Breeding Season for My Geese
For geese, this time of year is very special. From mid-winter to early spring, it's mating season.
Here at my Bedford, New York farm, I have 16 geese - Sebastopol geese, Toulouse geese, African geese, Chinese geese, and of course my Pomeranian guard geese. Most of them live in a large enclosure outside my stable. Because geese prefer to breed in water, we lined up several pools on one side of the pen, which are cleaned and refilled a couple times a day. In another corner, they have a shelter that provides ample shade, protection from strong winds, and a safe place to nest and lay eggs. In general, males will court the females, but it is the goose that chooses her gander. In my gaggle, the pairs are pretty well established and happy. In fact, we're already incubating a few eggs.
Here are some of the latest photos of my beautiful geese.
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- My geese have a large yard, but they love to gather close together most of the time. I am very happy that all my geese get along so well. A group of geese on land is called a gaggle. This is because when geese get together they can get quite noisy and rowdy.
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- The enclosure is adjacent to my peafowl yard and two chicken coops. They all seem to enjoy all the company and activity around them.
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- Waterfowl don’t need roosts – they are very happy sleeping on the ground, but this shelter does protect them from strong winds. This area is also lined well with hay for laying eggs.
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- They always have access to fresh, clean water. Because geese do not have lips or cheeks, they drink by filling their bills with water and then tilt their heads back to swallow, using gravity to send the liquid into their digestive tract.
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- I provide the waterfowl with fresh greens every day. Geese are grazing birds which means they eat a variety of different items. They eat roots, shoots, stems, seeds, and leaves of grass and grain, bulbs, and berries. They also eat small insects.
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- In addition to the greens, I fortify their diet with a mix specifically made for waterfowl.
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- And as a treat, all my farm birds get cracked corn – they love it.
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- We’re testing out some new pools from our friends at Scenic Road. These are the large tubs of their mortar mixing boxes. Because geese prefer to mate in water, it is safer to provide these shallow containers. They seem to like them.
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- Each pool has steps, so it is easy for the geese to get in and out whenever they please.
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- While both ducks and geese love water, geese don’t require a pond or large swimming pool – they swim much less than ducks and are content with a small dipping pool where they can dunk and clean their noses and beaks.
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- Here is one bonded pair enjoying some time poolside.
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- Although these birds are not good fliers, they do love to spread their wings. Due to their large size and upright posture, domestic geese can’t really fly. Domestic geese have larger back ends than their wild counterparts and stand more upright. During breeding season, a gander’s pre-mating behavior also consists of wing spreading, stretching and flapping.
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- In nature, geese pairs bond and stay together for life. Most of my geese are paired off, but some males will also have two or three female mates. Here is my pair of Chinese geese. The Chinese goose is refined and curvaceous. Its bill is relatively long and slender, with a large, rounded, erect knob that attaches to its forehead. The Chinese goose holds its head high. Its head flows seamlessly into a long, slim, well-arched neck which meets the body at about a 45 degree angle. Its body is short, and has a prominent and well-rounded chest, smooth breast and no keel. Mature ganders average 12 pounds, while mature geese average 10 pounds.
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- Sebastopols are considered medium-sized birds. Both males and females have pure white feathers that contrast with their bright blue eyes and orange bills and feet. Sebastopol geese have large, rounded heads, slightly arched necks, and keelless breasts. And what is most striking is the plumage. The plumage of the head and upper two-thirds of the neck is smooth, while that of the breast and underbody is elongated and well-curled.
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- These are African geese – a breed that has a heavy body, thick neck, stout bill, and jaunty posture which gives the impression of strength and vitality. The African is a relative of the Chinese goose, both having descended from the wild swan goose native to Asia. The mature African goose has a large knob attached to its forehead, which requires several years to develop. A smooth, crescent-shaped dewlap hangs from its lower jaw and upper neck. Its body is nearly as wide as it is long. African geese are the largest of the domestic geese.
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- My gaggle of geese is fun, friendly, personable and protective. These are my Pomeranian geese – the oldest of all my geese.
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- Here is another pair of Pomeranian geese – where one goes, they other always follows.
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- These buff-brown geese are Toulouse – these are two of three that are down in the chicken yard guarding my flock. On this breed, the bill is stout, the head large and broad, and the moderately long neck is thick and nearly straight. Often suspended from the lower bill and upper neck is a heavy, folded dewlap that increases in size and fullness with age. The body is long, broad and deep, ending in a well-spread tail that points up slightly. The Toulouse has a rounded breast, and often exhibits a wide keel. The abdomen is double-lobed and often brushes the ground, particularly in females during the early spring.
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- This gander is “Bear.” He was hatched as a singleton last year. He and the Sebastopol goose seem to be very happy together. “Bear” and the other sentinels come honking and hissing at anyone who comes near. Thanks to their honks, these geese make excellent guardians. They can scare off any animals on the ground and they’re great at spotting aerial predators, such as hawks and falcons.
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- Geese also have impressive visual capabilities. The way their eyes are structured allows them to see things in much finer detail at a further distance than humans. They can also see UV light and can control each of their eyes independently.
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- And look, inside my stable feed room we already have some goose eggs. They are taken away to protect them from other adult geese. Domestic geese also tend to be less maternal than other types of fowl. The eggs are incubated for about 28 days. They will remain here until the goslings hatch and then they will be placed into our brooder until they are big enough to join the others. I wonder how many we will get…
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