WHY shouldn't geese eat out of your hand?

[sourland]

The problem with feeding geese from your hand is that eventually, either purposefully or accidentally, they will bite you and it HURTS. Been there, done that.

 

[bayyjayy]

I was at my neighbors yesterday and one of her geese got her on the leg.....and he is even missing part of his bill (dog attack before she took him in). Ouch.

 

[Lund Poultry]

For the same reason you NEVER feed horses treats from your hand! They become very aggressive and think they can push you around! ALL feed,grain,treats,snacks etc. are all fed in there feeders, bowls etc. This holds true for all of the animals on our property.

I have a couple of horses I board for a person and all they do is push her around, but then again she is the TREAT lady. I never give them anything but the grain in there dish and hay. They never even bother me at all. Horses are smart and so are geese. They will figure out the people they can push around and believe me they WILL do it.

 

[Caitlyn Marie]

never mind

 

[Miss Lydia]

Well when i got my gander I hadn't heard of BYC so of course I have fed my goose ducks and chickens out of my hand forever, now my goose never bites my hand and is rather gentle taking treats from me, but he will bite if he gets a chance any other time, so don't think it's because he eats out of my hand, he is just that way. We do not let him push us around.

 

[Miss Lydia]

Quote:

 

[shelleyd2008]

Quote:
I have to disagree. I had a single Embden hatch a few years ago and when he came into his hormones he surely didn't see me as his parent! He would bite anyone who was dumb enough to get within range.

 

[cutechick2010]

Quote:
Well yes, horses will figure out who they can push around and who they can't, but I don't think feeding them treats out of your hand has anything to do with that. Just because you feed them treats doesn't mean you have to put up with bad behavior. A good friend of mine has a seven year old stud that I hand feed all the time, but he knows if he gets snotty with me he is in trouble, and he backs right down as soon as I raise my voice.

 

[zzGypsy]

Quote:
Well yes, horses will figure out who they can push around and who they can't, but I don't think feeding them treats out of your hand has anything to do with that. Just because you feed them treats doesn't mean you have to put up with bad behavior. A good friend of mine has a seven year old stud that I hand feed all the time, but he knows if he gets snotty with me he is in trouble, and he backs right down as soon as I raise my voice.

I think some of these subtle grades of behavior have much to do with the experience level of the human, rather than being purely the instinctive wiring of the animal.

I think the observation about "lead goose eats first" is correct, at least it matches my observations. and if you are hand feeding them, you're telling them something basic they recognize by instinct "I'll let you eat first, you're lead goose". however, if you're an experienced handler, you can sometimes get away with rule breaking because you have the ability to recognize and quickly correct any behavior you don't want, even when the clues are subtle and the circumstances might be complex for the goose to understand. the message the goose *may* learn, if consistently and precisely applied, is "I'm lead goose, but I'll let you eat first under these circumstances provided you're delicate about it."

the difficulty comes in, I think, when you have either a handler who is inexperienced or inconsistent or a goose who's not into subltle and complex messages.

we don't hand feed our draft horses because a tiny error on their part is a broken finger on an adult, or a missing finger on a child. in addition, it makes them more likely to try other mouthy behaviors like grabing your jacket, or nipping you if you're irritating them. unfortunately we had to house them at a boarding facility for a few months, and they were quite the draw to all the nice horsey folks there who *could*not* be convinced that being so "lovey" with my draft horses wasn't a

perfectly

nice

idea.

so now we have to *re*train them.

keep in mind that these are horses who so *clearly* respect me that I can shut down their 2200 lb full-tilt sprint out an open gate with a single step, a raised arm, and an authoritative "HEY!" even if they could easily get around (or over!) me. and they *never* lipped on me prior to the boarding facility. but now I've got one that will grab my clothes and head-swing as if to nip. <sigh>

yep, all that

has to be addressed. <sigh>

my more sophistocated thinkers have figured it out - hand treats, but no jacket-lipping and nipping. my not so subtle thinkers have missed that ever-so-fine detail.

your goose, and your experience, dictate the end results, I think.
my suggestion? if you're not an experienced goose handler, skip the hand feeding until you are. then, judge according to the goose.

 

[bayyjayy]

There are quite a few posters on here who have the best posts, and I LOVE reading their posts because they seem SO knowledgeable and convey that in their posts without seeming to talk down to us newbies....and zzGypsy, you are one of them.

Thanks so much for everyones replies.....it seems like it will be IMPOSSIBLE not to feed them from my hand....but.......I will, I guess....maybe.....well.....kidding!