My first Winter with geese!

[Amanda39]

Hi All! This is my first Winter ever having owned geese. Being in MI, Winter isn't far away, heck did we even have Summer? Anyway, my babies(6 months old now) spend time both in their day cage and free range everyday, however, it's getting really cold for me to sit with them for a an hour or so in the evening as I have since June. I find I'm putting them to bed earlier each week because of the sun and weather. They don't seem to mind, but I'm curious, when it's super cold, and a ton of snow, do you still put them out all day, or more or less take them for walks several times a day and back in their pen?

I have also read most people don't offer a pool during the winter months. Most days I won't, but I'm thinking on the weekends of giving them a nice warm bath in their pool!

What are your thoughts and experiences?

 

[dotporter]

Hi. I'm in Michigan too, and man it is getting into winter already. Sigh. Summer is too short. I have geese and ducks, and I NEVER let them bathe in winter unless it's one of those weird "warm" days. Even then they only get to splash early in the day so that they are dry before nightfall. I've had ducks manage to splash their normal water and then I have to chip the ice off their feathers and blow dry them.

Especially last year when water would freeze almost as soon as it hit the ground. The water dish is indoors in winter, but they'd splash and go outside, and there you have it.. frozen duck. The blowdrier got good use last year.

My geese love being out in winter. I have an elderly pair of Embden (they were going to be killed because they were too old to be of any use at their old home, so I took them. that was three years ago and while their eggs are never fertile they are a lovely old couple) and those two go into the barn as soon as it freezes and won't come out till spring (they absolutely REFUSE to step foot outside in winter). But the Toulouse have no problem being outside in the snow.

 

[Amanda39]

LOL They won't come out until Spring LOL They are like, "Are you nuts, we are staying in here!" Thanks for replying. Our 2 geese are our loving pets, so they are played with daily by myself and the kids. I was thinking, since they sleep in the garage, attached to the house, that a warm bath once in a while during the winter would be nice, as after, they will go into their garage pen which has about 4 inches of pine shavings. But, the garage gets very bitter too, it's almost like being outside, but with no wind as it's not insulated. But like I said, this is all new to me, so I'm glad I asked! So, in general, you should not allow your geese to bath in the winter?

 

[Cottage Rose]

I'm always amazed when people want to over protect waterfowl who ironically have a very warm "down jacket" that keeps them warm.

I too am a fellow Michigander and my geese and ducks go out everyday in all kinds of weather and can indeed go in water....but its 2 AM and I have to go to bed. My website's tip page has winter care info and I will try to write more tomorrow.

 

[AnitaE]

I'm in Louisiana so this doesn't really pertain to me...but just out of curiosity...do the geese have trouble with frostbite on their feet when it's snowy and ice like that?

 

[Cottage Rose]

Yes that is possible if they are left out all night in bitter cold weather with no shelter.
However waterfowl and poultry can be allowed outside during the winter months.
The main thing is to provide some shelter from wind and driving rain/sleet or snow
and they need to be well fed and provided fresh water daily.
It can get down to -30 below zero here and during the 38 yrs. I've raised poultry and waterfowl
(waterfowl the last 10 years) none have died from the cold. The worst thing that ever happened was some roosters with large combs for frost bit on the tips. They turned black, dried up and fell off but the roos suffered no ill effect because of it. Chickens however prefer going out on calm days but benefit and enjoy winter sun baths.
I DO NOT use heat lamps nor do I recommend them since they are dangerous and totally not needed for most hardy breeds.
My bird coops are not insulated and the windows open to the south all winter. If you have condensation in your coops they are too warm and not properly ventilated which is unhealthy for birds and mammals alike. My old shed it quite drafty but they have a thick layer of pine shavings.
In addition my geese and ducks will go in bathing water which I provide a few times a week. When the weather is severe I will leave my geese
in since all they do is hunker down to stay warm in really bad weather so it seems pointless to put them out but never-the-less even in bad weather
if well cared for they will be fine.
Sometimes after going in their pools my Sebastopol geese's feathers will freeze and rustle when they walk but they are perfectly happy and healthy as you can see in the above pics.

 

[Cottage Rose]

Ducks out in the snow & pools

 

[Cottage Rose]

In at night...out during the day