Sick goose

[hellfire]

My goose is a year old and started laying end of Feb. She then stopped after 5 eggs and went off food and didn't move about the farm much but not like broody behaviour. I checked for a stuck egg but no. After a week she picked up again wandering about with the gander and eating again. She's still not layed anymore eggs and again has gone off colour but this time worse. This is since yesterday. She's on the pond constantly not coming out for feed at all, she seems listless just floating, her eyes don't seem open fully and worst of all today her beak now has the start of purple colour!! I'm really worried about her and haven't a clue what's wrong bar lack of oxygen ie heart issues due to beak colour? The vet is out tomorrow for our TB test and is happy to look at her but she won't come to land even when the male does. Can't even coax them to go into their shed to be treated with Tylan just encase it's a infection. I'm at a loss what it could be? Never had this in any geese over the years.

 

[Miss Lydia]

You need to get her off the pond some how. Do you have a canoe or row boat or waders? she needs to be kept warm with fresh water and feed, she maybe having reproductions issues or infection and the vet needs to examine her.

 

[Iain Utah]

I'm very sorry. It sounds like a reproductive problem and you should be prepared that she could pass. Usually the symptoms you describe mean she has laid a shell-less egg inside of her, which then poisons her. Often a goose can flush it out and bounce back if it happens once or twice, but if it happens too many times, it will take its toll.

I've also seen a goose cause internal bleeding when laying an egg (extremely rare). In that case, the goose will pass very quickly.

If the pond is fresh, she is likely working on self-recovery there. Otherwise, provide access to fresh water and most important try to give her crushed egg-shells. Finally, try to avoid causing any stress (such as chasing her to catch her).

Best of luck!

 

[Miss Lydia]

So just leave her in the pond even if a vet is coming out to examine her @Iain Utah

 

[The goose girl]

Like Iain Utah says, it sounds very much like a stuck egg. It happened to my late goose, Keld. She also became listless, stopped eating, and spent a lot of time on her pond.

Symptoms started about a week after the egg was due, but as it was very late in the season, I just assumed she was done laying and only took her to the vet when I noticed her lack of appetite and weight loss. The stuck egg had caused an infection, and even after surgery to remove the egg, antibiotics, tube feeding three times daily for weeks, and about 30 visits to to the vet, she ended up dying.

She was two years old, but she'd always had issues with shell-less eggs. About one third of her eggs were shell-less, and her laying was very irregular. The vet said she was probably born with malfunctioning ovaries, and there was nothing I could have done to prevent it.

I'm so sorry if this is what's happening to your goose.

 

[Iain Utah]

Lydia, yes. I would leave her on the pond if that is where she finds comfort and security when feeling poorly. If the vet is out and actually has experience with waterfowl reproductive issues, then I may risk the stress to catch her at that point. But likely the vet cannot do anything but confirm our diagnosis and the treatment options discussed in this thread. If she pulls through and acts normal again, then I would intentionally catch her and place her in a new environment to cause her a little stress to disrupt laying cycle, and especially to make sure she gets crushed eggshells, which are critically important to any possible recovery.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I understand what your saying but to me leaving her on the pond with out an examine or maybe some meds just seems like waiting for the inevitable.

 

[Iain Utah]

Unfortunately, it is a wait-and-see situation. No meds to help recover from laying soft egg inside goose. I know how hard it is, having watched a few of my geese over the years suffer from reproductive issues. If you recall, I worked with a specialist to fight this problem with one of my white african girls, who developed this issue about 5 years ago. I was able to keep her alive through one season, but problems returned the following year even worse, and she ultimately passed.

Vet says:
1. Stress interferes with her ability to fight off toxins.
2. The more she drinks fluid, the more she can flush system.
3. Once toxins dissipate, concern becomes about her laying the next egg
4. Eggshells best way to give calcium, critical for hard shells
5. Disrupting her routine may cause her system to shut down laying cycle temporarily, like rebooting computer.

 

[hellfire]

Unfortunately she had passed away at 6.30 thismorning when I checked on her. I tried again last night to coax her out with the male in the dark but she wouldn't come over at all even though he did. I did go out onto the pond but she just went off and really didn't want to cause stress without a vet on site as my plan was thismorning. The vet said he'd never heard of a beak going purple and thought maybe whatever was wrong all that time ago was still in her system and came back with vengeance within 24hours. I'm totally gutted as they really are my babies and now my poor baby boy is really upset. I actually waded and swam in to get her I was so upset (it's fresh river water into the pond) and my poor boy followed me all the way back trying to preen her even when I laid her on the ground. He's really moping about today and didn't even launch a attack or honk when my friend turned up. The fact she had issues a few weeks back and got over that then to all of a sudden go from normal to passing within 24hours I do suspect it was a shell less egg. They have free access to oyster shell, chicken she'll and grit, layers pellets and then in thier stone house of a night get a treat of a bowl of water with corn in the bottom with herbal thrive supplement added at times so definitely should of had enough calcium.
Vet said as my males showing no symptoms it's up to me if I want to do a precautionary course of antibiotics but not knowing you don't know if bacterial or viral so prob no point.

 

[casportpony]

I am very sorry for your loss.