The three goslings escaped through the gap under the barn stall door.  That shouldn’t have been a surprise.  They are, essentially, toddlers.  I’ve yet to meet a toddler that doesn’t delight in slipping free of the grownups, giggling and racing away as fast as their little legs will carry them.  Why should goslings be any different? The frantic honking of
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After a couple days in the nest, the adult geese finally decided that the three goslings were strong for a short stroll in the sunshine.   It apparently was a momentous occasion.  The entire flock participated, except for the two geese still setting other nests.  Each grown goose paid close attention to the little ones, guiding
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Boot Biter Goose and her nesting partner announce the hatching of three goslings. They’re hiding under the parent geese right now.  We actually don’t know which goose is the mama.  These two have nested together for weeks, and they’re sharing parenting duties equally. The humans on the farm risked life and limb to assess the
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American Buff geese deserve their reputation as calm, gentle birds — except during nesting.   A Buff defending her nest can be ferocious.  With five Buffs on separate nests around the barn, there’s a lot of ferociousness to avoid. If I remember to sing the goose song while working near a nest, there’s usually not a problem. 
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A few weeks ago, the sweetest of the young geese turned up lame.  She stumbled around and made pitiful sounds, so we prepared the big cage in the ‘hospital room’ and brought her in for rest and observation.   I suspected a pulled muscle from too much frolicking.   Two days of quiet with no racing the others to
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Meet Spraddles. This American Buff gosling is about a week old now and having trouble with its legs. Spraddle-legs or splay-legs is a condition often caused when a new hatchling can’t get good footing to stand up well. No doubt that’s what happened to this little guy (gal?). It’s probably my fault, too. Here’s what
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This is Ingrid’s first season as a nesting mother, and she’s taking her job seriously. Thirty days, on the nest, incubating and protecting those eggs . . . err . . . those egg-shaped gourds that look a lot like the eggs Ingrid laid, except browner. (Scroll back a few days for the reason she
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Lately, everywhere I turn, everything I do, I see pairings. Nature all around me is courting and matching up. Maybe it’s just the season, spring springing and all that. Maybe it’s because I’ve written a few romances and my mind is attuned to that sort of thing. Whatever the case, spring seems to be the
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Sure, they’re friendly now. A few hours ago, when I added the gosling to the brooder, the 3 ducklings freaked. Eeek! Gigantor! It took them half an hour to work up the nerve to check him (her?) out – aka peck his head. That’s how ducklings get acquainted, peck, peck, nibble. Guess they discovered the
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Here’s a comparison of various egg types, just to give you an idea of the size differences. Eggs from left to right: goose, 6.5 oz.; duck, 2.6 oz.; chicken 1.8 oz; chicken 2 oz. I put the goose and duck eggs into the incubator, and the chicken eggs were breakfast. Normally, I don’t weigh the
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