Please help: geese killed daily!

[thecityman]

WOW! THe more I hear and read, especially from cgmccary (who seems very knowledgeable on GHO's!) the more convinced I am that you all have absolutely solved my mystery. I, too, VERY often hear owls hooting at dusk and early night, but for some reason I just never really thought about them as enemies of my geese, mostly because geese are soooo big! I was dying to know what was getting my pet geese (mine really are pets that stay in my fence most of the time even though they could fly. I also hatched them all myself and played with them endlessly when they were babies, so this has been pretty upsetting. Its also strange that I never lost a single one in 3 years and now I've lost 3 in less than a week. I guess an owl is smart enough that once it learns where a free meal can be had it keeps going back. Hey....if they opened a good restaurant with free food near my house I'd do the same thing. THe big question now is what I can do to protect my remaining birds. Probably nothing short of trying to get them in the barn at night, which isn't practical every night. I will confess....at risk of undoubtedly upsetting some of you....that I might consider the 3-S approach recommended on here by some (shoot, shovel, shut-up) but since owls are nocturnal that probably wouldn't be possible even if I did decide to go that route (relax, I just said I'd consider it). I've heard that if string fishing line all around my field (maybe from trees or barn tops to the ground) that a bird of pray only has to hit it once or twice before they decide its too dangerous to hunt and fly in that area. Anyone know if that's true? Even so, a 2.5 acre area would probably be too large to put enough lines up to do much good. I'm all ears, my friends. Meanwhile, thanks for your help...I am confident you've solved my mystery.

 

[aart]

You need to lock them up at night.

 

[bobbi-j]

I agree with aart. The simplest solution is to get them in the barn at night. My dad lured his in with corn.

 

[Taco]

Classic Weasel or mink. They are vicious. I've watched them kill full grown Canadian Geese. They tear off the head and neck and lap up the blood. They will also kill for fun I've heard of them getting into a Pheasant pens and killing dozens per night.

 

[zazouse]

WOW! THe more I hear and read, especially from cgmccary (who seems very knowledgeable on GHO's!) the more convinced I am that you all have absolutely solved my mystery. I, too, VERY often hear owls hooting at dusk and early night, but for some reason I just never really thought about them as enemies of my geese, mostly because geese are soooo big! I was dying to know what was getting my pet geese (mine really are pets that stay in my fence most of the time even though they could fly. I also hatched them all myself and played with them endlessly when they were babies, so this has been pretty upsetting. Its also strange that I never lost a single one in 3 years and now I've lost 3 in less than a week. I guess an owl is smart enough that once it learns where a free meal can be had it keeps going back. Hey....if they opened a good restaurant with free food near my house I'd do the same thing. THe big question now is what I can do to protect my remaining birds. Probably nothing short of trying to get them in the barn at night, which isn't practical every night. I will confess....at risk of undoubtedly upsetting some of you....that I might consider the 3-S approach recommended on here by some (shoot, shovel, shut-up) but since owls are nocturnal that probably wouldn't be possible even if I did decide to go that route (relax, I just said I'd consider it). I've heard that if string fishing line all around my field (maybe from trees or barn tops to the ground) that a bird of pray only has to hit it once or twice before they decide its too dangerous to hunt and fly in that area. Anyone know if that's true? Even so, a 2.5 acre area would probably be too large to put enough lines up to do much good. I'm all ears, my friends. Meanwhile, thanks for your help...I am confident you've solved my mystery.

Don't know where you are located but we have had some rough weather even for the wild life, the owls are hungrey and desperate here and killed one of my ducks but it did not get to keep it as my dogs were alerted and they intercepted the dead duck, i haven't lost a duck in 2 years off the pond.

I use roman candle to haze owls out of the area as my dogs will sound the alarm when they are around, but the other morning i ignored them and lost a duck because of it.

My geese come up to the barn as do my muscovey ducks but my romans stay on the ponds but the pond froze over.

My peafowl roost high in the trees and also alert when an owl is around so i do some hazing before i turn in, i live way out by myself so it does not bother any one, not even my own birds cause they are use to the noise and lights.

Hope you can get rid of your problem so your babies can live in peace, they are wonderfull to have around.

 

[REDNECK TRAPPER]

Coon. Use some foot hold traps and kill them.

 

[foamyownsyou]

Coon. Use some foot hold traps and kill them.

-face palm- it ain't a coon dude and really kill them like its nothing seriously one of the reasons I left Texas was people who have so sentiment in killing I shouldn't really be talking cause I go hunting but really ?

 

[REDNECK TRAPPER]

It's probably a raccoon since the head was off. If a coyote got it it would take the whole goose and wouldn't leave any of the meat left on the goose. Just set a few leg holds and see what you catch.

 

[mominoz]

I had a group of raccoons kill my geese 20 years ago, the head , neck thing is what they did. Or the GHO, I was watching the Berry Eagle Calm and they have an attack by a GHO on the nesting female, she fought it off.....I haven'g lost anything since I put hotwire around my birds night yard, but my ducks are all inside a roofed, fenced, hotwired night apartments.....

 

[sandiland]

YES, this could only be a Great Horned Owl (GHO) -- is the culprit! A coyote takes off the goose and eats all of it except some feathers. Protect your geese from it! They can dive and in one swoop take off the head and they do this to full grown geese.

Very Unfortunately, i was told the same thing when a mama Canadian goose was missing from her nest around 5:30 am eastern time a few weeks ago. VERY VERY sad.. Im still dealing with it but the papa is all by himself now and there was 1 egg left in the nest, some of her feathers in a trail leading into the woods. I called and spoke to a very knowledgeable Wildlife Rehab person in the area and she said Great Horned Owl before she mentioned coyote to me. The reason.. it was somewhat muddy... I did not see any coyote or racoon foot imprints on the ground. Saddest thing watching and hearing the male Canadian goose honking for days into the 3 week now. He is getting a lil better not looking for her as much and he is a little bit more quiet.