New Goose Owner Questions

[SheInShenanigans]

Hi everyone, I’m brand spanking new to this site and to bird raising.

I had so many goose eggs…the first three I incubated were all bad. One blood ring, one infertile and the last showed signs of infection. I felt ripped off by the seller, who only mentioned the eggs were “older” and that she’d not had a good hatch rate AFTER I bought them.

The next two were shipped, but I must have handled them too often, they never developed to hatch.

Finally, I got four from local folks. One was cracked in shipping. Two didn’t hatch and I didn’t crack them. The last one…I got a perfect little gosling from.

I found one viable egg after all that mess. They’re a Sebastapol and the goose that I have is an Embden. So far, I’ve seen the embryo move during candling so I’m hopeful that I will have my second gosling in two weeks-will my first goose be ok until then with their ducky friends as company?

When can I introduce them to new foods like peas, grapes, lettuce and grass?

How do I tell the difference between a gander and a goose? I was told Sebastapol are easy because the girls have gray feathers as babies

 

[cavemanrich]

I don't have goose experience, but still have some opinions/ideas.
First,, wanted to calm your nerves about your baby gosling. Will be just fine until cousins hatch/arrive.
When your new gosling hatches, be observing when you place with you current gosling. Sometimes the older may show aggression towards the new arrival. After a period, they should be best buddies.
No idea on the feed transition, with geese. Probably a good option, would be to have them playing in the lawn grass. If they start nibbling on blades of grass,,,,, that may be key??
You are most likely already aware, that the drinking water needs to be quite deeper than for chickens. I am assuming same as for ducks.

WISHING YOU BEST,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,and