Topic of the Week - Raising and caring for goslings

[Doodlemom]

I just got my 3 Roman Tufted goslings on Friday. 2 girls and 1 boy. First time raising geese. I have English Orpingtons and Red Dorking chickens with a few ducks. Will be following this to make sure things go well with Ralph, Alice and Trixie.

 

[Pyxis]

- For brooder raised goslings: What are the brooder requirements?

Goslings get big very quickly, so the largest brooder you can get for them is the best. I use large plastic totes, and then when they outgrow that I move them to kiddie pools with chicken wire wrapped around the outside.

Generally you also want to make a "duckling" waterer for them to have in the brooder to cut down on water mess, although in my experience goslings are much less messy with water than ducklings.

- What is the best food for growing goslings?

I like to use an all flock feed, since it is made with ducklings and goslings in mind. I use Purina Flock Raiser myself. This past year I used Purina Meat Bird, which also is made with ducklings in mind, and it did very well for them.

A regular chick feed can be used too, but since goslings have higher niacin needs than chicks, you will want to supplement it with some kind of niacin. Brewer's Yeast works well for this purpose. You might also want to have Brewer's Yeast on hand even if using a food specifically made for waterfowl babies, since individual needs do vary, and a gosling might need even more niacin than is in an all flock feed.

Additionally, geese are made to eat grass, so offering grass to goslings is a great thin to do. If the weather allows, you can take them outside on grazing expeditions. If not, you can pick some grass and offer it to them in their brooder.

- At what age can brooder raised goslings be moved outside?

Whenever the temperature is safe for them. Waterfowl are hardier than chicks and feather in much more slowly, so there's no rule like in chicks where you cannot move them outside until they are fully feathered. Mine go out when they outgrow the poo brooder, and of course I start taking them outside even younger than that to allow them to graze. Even those that are a couple days old get outside trips for grazing if the weather allows. Once the temps are staying at least 50 to 60 at night, I feel comfortable putting any that are over a month out outside overnight.

And to answer these other questions that were posted:

- At what age are they weaned?

Weaned as in ready to leave their parents? Goslings never really leave their parents. Their parents raise them, and at about a month to a month and a half old they don't really need their parents any more for warmth, but do still need them for protection. When they are fully grown, they will still stay with their parents as a flock. As soon as they don't need their parents to keep them warm any longer, you could take them away if you needed to, but it will probably upset the geese for a while.

- Are adult geese mean to goslings?

Generally no. Adult geese are very tolerant towards goslings. Some adult geese will even adopt and care for babies that are not their own. My own geese love babies of all species, and will look out for them. Finn, my gander, loves baby chicks and keeps a watchful eye on them.

- Are older goslings mean to younger ones?

Sometimes, yes. This last year I hatched a gosling and he lived with my Call ducklings until the next batch of goslings hatched. He wanted nothing to do with them and was mean to the female I tried to introduce him to (they were meant to be sold as a pair, but he didn't like her and then I got attached to him and my family named him and now he's a pet here).

- At what age can you tell the difference between the sexes, and how?

You can tell right from hatch if you can vent sex. I vent sex all new goslings. Now, this can seriously hurt them if done wrong so I don't recommend you attempt it unless someone experienced can show you how first. Some breeds of geese are auto-sexing, meaning the males and females hatch a different color so you can tell them apart by their coloring at hatch, like Pilgrims.

Aside from vent sexing, you can tell when they are older by their behavior and a little by their appearance. A female goose's undercarriage hangs very low to the ground, while a gander's is higher. A gander will tend to walk about proudly with his nose in the air, while a goose walks about more demurely. And a gander will tend to put himself between anything he perceives as a possible danger and the goose. So if you put something new in the yard, he will insert himself between it and the goose until he can make sure it is not a danger. He may also keep himself between you and his goose.

- At what age do you need to start thinking about the ratio between ganders and females?

They start to breed the spring after they are hatched, so by then you want to have your ratio figured out. Pairs work fine, and you could keep as few as one gander per every three or four geese if you wanted.

 

[Henrik Petersson]

A regular chick feed can be used too, but since goslings have higher niacin needs than chicks, you will want to supplement it with some kind of niacin. Brewer's Yeast works well for this purpose. You might also want to have Brewer's Yeast on hand even if using a food specifically made for waterfowl babies, since individual needs do vary, and a gosling might need even more niacin than is in an all flock feed.

And niacin deficiency can cause angel wing?

 

[Miss Lydia]

Niacin def can cause lameness and also neurological issues. So just best to add the brewers yeast or nutritional yeast soon as you pick up your goslings.

 

[Henrik Petersson]

Not sure brewer's yeast or nutritional yeast exists in Sweden (the devil and his grandmother seem to have it on this board, but I've never heard of it in Sweden). Are there any other good sources of niacin? Wikipedia lists a few common food items, such as vegetables and dairy, but those tips are for humans and it's possible that poultry assimilate nutrients differently.

 

[Miss Lydia]

I think poultry are lactose intolerant other than yogurt plain and butter milk I know my chickens love both but my geese and ducks won't touch it. Peas[the green kind] have niacin but I am not sure how much they need to eat to get daily requirements. They need 125-150mgs a day till at least 10 weeks old unless you can find feed specific for water fowl. You can order both on line or do you have natural[health food stores in Sweden?

Amazon carries both yeast too just be sure not to buy baking yeast. Plain niacin tablets or capsules also nothing time released or flush free.

 

[Cindyetal]

Not sure brewer's yeast or nutritional yeast exists in Sweden (the devil and his grandmother seem to have it on this board, but I've never heard of it in Sweden). Are there any other good sources of niacin? Wikipedia lists a few common food items, such as vegetables and dairy, but those tips are for humans and it's possible that poultry assimilate nutrients differently.

Nutritional yeast can be found in the US in organic and natural food stores. Vegetarians and vegans often add it to their food to get a more cheese like flavor and add vitamin B3 (niacin). In Britain, Vegemite and Marmite are human foods that are brewers yeast extract. In pet stores Brewer's yeast is sold to give to dogs as a natural way to keep fleas down. Another way to increase the niacin for waterfowl is to add 150mg of niacin to a gallon of water for them to drink. If buying niacin to add to water do not get the "non-flushing" or timed release type. My goslings enjoy peas as a treat and they are a good vegetable source of niacin.

 

[DianaMallory]

It is advisable to supplement goslings' diet with Brewer's yeast if you are raising them in a brooder. They require additional niacin or they are prone to develop problems with their legs, which can cause lameness. You can purchase a canister of brewer's yeast on Amazon for $10-15. Sprinkle it over their feed.


I advise keeping them separate. Goslings are VERY messy with their water and have lots of wet poo. You will need to change their bedding much more frequently than you do the chicks'. Here is a short video I made on how to make a no-mess waterer:

Thank you I think I will brood them separately. Because I brood my chicks on the deep litter method and that won't work with the Goslings.

 

[chickengr]

Not sure brewer's yeast or nutritional yeast exists in Sweden (the devil and his grandmother seem to have it on this board, but I've never heard of it in Sweden). Are there any other good sources of niacin? Wikipedia lists a few common food items, such as vegetables and dairy, but those tips are for humans and it's possible that poultry assimilate nutrients differently.

as brewer's yeast is expensive in greece, when I had muscovie ducks I supplemented them whole wheat and wheat bran for niacin. it worked well.

 

[chickengr]

I will be following this thread as I am getting a trio of 2 years old geese (german breed, rhine geese).