Night time safety question

[Miss Lydia]

I have 4 Africans that are a year old. I have one Toulouse and 9 Embdens. Lucy my Toulouse and the 4 of the Embdens that I raised from day olds with the ducklings get along great with them. The 4 Embdens that I got when they were about 2 weeks old do well with the ducks but will let them know who's in charge. The 4 Africans I got as yearlings and they tolerate the ducks and other geese even though they were not raised together. All of the geese are very protective of my ducks and even my turkeys, chickens and guineas. I think the fact that my geese were all hand raised with lots of love has much to do with how gentle they are. They even enjoy playing with my 3 (almost 4) year old, although my dominant Embden "Big Momma" always lets him know when he is getting too rambunctious.

Love your avatar pic. and

how do you keep preds at bay letting your geese be left out at night? mine would be killed first night if I didn't lock everyone up at night.

 

[Patty43]

Here is a picture of the pen I keep my 4 ducks in. It is 10 X 10. The pen is split in the pictures because I had ducklings in the spring, but normally it is not. The top is covered with chain link fencing that is securely held down. There is half inch hardware cloth two feet in width all around the bottom. and covering any hole that a predator might squeeze through. I let them free range when I can watch them, and lock them up in the house at night after dark. So far this arrangement has worked well. The ducks are very routine and go right into the house when they see me coming after dark. I also pick up the food every night so as to not attract any predators to the pen. There is ventilation on the sides and back of the house and the roof is hinged for cleaning

 

[Miss Lydia]

Here is a picture of the pen I keep my 4 ducks in. It is 10 X 10. The pen is split in the pictures because I had ducklings in the spring, but normally it is not. The top is covered with chain link fencing that is securely held down. There is half inch hardware cloth two feet in width all around the bottom. and covering any hole that a predator might squeeze through. I let them free range when I can watch them, and lock them up in the house at night after dark. So far this arrangement has worked well. The ducks are very routine and go right into the house when they see me coming after dark. I also pick up the food every night so as to not attract any predators to the pen. There is ventilation on the sides and back of the house and the roof is hinged for cleaning

Very nice setup, looks very secure too.

 

[Britesea]

Your set-up looks quite similar to what I have except that I couldn't afford chain link- I'm going with 6 foot welded wire fencing, with 3 foot poultry wire (1" mesh) around the bottom - with 1 foot of it folded out in a "moat" and covered with rocks and broken bricks to discourage diggers. I plan to run at least 1 electric wire about halfway up as well. I am getting 10 Khaki Campbell day olds this week and my duck house is 6x4, the run is 20x20, and I plan to let them out to free range our half acre when I can be there to watch them.

Here is a picture of the pen I keep my 4 ducks in. It is 10 X 10. The pen is split in the pictures because I had ducklings in the spring, but normally it is not. The top is covered with chain link fencing that is securely held down. There is half inch hardware cloth two feet in width all around the bottom. and covering any hole that a predator might squeeze through. I let them free range when I can watch them, and lock them up in the house at night after dark. So far this arrangement has worked well. The ducks are very routine and go right into the house when they see me coming after dark. I also pick up the food every night so as to not attract any predators to the pen. There is ventilation on the sides and back of the house and the roof is hinged for cleaning

 

[Miss Lydia]

Your set-up looks quite similar to what I have except that I couldn't afford chain link- I'm going with 6 foot welded wire fencing, with 3 foot poultry wire (1" mesh) around the bottom - with 1 foot of it folded out in a "moat" and covered with rocks and broken bricks to discourage diggers. I plan to run at least 1 electric wire about halfway up as well. I am getting 10 Khaki Campbell day olds this week and my duck house is 6x4, the run is 20x20, and I plan to let them out to free range our half acre when I can be there to watch them.

Sounds like both of you have done your homework and will have many years of enjoyment with your flocks, post pics when you get your babies.

 

[DancingBirds]

Miss Lydia thank you! Wish I could take credit for the avatar pic, I found it in my wallpapers. We only get about 7 hrs if that of dark here right now and the geese are in our front yard with the porch light on. My Africans are a little on the ornery side and are very protective of their territory, especially my gander Harold. I also have a roommate who has a pitbull that chases predators away. In the winter months when we have much longer darkness our geese will be locked up at nights as well. I started on geese to help protect my ducks from predators and discovered why my cousin Clyde always had geese, they are really awesome birds and I can't imagine not having them. Since allowing my geese to stay out at night we have only had one night attack where I lost my Chocolate Runner to an owl. The geese and a friend chased the owl off that night and we tried to save the little runner but his injuries were too bad and we did the only humane thing we could. Losing him was tough but he was suffering and beyond help. Since then we have started putting the ducks and chickens in their pens long before it gets dark. I suppose we all have at least one of those heartbreaking stories. Also if my geese were a smaller breed I would still be housing them at nights. I would certainly have to wash my sidewalk a lot less. One other thing, we live on an island and fortunately the predators are not too large around here, the coons, owls and eagles are larger than the foxes and coyotes in the area. Anywhere else I would have no choice but to lock the geese up at night as well.