Right now we have around 50ish geese and I'm fighting the urge to expand. We raise geese, ducks, turkeys, chickens, quail, chukar (kinda), pigeons (newbie), pheasants (when my next batch of eggs arrives) and probably some random bird-things I'm forgetting off hand. Even with all of that the geese are my favorite. Easily my favorite.
Unlike most of the others, geese seem genuinely happy to see you. A dozen goslings will lower their necks and talk to you each and every time they see you walk into a room. They won't huddle in a corner and cry like ducklings.
When you are trying to talk on the phone they are firmly convinced you're talking to them and will carry on the conversation with you. If you talk louder they'll match the noise. If you're keeping your goslings in your home you'll need to move to another room to talk on the phone. I get a kick out of it, but sometimes I'd have to move.
They do have giant piles of poo everywhere. If you don't have any rain in the area then that can be a problem. We keep our geese in the backyard and refuse to feed or talk to them up front. When it rains the waste is extremely beneficial for your yard and works even better than fertilizer.
They can be destructive. You are buying a three year old child crossed with a puppy that has the capacity to learn and putting it in your yard. Geese have a very low tolerance for boredom and will make their own entertainment, usually by happily gnawing on new things. This is how we almost lost our generator. You will be encouraged to keep your yard very tidy because if you don't move an item then they will.
They are like dogs in that they need to be socialized with people. The more you socialize them the less protective they'll be of a yard. Just like a dog, if they see everyone as strangers they will become extremely loud and protective. If it is someone they know (and like
they don't care.
There are exceptions to that rule. My Pilgrims and American Buffs are absolute sweethearts and are extremely quiet, even when strange people are in the yard. My Africans, which I'm really trying hard to like, are a month old and will already hiss at things that startle them.
With all of that being said, get geese. Buy a couple Pilgrim goslings and play around with them. They will help keep your lawn mowed down and will happily eat weeds that even sheep don't really care for. Their eggs make incredible omlets and are large enough to paint or carve if you're into crafts. Their wing feathers make great calligraphy pens or canvases for miniature paintings.
They are also very tasty
Geese are out of season for the year so you have until spring to decide. I highly recommend at least trying them out. If you don't like them you can always sell, trade or eat them.
