Q&A for How to Care for a Goose

At the start of mating season (and during mating season) geese are very protective of their eggs. You have two choices: you can either walk away from the goose the moment it starts showing aggression, or you can make very strong eye contact (do NOT let up for even a second), stay calm and walk away (perpendicular movements if you can). If you are confident enough, you can also grab the goose and hold him/her under your arm (don't hurt it) until it calms down.

Never leave your pet goose in the wild. It is used to domesticity and is now dependent on your care. As such, there is never an appropriate time to release a domesticated goose into the wild.

If it's a young goose with its feathers not developed, try a heat lamp. If that doesn't work, then your bird might be sick or depressed. Spend time with the young ones, if they are orphans. They get lonely and won't eat.

If the geese are not properly locked up/secure at night, yes, they can be.

At 6-days-old, the gosling requires heat, so use of a heat lamp is ideal. It also needs good clean water and a high quality starter feed for ducks and geese. Some pet stores or agricultural stores will stock liquids that can be added to their water for a vitamin boost or to treat certain illnesses such as coccidiosis, which may be worth thinking about. We have chickens, ducks, geese, turkeys and peacocks and we always ensure we have some vitamin boosters around just in case.

Clipping feathers tends to be practiced so the goose doesn't fly, but most geese are flightless and cannot fly anyway.

Some geese do enjoy being petted. Usually they prefer to just have their necks or backs stroked. I have one gosling in particular that loves a rub down the back of the neck while it sits in my hand.

About nine to 24 months of age is when they mate. They usually produce eggs a few week after the breeding.

Don't shut them in it, it may distress them, especially if they can smell dog in it (predator smell). Try putting food in it and coaxing them in there, it may take a little while, but eventually they can be "trained" to use the kennel.

If they have never met before, it is possible they might try to fight. It also depends on what sex they are and how big of a cage you are talking about. Sometimes they will get along fine, sometimes they will fight, especially if the cage is small. If you decide to try putting them together, make sure you do so for short periods of time at first and supervise them closely.

Check for bumblefoot or possibly a sticker or thorn in the foot. Soak it in Epsom salt and put Vetrycn spray on it a few times a day.

You can hardly get a goose to do what a goose does not want to do! If possible, train them to come to you when you whistle. Try behavior modification training by whistling to them while giving them a reward of tasty treats (lettuce, sliced cucumbers, small amounts of bread). Then when they do wander out of the yard, you can try to get them to come to you with a whistle.

Immediately give them niacin and avian vitamins. You can mix the two with water and give it to them orally with a syringe (without the needle of course). Give it to them twice a day for 3 days and they should recover. It means they are not getting niacin and the appropriate vitamins in their food. Change to Mazuri Starter for ducks and geese. If you wait too long, they will not recover and will not walk.

Yes, the geese take care of the eggs. They also continue to take care of the hatchlings once they're born.

Geese love nothing better than grooming themselves, especially if they have access to water. But due to their diet, they may poo quite a lot. Some people put nappies on their indoor geese, but they will need to be changed once every 3-4 hours.

It is recommended not to combine different birds, because they can get scared and fight.

No. Poultry would not do well in a human house, and the diseases they carry, while safe as long as you wash your hands each time you handle them, are a danger when the room is infested with them. They are livestock, not pets.

Consult a vet for advice.

Pet and comb them the way their feathers flow, and not against them, just as you would do with a cat or dog.

Take it to a veterinarian. They can usually tell because of the wear and tear of the feathers, scars on the webbed feet, and condition of the beak.

It depends on the cleanliness of the water. You should change it out once every few weeks, or more frequently if you notice that the water is getting dirty.

No, a goose's wings won't say much about its health, but you can observe its behavior to see if it's acting unusually in any way. Odd behavior like not eating or drinking could indicate some kind of illness.

Yes! Chinese and African geese are extremely annoying. Embdens, Pilgrims, and Egyptians are on the quiet side. Every goose is noisy when it wants to be, though.

if it is a male, get it a female. If a female, get it a male, and take it in, make it a pen with its new mate. Your single goose will be happily coupled and can find its happiness again.

When they are a month or two old. Not any less, or else they won't make it.

Yes, if it is with a mate. They usually do this when mating. The gander and goose dance around each other, head dipping, then the gander mounts the goose, or the goose mounts the gander.

Sadly, the most likely reason is that it was taken by a predator, either 4-legged or 2-legged.

Buy more geese or spend lots of time with her. Poultry will sit around like that if they are lonely. An even better thing to do for her would be to either buy fertilized goose eggs or get her a mate. Either way, she will be very preoccupied with the geese and have them to keep her company!

Feed your geese grass and greens that are okay for geese to eat. Buy poultry pellets for them too. You can feed a bit of corn to geese because they love corn.

If you don’t already have the area protected, add a strong netting on top and add wiring under the outer part of the enclosure. This is so that any flying predators cannot get to them from the top, and digging predators can’t dig their way in through the bottom.