than the female. since they never leave each others side whenever i come close to them the larger one (presumably boy) steps in front of the smaller one and throws out his wings and hisses at me which is another reason i'm thinking the bigger one is the male i just need help figuring out if they are pinioned and if they are male femle pair i can post pics tommorow if that helps

 

[Pyxis]

Try posting in the goose section. Also, be careful; you have to have papers and permits to own Canada geese. If you get them from a hatchery the hatchery sends them to you, but from an auction I don't think you would have gotten any.

 

[Frank Phinster]

To find out whether they are pinioned is very easy - look at their wings. Pinioning means to amputate the wing tip or, to be precise, the hand from the wrist down. The wing which has undergone this process misses the long primaries and looks as if half of it has been cut off.

As far as I know only goslings are pinioned for it is easy to do while adults would need surgery performed by a vet. I don't know whether it is allowed to pinion grown up birds.

Ganders are bigger as their female counterparts, have longer necks and are usually more aggressive.
For further information I would try to ask your question in the geese forum.

 

[JJRS]

When wings are folded you will only see 1 set of primaries (long wing feathers) extending to a point near or just past the tail. That means they are either pinioned or clipped. Watch when wings are open, one wing will be 1/3 shorter than the other if birds are pinioned. If both wings are equal length, and one is just missing flight feathers then it is scissor clipped. Geese molt primaries once a year in late summer. If they are full wing just catch them mid-molt, cut the new feathers off, and they will be grounded for another year.

 

[maransfan16]

ok then thanks i'll ask this over there also PYXIS everything i've looked at says that here in kentucky you don't have to have a permit to own them just to breed and raise them

 

[JJRS]

If the big bird is pushing the smaller one around (herding) and nipping at it along with long (sustained deep notes) loud honking and snake necking then its probably a m/f pair.

 

[maransfan16]

ok then also when i'm outside i'll here one of them doing that what i call a loud high pitched double honk that domestics don't do and he won't do it when i'm there but i snuck up close to their cage and peeked around the corner while he was doing it and the larger one has been the one doing it and i've done this three or four times and it's always the bigger one i've never heard a peep out of the smaller one could that be another way to tell or will they both do it and that one's just a loud-mouth

 

[kangababy]

Even if you don't raise them to sell the owners still had to give you transfer papers at the sell or it is illegal for you to own them.
If a game warden came on your property and you had them caged or he saw them on your pond and they were pinnioned then you would ahve to show them this piece of paper or it is like a $10,000 fine.

 

[maransfan16]

well is there anyway for me to legaly own them if there is what do i have to do

 

[Pyxis]

well is there anyway for me to legaly own them if there is what do i have to do

I think the best thing you could do is either try to get ahold of the former owner, or call the US Fish and Wildlife Service and ask about a permit, but DO NOT mention you already have them. You might be able to fill out something like this and then they'd be legal to own for you.