My Africans (A close call! 1/05)

[Soccer Mom]

I love hearing the updates on everyone's geese! They are so addictive. I swear that I have new pics on my camera and some funny new stories to share. My guineas are free ranging with the geese now. Good gravy is it loud back there!

Rustyswoman,

I hope your girl is okay. I haven't had any experience yet with the laying and attendant issues. I'll go look at the thread in emergencies though. Keep us posted on how she is.

 

[Puddle Foot Farm]

Soccer Mom - had to share this picture of Luna with you. She's standing like this in our living room, watching me type, as if she's a normal goose.

I guess all geese wish they were flamingos, and Luna and Panini just openly admit it?

 

[Soccer Mom]

LOL! Luna is a flamingo too! I love it. Interesting that we all have females who do this. I wonder why none of the males do this and what it means.

 

[Soccer Mom]

The weather has been crazy. Rain for days on end and then glaring sunshine for a few brief moments, followed by more rain and yet more rain. Ugh. Am I in TX or Washington?

The pond is overflowing, but the geese still only go into the shallows. This is as deep as the go.

A few updates: Bratty Girl met the farrier.

I forgot to close the geese up before the farrier got there and they all came running to inspect him. He was a bit taken aback, but I assured him that I would close them out of the donkey pen and that they weren't aggressive. Fortunately he trusts me and my animals. He knows I'll tell him if someone is a problem.

He's in a very vulnerable position when trimming the mini donkeys, he has to kneel down on the ground to get under their feet. All the geese were fascinated (and a little put out at being excluded) so they lined the fence exclaiming and discussing what they were seeing. Then Bratty Girl discovered that she is small enough to fit thru the fence. Good grief. I have a couple of girls small enough to fit thru the welded wire around the donkey pen, but only Brat was nutty enough to squeeze thru.

The farrier wasn't thrilled, and kept a careful eye on her (so did I!). But she just came over and inspected his work, then settled on the ground next to us to watch and tchoo tchooed at him. He had to laugh and afterwards he told me that farm was a pleasure to come to because the animals were always so nice.

Let's see if he feels the same way in February.

The recent excitement is the release of the guineas. I've had a large number of youngsters penned for 8 weeks. I released them at 10 weeks old (they spent the first 2 weeks in the brooder). The geese weren't sure what to make of it.

Note the empty pen in the background.

The geese were well aware of the guineas existence. The followed me over there and stood outside the pen staring in each day as I fed and watered the buineas, but I don't know that they ever realized that they wouldn't be the lone free rangers forever.

Neither group was sure what to do with one another at first. I was afraid it would be the Sharks and the Jets, but they played it cool.

Surprisingly, the one who had the biggest problem with it was Panini. She would hiss at them and run the guineas off if they infringed on her favorite areas or just made her feel crowded. I didn't know she had it in her.

But now they are one big happy extended family.

I can count on the donkeys to break things up if there is too much fighting. They don't like it.

The one area that was the most zealously guarded at first is a clump of chopped down trees that never got burned. We now leave them as a favorite play spot for the critters. Everyone likes to perch on them and hunt bugs or vegetation.

Think that geese don't perch?

They love their logs!

I hope I didn't explode your browers with an overdose of pictures.

Feel free to add updates for your own flocks.

 

[Wifezilla]

Stop it!!!!

I LOVE Africans but SO do not have the room. This thread is torture!

 

[Soccer Mom]

Just sneak one in and tell the Dh it's a really big duck!

 

[shelleyd2008]

I just love this thread, you are a great story teller

My young embden goose has figured out how to get up on the porch, we may never see it again for all the poo

I caught the embden up there yesterday about 'dinner' time. I'm sure it was looking for me, I was taking my time apparently. This morning I slept in a bit, so of course the goose was on the porch again trying to figure out where breakfast was. Let's just hope it doesn't figure out how to get the lid off the can

Maybe I can teach it how to get the food itself, that would save me a good 10-15 minutes. "Here you go baby goosie, take your food to your bowl, then run the ducks and guineas off so you can eat. Mama's going to go feed the chickens so they don't come eat all your food too"

My son is home sick from school today. He went outside a little bit ago and came back in to tell me that the embden was hissing at him

Let's hope that doesn't start, embdens are mean

I never wanted them, but now that I have one I don't know if I could get rid of it. It's like one of my kids, I"m sure it would be lost without me. It doesn't like any of the other waterfowl (goose and ducks), so it would be in trouble if it had to try and live with some.

Oh well, thanks so much for this thread, I really enjoy it

 

[rainplace]

 

[Germaine_11.20]

Your pictures are great. It is good to know that they can get along with the guineas. Maybe someday I will get some of those.

The Africans have finally allowed the male Pilgrim to bunk down with them. Before the girls would grab him by his feathers and hold on to him while he tried to get away. He can eat with them too now. His mate disappeared about 3 weeks ago.
Pretty sure it was coyote.

As for my one girl Lucy. She is back to acting normal. She has not laid anymore eggs and I am grateful for the one that is still viable in the incubator. Here's hoping it makes it to and through hatching.

I checked Lucy and she did not seem to have anything stuck. I thought prolapse but not that either. I still don't know what was the matter. Unless it had to do with trying to nest(?) and not being able to.

Keep the pics coming, I love them. How are you wintering the geese. Are they going into an enclosed area? Still trying to decide how to winter mine.

 

[Soccer Mom]

Well, mine have a house that I lock them up in every night. I let them out first thing in the morning and shut them in at dark. They get fed at night and know the routine. Donkeys first, then geese, then guineas. Each group troops into their shelter in the correct order.

I'll still let them out all day to forage. I'm in Texas so it's a lot warmer here. It's barely going to hit 60 today and I think that's cold.

Here is the Casa de Goose:

Sorry about losing your goose.

But I'm glad Lucy is back to herself.