In "The Book of Geese" by Holderread he recommends not taming ganders because it leads to a lack of respect for our space (for humans) which leads to more aggressive behavior towards humans.
My Buff American gander was tamed and treated as a pet when I got him at almost a year old. He is the one that has gotten me the worst- although he is easy for me to catch, handle, medicate, and be around other than breeding season. My Buff Dewlap was not taught to be tame, was never handfed, and, although he is harder to catch, he is the easiest gander to be around. This could be because, in my personal opinion thus far, the dewlaps are the gentlest of the goose breeds or it could be due to his respect for my space and perhaps some small degree of fear (he likes to be NEAR me, but does not want me to TOUCH him).
My sebastopol gander is somewhere between these two in regards to how 'tame' he is outside of breeding season... but he is being the worst gander so far this year. Light colored shoes, any feed bucket, hoses all become subject to his wrath. He's an angry little beastie right now and I respect that.
My Buff American gander was tamed and treated as a pet when I got him at almost a year old. He is the one that has gotten me the worst- although he is easy for me to catch, handle, medicate, and be around other than breeding season. My Buff Dewlap was not taught to be tame, was never handfed, and, although he is harder to catch, he is the easiest gander to be around. This could be because, in my personal opinion thus far, the dewlaps are the gentlest of the goose breeds or it could be due to his respect for my space and perhaps some small degree of fear (he likes to be NEAR me, but does not want me to TOUCH him).
My sebastopol gander is somewhere between these two in regards to how 'tame' he is outside of breeding season... but he is being the worst gander so far this year. Light colored shoes, any feed bucket, hoses all become subject to his wrath. He's an angry little beastie right now and I respect that.
