I am looking into getting some goslings to raise with my flock. I am wondering what breed do you think is the best and why? Right now Im leaning towards embdens or pilgrims, but Ive noticed pilgrims are are hard to find..
What traits are you looking for? I was after calm temperament first, a relatively uncommon breed as from the Livestock Breed Conservancy, and decent size, but being my first geese I didn't want giant exhibition birds because I worried about giant size, rapid growth, and leg problems (not sure how valid such concerns are with geese in particular, but heard of it enough in various creatures that I was concerned.) Didn't care so much about sexual dimorphism. Pretty colors were a plus - but I didn't want to risk sacrificing temperament for nice colors, so I didn't tend toward american blues or lavender. I went with american buff, they were a perfect fit and I am very pleased with them so far - got them as day olds from Metzer's in March. Metzer's awesome reputation for vigorous birds and fantastic customer support also influenced my choice. So my longwinded point I guess is, see what traits you want/don't want and find the bird that matches
I want really good temperament , nice , calm, not aggressive. I have 2 little kids so I need them to be friendly. I want to be able to have them free range with my flock of ducks and chickens. I heard chinese geese can be aggressive, and I know there are other breeds known for being aggressive. Im trying to choose a friendly calm breed. Ive done a lot of reading on them but I find its more helpful to hear first hand experience.
Quote:I think the Sebbies are so cute. (sebestabol? not sure spelling:/) T. FYI- most all geese can be agressive (to a point) in mating season Feb-june.
I have Sebastopol geese which are known for being docile, and my females are by far the friendliest. The males tend to be a quite snippy during the breeding season. My males will hiss and lower their heads at me, but they will really try to get after my niece and nephew who are 2 and 5 years old. The males are not allowed out of their pen if the children are around. Breeding season or not, they will try to get them. My geese were not raised around small children though, so this may make quite a bit of difference. I have found with my geese that they seem to get really attached to whoever is taking care of them, and the other people are just fun to chase! They learn REALLY quickly who they can bully. I would suggest getting some American Buff Geese or Sebastopol Geese. I have had both and really enjoy them.
Quote:I second the sebastopol and buff geese recomendations, Pilgrims and Buff geese are tough to come by, and generally get sold out quickly and hatcheries often onlysell them straight run... ugh, I just went through all that myself and got 2 boys. I would suggest you only get females, go with a medium breed like pilgrim and buff and that you make sure the goslings imprint on your children...all this should reduce any agressiveness and mating issues. Also, get Dave Holderread's book on geese, its fantastic and really helps you understand goose behavior so you don't fall into bad habbits and contribute to problems. Metzer farms sells pilgrims so does murray mcmurray hatchery... I think with metzer you can specify sex on pilgrims. Good luck! You won't regret geese, they will be very protective of your flock and have funny personalities.
Metzer Farms is sold out on Pilgrims until next spring (I tried to get some). Instead we ordered American Buff and adore them, VERY friendly and follow us around all the time. I have found Pilgrim geese on Craigs List- so you might want to look or advertise on there.
