Need Gander Behavior HELP - Free Cell Phone Tip!

[ellenmartin]

Sorry this is so long but it is good to read if you have geese. Also, if you have a cell phone - don't leave it in your pocket when you jump into the pond to break up a gander fight! If you do, put in sun for 24-48 hours and then hit w/ hair dryer and it might come back to life.

Ok, I have 2 pairs. I'm not sure what I did wrong here but I'll try to explain and someone can help.

Louis was my first gander. He is about 2 years old or more.

I needed a mate. I went to feed store and got what I was told was apair of gooses. Turned out was a young male and female older. Nanna and Clyde.

Louis took to Nanna and Clynde and he fought ... Nanna liked Louis and spent day with him mostly as Clyde tagged along on the outside. (maybe Clyde and Nanna were mated pair???)

I bought Bonnie for Clyde. She is an Embden. I found out later Louis is a Toulouse, Clyde and Nanna are Pilgrim but look like Toulouse!

Bonnie is so laid back, she doesn't care about anyone either way. Clyde and Louis fought over her when Nanna set up on her eggs 2 months ago. Nanna stayed on nest and Louis/Bon and Clyde spent day about. Both fighting to mate with her and Clyde pulling her feathers out of back of her head I noticed. Clyde is rough. Clyde is very strong personality - Louis is laid back.

Clyde would check on Nanna - go in and out and in and out taking care of nest/her/eggs/etc. When Nanna came out Louis would take her around and feed her and walk her. So who did she like better?/ Don't know.

Nanna started to hatch - Clyde was so excited, Louis went in to see too and Louis and Clyde got into fight on top of Nanna on nest with hatching babbies!!!

I had to do something quick so I went in and got both of them out and separated them! Clyde made me nervous at how agressive he was - pulling Nanna on back of head/neck to get her off nest and same to Bonnie mating... so.... I put Louis in with Nanna to hatch and raise protect babbies. He is more laid back. Never been father before though.

I put Clyde in pen w/ Bon as she sat up on the same day Nanna hatched. Figured Clyde could take care of her for a month and keep him out of trouble with louis and babbies/etc.

Clyde pouts, makes whining noises, almost cries daily paces fence/etc. Clyde fights Louis anytime they are near the same fence - through the fence and bloody beak on Louis!

I let Clyde out with them when babbies were 2 weeks old (about 2 weeks ago) and Louis and Clyde got into fight immediately! Clyde started like trying to take the babbies and looked like he was trying to mate with one of them!! They are too young to be messed with so Clyde and Louis were separated again (I got bit twice) and now yesterday babbies are 4 weeks or so old and I let Clyde/Bonnie out to go onto pond (plenty of room and 1/2 acre pond) and Clyde went straight to family and babbies, started dipping his beak in water and doing mating dance/crap and then looked like he was going to try to get on one of the babbies and Louis got in there and they got into it biting each other both on the back of the next in a head lock in the middle of the pond - women and children fled to the shore and they went at it!! It wasn't looking good so in the pond I went - cell phone and all!!!!!!!!!

Grabbed necks and separated as I was chest high in mud/water fish and got bit once this time but pulled Louis to shore and Clyde went off to shore and did not follow Nanna - followed Bonnie to other part of yard!

That was it !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Everyone at home here is saying find Clyde a better home he doesn't work out here. I can't help but wonder if I haven't done something wrong or is there somethig I shluld do different now orrrrrrr is it like Chickens and 1 rooster is find but 2 is trouble!!

Bonnie is due to hatch any day now. Everyone is afraid Clyde in ther with her will bite babbies heads and who knows what that he is agressive/etc.

It seems he just hasn't had a fair chance at having babbies/family and a stable routine to me. I got him at feed store and all his breast feathers were missing so he must have feathered someone's nest. He did it for Nanna too when she sat up. He seems like a genuine good guy but I have to have everyone together getting along here and can't keep separated - too much trouble/work and won't work in Winter/Summer at all on pond and in housing!

HELPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPPP!!!!!!! Anyone with any input or experience is greatly appreciated. I won't be offended, what's done is done I need to know if this is common, will the guys kill each other if I just let it go - I don't want to be doctoring a beat up gander for weeks on an experiment, do they fight to the death??? Mostly babbies safety, they are 4 weeks and can't defend themselves at this point and new hatchlings coming on are they safe with him or will he attack them as they hatch? He seemed sooo happy and excited when Nanna started to hatch but then I ripped him out of the pen and put him in isolation w/ Bonnie for fighting / attacking Louis on top of Nanna's nest while she was in it with babbies hatching!

Thanks for help!

 

[Goosehaven]

My ganders have fought each other like nobody's business until one basically wins the battle and is the dominant one. They seem like they are going to kill each other when they really get into it but I just let them go and somebody always gives in. They have to do this to determine the pecking order within flocks. Each year I have the same thing when my gosling ganders get mature enough and have to find their place in the subset of flocks. When they fight in the water when one gives up they usually will dive under when they can get loose and get away. When they are on dry ground they run like no other and many times the winning gander has tail feathers clamped in his beak as the other one is trying to get away. Geese learn to coexist together pretty good once the pecking order is determined but they still occasionally get into fights. It's normal behavior. Out of the 17 geese I have, I have basically 4 subsets of flocks with each one having at least one gander. One of my flocks has two and they coexist together well except for springtime they get into it a little bit. All my ganders coexist in the same pen in the winter too. They just have to get all the funny business worked out of their system. I do agree that you have to watch ganders around goslings at first to see how they will react. If you need to keep mom and the new babies penned in again for a couple weeks I would and leave both ganders out of the pen. Good luck!

 

[goosedragon]

Quote:
Ditch Clyde! If he looks like a Toulouse he isn't a Pilgrim gander (which are WHITE) also the diposition does not sound like a Pilgrim either, Mine (pilgrim ganders) were so laid back that they appeared to be goose pecked to me) when Ma goose said jump the ganders did jump. One gander can service two geese, he may be faithful to his prime lady but when she is siting a nest the second lady will get her turn for sure. If you want to raise pilgrims get a real pilgrim gander and have someone who knows the breed look at the female too she may be fake like the gander is. Then you will have to isolate the pair through mating season to keep the line pure.
As far as fighting goes they don't usually, once it is established who the looser is he is usually allowed to hang around if he stays away from the boss gander and the females that the boss claims for himself. Good luck and I am sorry that you bought a fake pilgrim gande.