Newbie at owning goslings, taking any advice on how to raise them

[smw18]

well, about two or three weeks ago I went to pick up a couple of chickens from a feed store. Well, lets say a couple turned into a lot, and a two goslings.
Now I had done all my research on white leghorns, and have spent some time since picking them out, and researching the other breeds that my grandma has slipped into the boxes. Now I really have to crack down and focus on the goslings, and get ever fact I can collect about these geese. So any tips or facts I need to know about raising them, they are doing fine right now and about 2 to 3 weeks old. One major question I would like to know is how old can they be when they go outside? The vet said they could go out now with a heat lamp at night, but I want a second thought about this. I live in florida and the weather is suppose to be in the 80F during the day and low 60F at night. What has me sitting on the edge is that it suppose to rain saturday and sunday but saturday is suppose to be in 80F to high 50F. Though,sunday and monday are suppose to be mid 60F low 40F

Should I keep them in the garage?

 

[arherp]

For one - If you paid any less than thirty dollars a piece, those geese aren't Africans, they are African-Chinese crosses.
I would put them up into the garage at night at least until they have half of their feathers in. Just don't want to chance anything when they are still little and not as hardy!

 

[smw18]

hmm, thats what they guy said, but I will have to take your word for I am sure your more knowledgable when it comes to this. So, I have a african/chinese cross goslings, can you also share more information with me on what the up keep is?

 

[arherp]

Upkeep as far as...?

As far as care goes, they are a large Chinese... They will not have any of the issues an African could have. They should be very hardy, good foragers, etc. They will be noisier than an African though.

 

[Iain Utah]

Congrats on your babies! Feed them un-medicated starter or grower food that is not too high in protein, with lots of chopped up kale and romaine to supplement.

And I'd keep them in the garage for a little while longer.

 

[smw18]

Thank you both with helping me make that hard choice. One thing I would hate is to mess these guys up really badly. I will be sure to pick some of the kale and romaine up on my way home tomorrow.

 

[DB_Tex]

Some hatcheries sell an "African" goose that is not the enormous goose with a dewlap, and neither is it a chinese with a long skinny neck. Metzer calls the standard dewlap african the "super african" and the regular african they sell is a different breed with distinct lines seperate from the dewlap african and chinese.

Unless your buff goslings get super long skinny necks, most people won't batt an eye at your "africans".

My main takeaway in raising geese from experienced goose owners is to raise a gosling the same way you would raise a puppy of an aggressive dog breed. Don't snuggle it up to your face. Don't teach it to eat out of your hand. Don't blur the lines between your position as the "alpha" of the flock essentially. If I'm around to see it, I don't let my goslings act aggressive towards my other birds.

Unmedicated starter is great beginner foods with lots of dark greens. If you want your geese to eat weeds in your yard and garden make cuttings of your common weeds (non toxic of course) and feed them those, they will develop a taste for those plants and eradicate them when they graze. I've had great luck with this.

 

[smw18]

Now that I am better educated about where and what most likely my goslings are, I will be sure not to make the mistake twice in calling them african goslings. New to the site and will find out shortly how to change the title so this will be correct. People have told me that having goslings with chicks is a mistake, well ones that are over a month old. Once they get older and to big to be around chickens I have a temp. Pen that I will hopefully be able to train them that, that's their home. (any tips on that would be very much welcomed.) I dont want to clip their wings, because what if the neighbors dogs come out, I want them to stand a chance to get away if it becomes to much. I will gladdly take the advice of not hand feeding and the face thing. So far there has been no display of aggression toward the pullets and toward us., from what I have seen. Behavior question, what does it mean when I bend down next to their brooder and they get talking? They really get into cherpingwhen I ask 'really tell me your problems'. Though, when other people talk to them, this just cherp a little

 

[Iain Utah]

So cute! They are talkers, aren't they? And X2 about them being like an aggressive breed of puppy and should be handled as such.

I tried to house my african goslings with my ducklings who are 3 days older... but the biggest of my goslings was acting very aggressive with the ducklings within 24 hours... and the gosling was only 2 days old at the time. So they each got their own brooder pen. My goslings are a whole week old now and have the quite the personalities developing. lol

My adult pair of african/toulouse crosses get to free range and are able to fly. I too want them to have a chance to escape predators by being able to take flight. But, they know when & where they are fed and can feel safe. They do not roam off property.

 

[smw18]

hmm, mine are abnormal then, because they have yet to display aggression toward the two cochins they are with now. In fact they are at the end of the pecking order for right now, but now that I have been warned, I will keep a very close eye on that.
I do have a very important question, how will I know when to start introducing them to little bit of shallow water. I came out to find one of the geese had tried to get into the waterer. Her neck and part of her body were wet and most of the water was gone. At first I thought it was a display of being to hot, but all the heat lamps were turned off and two fans going, because the weather is suppose to be hot, so I planned for it and got everything cooling down before it got to hot. It is fairly cool in the garage, florida is known for its hot days so I knew to embrace for it, but it was strange.