What are these guys?

[YarrowFarms]

We were out and about in Western North Carolina and saw these guys at a duck pond. It's next to a wildlife rescue, and while they don't *allow* folks to dump off their unwanted farm birds there, the presence of pekins and khaki Campbells in the pond suggest that folks do. So, wondering about the geese! They're gorgeous and friendly, and it's obvious by behavior that the white one is in charge. A more aggressive breed or the male of the group, I don't know.

 

[Isadora]

How beautiful! The solid ones look a lot like my Toulouse gander.

 

[AGeese]

Probably Toulouse. The one on the left looks like a mix with a white goose, or maybe a Pom or Pilgrim. I really don't know how the traits play out in geese crossing.

 

[Goosebaby]

The white one I’m guessing is a parent, it’s older than the others. The greys look like they aren’t even a year old yet, so my guess is someone dumped their goose and goslings because they couldn’t care for them anymore or didn’t want to.

 

[Poultrybonkers]

The white one I’m guessing is a parent, it’s older than the others. The greys look like they aren’t even a year old yet, so my guess is someone dumped their goose and goslings because they couldn’t care for them anymore or didn’t want to.

Or couldnt sell them

 

[Miss Lydia]

Makes me so sad to see this. And people think oh yeah I'll get geese, ducks etc and let them hatch out babies and I'll sell them and make some money then they find out it isn't always that easy and then they get dumped. Heartbreaking.

 

[YarrowFarms]

Honestly, they couldn't be in a better spot to be dumped. They're in the middle of a very high class neighborhood, people come to feed them seed and whatever else, there are two colleges with strong environmental programs close by (they're technically on the campus of one.) And the wildlife rescue is literally 2 minutes down the road, so if they get hurt the *hospital* is right there. And who knows, maybe they migrated with the Canadian geese who are thick as thieves down there right now.
Anyway, I just wanted to know the breed because I thought they were beautiful. It seems the consensus is Toulouse, so thank you!

 

[RoostersAreAwesome]

Honestly, they couldn't be in a better spot to be dumped. They're in the middle of a very high class neighborhood, people come to feed them seed and whatever else, there are two colleges with strong environmental programs close by (they're technically on the campus of one.) And the wildlife rescue is literally 2 minutes down the road, so if they get hurt the *hospital* is right there. And who knows, maybe they migrated with the Canadian geese who are thick as thieves down there right now.
Anyway, I just wanted to know the breed because I thought they were beautiful. It seems the consensus is Toulouse, so thank you!

Domestic geese can’t fly well enough to migrate. Though dumped geese usually do seem to do better on ponds than dumped ducks.

 

[Goosebaby]

If they have enough grass they might manage to get by with added treats but seed and grass alone may not be enough to survive on, especially if they are heavy breeds or mixed with heavy breeds.

As it is I worry for these birds especially because of the presence of the wild geese and ducks. H5N1/ hpai has been devastating flocks everywhere, it’s now gotten so bad during the fall migration in my state that there are serious concerns for the survival of our condors, that animal welfare groups are instructing people NOT to take their birds to veterinarians unless absolutly necessary, absolutely not to feed or approach wild or feral birds, and rehabbers are no longer taking in sick birds because they jeopardize the patients they already have.

It only takes one well meaning person to visit a public pond like this to carry that virus home to their own flock or their neighbor’s. There may be animal hospitals nearby, but there’s a strong likelihood they will do nothing besides euthanasia and disposal out of caution.