My Goose Started Sitting On Her Eggs Today!

[plantcityhomestead]

My Embden goose finally started sitting on her eggs today. She has been laying for nearly 2 months, and I threw out 25 eggs that went bad a couple of weeks ago. She has 7 eggs now. This is my first year with a potential mom and I have a few questions.

Will she continue to lay eggs now that she is on the nest?

If I move her nesting box to a more protected area now, will she still sit on the eggs?

Should I change the nesting material now that she is settled in?

How long will she stay on the nest?

How can I make her the most comfortable?

How can I discipline dad so that he will not get more aggressive? He learned not to bite by grabbing his bill, and now he stops when I wave a finger at him and yell "no," but I noticed he was more protective today.

If the eggs hatch, could I sneak some additional babies into the bunch and avoid the brooder? I want to add another breed, but past attempts have not had a good outcome.

Thanks for your help.

 

[larkflying]

How exciting! It is hard waiting for those eggs to hatch. If she stays on her nest all day, be sure to write down what day it is. Three to four weeks from now you will wish you had!

If she is staying on the nest full time, she shouldn't lay any more eggs. If she is on it at night, wanders around during the day, visits the nest some, but is mostly not on it during the day time, she may lay some more.

I don't think you should move the nest now -- might disturb her enough to leave it. Plus, they tend to vigorously protect it. She might use more straw / wood chips . . . I don't know. I gave my geese piles of straw while they were in the egg laying phase, and they arranged it all as they like before they started brooding. Mine sink into a trance when they are broody and I don't see them doing much . . . I suppose you would have to be in a trance to cope with sitting in one place for 30 days . . .

It takes 30 days or so to hatch a gosling. Make sure she gets off the nest to eat or drink at least once every day or so -- one of my young geese has to be forcibly moved, and then she runs around eating, drinking, and pooping, before she zooms back to her nest in case I stole an egg . . . (they don't poop while they are on the nest . . .) I've heard of young geese dying on the nest because they don't take care of themselves.

The gander will continue to be protective. That is what he is programmed to do to protect the goose and those babies. She's helpless when she is sitting on the nest. Don't back down to him . . . and you'll probably continue to have "talks" every day or so. My most aggressive gander is very stubborn about it. If you can manage to grab him and pin him down by the back of the neck to the ground, or pick him up and hold him for awhile so that he knows he is helpless that will have the most lasting effect, Gently shoving him on the chest also mimics what another gander would do to assert his dominance (use your foot so he won't be able to bite you). Just remember that you are the boss goose - no matter what time of year it is. There's a great thread on here about training your geese . . .

 

[plantcityhomestead]

After being on the nest all day yesterday, when I went out for afternoon chores she popped off the nest and hasn't been back during the day. I went ahead and moved the pen and nest to a shaded part of the yard, instead of the winter location in full sun. We are ready when she gets back on the nest. She did lay another egg in the new location this morning, so it looks she has accepted the new location. Hopefully she will get back on the nest soon.

 

[Sarah Beth]

my gose laid 1st egg on the 16th and laid 6 more over the next few days. She started sitting all day on the 18 of March It is now 21st of April and still no goosling. Should I forse her off the nest and destroy the eggs she gets off middle of day eats and takes a swim in pond and comes back. she only has 5 eggs now. we have had 2 bad storms and water came up almost to nest she still sat on her eggs. Male stays with her most of the time.