"Louisiana "La-yers" Peeps"

[cajun backwoods]

yay you! WOW that's a bunch of eggs! -- what all do you have hatching?
Way to go on the bass -- this IS a good time of the year!

thanx, the first 2 batches are all prod. reds and from there it will be mostly RIR (hatchery type) with about 10% of each batch with a mix of cuckoo marans and buff orps

 

[Celie]

Congrats, Everyone on all the eggs and hatching.

I think Spring came early to Louisiana !

I love Orpingtons, Especially on a nice green lawn.

 

[Garilyn Bardash]

X2

Thanks for all the prayers, he did feel them. He is still hurting today, but is getting a little better each day! I'm hoping to be able to pick up some new chicks for springtime!

 

[cajun backwoods]

Thanks for all the prayers, he did feel them. He is still hurting today, but is getting a little better each day! I'm hoping to be able to pick up some new chicks for springtime!

i am so glad to hear your husband is doing better even if its only a little better all improvement is great, ive been off for a little while but me and my wife have continued to pray for your entire famile during all this, and we will continue to pray. i hope he continues to get better and stronger.

 

[PrimroseMom1]

Primrose, you evidently haven't been around geese very much.

I LOVE my geese, but, like Julie says, the geese can sometimes be BAD BAD BAD -- well, that language is a bit strong but to help you put it into perspective -- relate it to babies (human). They are so precious when they are little, and then you get into the terrible twos and we THINK it's tough but we get through it, then they're very enjoyable through the elementary years because they are so innocent and come up with the funniest little sayings. They're always making us laugh much due to their innocence. Time goes by and you're having fun and don't notice anything different until one day the DRAMA begins. It's the beginning of Adolescence. You look at this child and think, "who is this person?" Believe me, you definitely KNOW when adolescence begins. Teenages are so full of ATTITUDE! Like teenagers, geese are also FULL of ATTITUDE and they are quite content to let you know what they think. And, if you don't believe them, they will put a hurt on you to prove it. You can ask my husband. One of my geese pinched him and put a bruise on his leg the size of a softball. Believe me, my husband paid attention to that gander after that.

While teenagers get through adolescence and hopefully become reasonable adults, geese on the other hand, live out their adult lives with adolescent attitude. I hope this explanation helps

That was a great explanation. I understand now. Been through terrible twos and adolescence (human kind). Uggggg. Perpetual adolescence.....Hummm, not good. I wonder about chickens, too. My Primrose, who is a total diva chicken, will peck me hard if I am in the chicken yard doing something besides holding her or feeding her. She does not like being ignored at all. But, if I sit in the chair in the chicken yard and pet her, she will stay there a long time. She will be one year old in April.

 

[Celie]

Primrose, you evidently haven't been around geese very much.

I LOVE my geese, but, like Julie says, the geese can sometimes be BAD BAD BAD -- well, that language is a bit strong but to help you put it into perspective -- relate it to babies (human). They are so precious when they are little, and then you get into the terrible twos and we THINK it's tough but we get through it, then they're very enjoyable through the elementary years because they are so innocent and come up with the funniest little sayings. They're always making us laugh much due to their innocence. Time goes by and you're having fun and don't notice anything different until one day the DRAMA begins. It's the beginning of Adolescence. You look at this child and think, "who is this person?" Believe me, you definitely KNOW when adolescence begins. Teenages are so full of ATTITUDE! Like teenagers, geese are also FULL of ATTITUDE and they are quite content to let you know what they think. And, if you don't believe them, they will put a hurt on you to prove it. You can ask my husband. One of my geese pinched him and put a bruise on his leg the size of a softball. Believe me, my husband paid attention to that gander after that.

While teenagers get through adolescence and hopefully become reasonable adults, geese on the other hand, live out their adult lives with adolescent attitude. I hope this explanation helps

At what age do they reach their TEEN years? I have 3 Brown African Geese almost a year old and they have a very nice temperament, so far, at least.
Julie, I saw 2 of my goose laying on ground, like they were going to lay eggs, with the 3rd one standing guard, so the ducks didn't bother them ! Maybe I have a pair!

My geese always laid in the same nests. I sure hope they don't get taken by predators. Of course, they were just OUTSIDE the fence !

 

[grambysfarm]

At what age do they reach their TEEN years? I have 3 Brown African Geese almost a year old and they have a very nice temperament, so far, at least.
Julie, I saw 2 of my goose laying on ground, like they were going to lay eggs, with the 3rd one standing guard, so the ducks didn't bother them ! Maybe I have a pair!

My geese always laid in the same nests. I sure hope they don't get taken by predators. Of course, they were just OUTSIDE the fence !

Celie & Primrose,
If they are about a year old and they haven't been pinching you -- you're in pretty good shape. The male geese can be very tempermental during mating season as they will want to protect their mates and offspring. Mine are very docile (compared to most geese) and they will hiss and make ugly noises at me during breeding season. They don't try to bite me but they make sure to let me know that they are not pleased with me being in their pens. I have a total of 17 adult Sebastopol Geese and only one of them will actually bite, Although, he's learned not to bite ME because I will grab him and carry him around for about 5 min. and just annoy the pure hell out of him. But, all bets are off with anyone else. My geese don't mind being petted but they really don't like to be held.

With regard to the predators, you'll need to assess your environment. I started with a few geese and had them living in town with a chainlink fence around the backyard. In 5 years I never lost a single one to a predator. That said, our property is surrounded by woods and they wouldn't stand a chance without good shelter because we have all kinds of predators out there, i.e. coyotes, foxes, bobcats, raccoons, etc.

 

[Celie]

Celie & Primrose,
If they are about a year old and they haven't been pinching you -- you're in pretty good shape. The male geese can be very tempermental during mating season as they will want to protect their mates and offspring. Mine are very docile (compared to most geese) and they will hiss and make ugly noises at me during breeding season. They don't try to bite me but they make sure to let me know that they are not pleased with me being in their pens. I have a total of 17 adult Sebastopol Geese and only one of them will actually bite, Although, he's learned not to bite ME because I will grab him and carry him around for about 5 min. and just annoy the pure hell out of him. But, all bets are off with anyone else. My geese don't mind being petted but they really don't like to be held.

With regard to the predators, you'll need to assess your environment. I started with a few geese and had them living in town with a chainlink fence around the backyard. In 5 years I never lost a single one to a predator. That said, our property is surrounded by woods and they wouldn't stand a chance without good shelter because we have all kinds of predators out there, i.e. coyotes, foxes, bobcats, raccoons, etc.

We have the same predators here and we free range on 5 acres in the country(well very small country town), but we lock up all the flocks at night. Our geese and ducks during the day, have free range (pretty much in plain view of the house) and a nice size pond. The geese that were taken last year, would stay on the pond on really warm nights, not wanting to be locked up. So far all the flocks will either go into the barn with no trouble, since that's where the feed is and they get supper around dark. They all head for the barn about 20 minutes before dark, when they see the security lights go on. I don't know what really hot weather will bring this summer, but they have a shelter with 2 exits on land and 2 into the water, by the lake. I find that ducks and geese do not like to be picked up and pretty much do not sleep all at the same time, always having a century on guard. They do not mix much with the chickens or turkeys except at feeding time, when they all come running for a handout, and at night, if they decide to sleep in the barn. We have them fenced in with a 6 foot fence, but outside the fence, with open gates, so they can come and go as they please, during the day, they free range on pasture. We are surrounded on 2 sides with woods. We have no small children to play with them or aggravate them. LOL We have 3 geese, about 75 to 80 Rouen and Pekin ducks, 27 Holland White turkeys, about 250 to 300 chickens, 2 dogs(that help guard and heard the flocks and 2 old house cats.

 

[grambysfarm]

We have the same predators here and we free range on 5 acres in the country(well very small country town), but we lock up all the flocks at night. Our geese and ducks during the day, have free range (pretty much in plain view of the house) and a nice size pond. The geese that were taken last year, would stay on the pond on really warm nights, not wanting to be locked up. So far all the flocks will either go into the barn with no trouble, since that's where the feed is and they get supper around dark. They all head for the barn about 20 minutes before dark, when they see the security lights go on. I don't know what really hot weather will bring this summer, but they have a shelter with 2 exits on land and 2 into the water, by the lake. I find that ducks and geese do not like to be picked up and pretty much do not sleep all at the same time, always having a century on guard. They do not mix much with the chickens or turkeys except at feeding time, when they all come running for a handout, and at night, if they decide to sleep in the barn. We have them fenced in with a 6 foot fence, but outside the fence, with open gates, so they can come and go as they please, during the day, they free range on pasture. We are surrounded on 2 sides with woods. We have no small children to play with them or aggravate them. LOL We have 3 geese, about 75 to 80 Rouen and Pekin ducks, 27 Holland White turkeys, about 250 to 300 chickens, 2 dogs(that help guard and heard the flocks and 2 old house cats.

Whew! you have your hands full! I have a few Pekins and really enjoy them. I picked my first two eggs of the season today. My grandson wants me to hatch him some of those "Aflac" ducks.

 

[Celie]

Whew! you have your hands full! I have a few Pekins and really enjoy them. I picked my first two eggs of the season today. My grandson wants me to hatch him some of those "Aflac" ducks.

That's cute! Our ducks have started laying a little too. I have been getting from 6 to 12 eggs a day, but don't have the 2 breeds separated yet, but it is easy to tell is any of the ducks that hatch are Rouen or Pekin or mixed. The Mixed get sold or processed before they can start mating, but both will lay off white eggs, so until I can get them separated, I have to hatch to tell. I counted the Pekin yesterday and there are 22, I counted 15 ducks and 7 drakes, so that fine, but I have not gotten the Rouen to stay in the same place long enough to count them. I know there are at least twice as many and a lot more drakes than ducks, so I need to process a lot of them for freezer camp. LOL We had about 150 last fall, but I sold a lot during the winter. We usually sell a few ducklings every spring, when the weather gets stable. Ducks are very personable and a kick to watch them play. They make nice outdoor pets for kids, as they are quite gently, but they are very messy, too ! LOL