Our 2 ducks bully the new gosling.

[Spotgieter]

We have a male Jumbo Pekin and a male Welsh Harlequin. They're best buds and have been the only males until recently when my husband and I got a Blue Runner duckling and an African gosling on May 11th. The goose (Sulley) is already bigger than the Welsh (Eli). We keep Sulley (goose) and Mikey (runner) in the house at night and take them out every morning and place them in a separate enclosure, so Marty (jumbo) and Eli can get acquainted with the new family members. Today, while I was changing the water in the female's pen, I watched Marty and Eli bullying Sulley through the enclosure. Marty and Eli seem like they share the pecking order and I'm afraid they won't ever get used to Sulley. They act like Mikey isn't there. Do they know that Sulley is a goose and he's different from them? Do I need to worry about Marty and Eli accepting Sulley?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Is Sulley a gander or goose?

 

[ruthhope]

In my experience, drakes can be very foolish. I have a newly adopted juvenile pekin drake, Dewey, who sleeps in his own dogcrate in my coop but free ranges with the other drakes during the day. Dewey makes threatening head movements through the dog crate towards top muscovy drake, Daffy although Daffy is twice Dewey's size and Daffy is alpha male. Why this newbie Dewey does this I do not know and cannot understand. I notice that Dewey is cautions about getting too close to Daffy in the back garden.

I would not draw any conclusions about your two drakes and the gosling at the moment. Do you have room to partition off your duck house or add a dog crate in there for Mikey to sleep in? All three drakes need to get to know each other while separate. I use a dog exercise pen on my patio, with a kiddie pool in it, for new introductions during the day. My drakes can see and interact with the newbie in the pen sometimes for 2 or 3 weeks before I let them free range together. Sometimes a newbie will settle in with most of my flock but one drake will be the bully, so I will put that drake in the pen and let the newbie free range. I just try different permutations of who to keep separate durignng the day, but the new ones always sleep in dog crates in the coop.

I expect that when your gosling is fully grown, he won't have any trouble from your drakes as he will be head and shoulders bigger than even the jumbo Pekin.

 

[Spotgieter]

Is Sulley a gander or goose?

He's a gander

 

[Spotgieter]

In my experience, drakes can be very foolish. I have a newly adopted juvenile pekin drake, Dewey, who sleeps in his own dogcrate in my coop but free ranges with the other drakes during the day. Dewey makes threatening head movements through the dog crate towards top muscovy drake, Daffy although Daffy is twice Dewey's size and Daffy is alpha male. Why this newbie Dewey does this I do not know and cannot understand. I notice that Dewey is cautions about getting too close to Daffy in the back garden.

I would not draw any conclusions about your two drakes and the gosling at the moment. Do you have room to partition off your duck house or add a dog crate in there for Mikey to sleep in? All three drakes need to get to know each other while separate. I use a dog exercise pen on my patio, with a kiddie pool in it, for new introductions during the day. My drakes can see and interact with the newbie in the pen sometimes for 2 or 3 weeks before I let them free range together. Sometimes a newbie will settle in with most of my flock but one drake will be the bully, so I will put that drake in the pen and let the newbie free range. I just try different permutations of who to keep separate durignng the day, but the new ones always sleep in dog crates in the coop.

I expect that when your gosling is fully grown, he won't have any trouble from your drakes as he will be head and shoulders bigger than even the jumbo Pekin.

Thank you for sharing your experiences. We've only started last April and it's still a lot to learn. At the moment, we keep Sulley and Mikey in a dog crate in the house at night and take them outside every morning. They have there own fenced enclosure and are close to the other ducks, because they free range. I am hoping it will get better.

 

[ruthhope]

He's a gander

Sulley and Mikey are gorgeous. I think you are doing fine and that they can be integrated in time -- maybe when the duck hormones wane in the fall and when Sulley is full grown. He looks such a sweet docile boy!

 

[Spotgieter]

Sulley and Mikey are gorgeous. I think you are doing fine and that they can be integrated in time -- maybe when the duck hormones wane in the fall and when Sulley is full grown. He looks such a sweet docile boy!

Oh, he is! He's precious and so sweet. Thank you for your help. It's greatly appreciated

 

[Spotgieter]

Is Sulley a gander or goose?

Sulley is a gander

 

[Miss Lydia]

How are things going since July?

 

[Spotgieter]

How are things going since July?

Welllll lol I just posted a new thread. Our gander, Sulley, is big and chasing the 2 ducks that use to chase him! He's a big boy now