I post videos of the 5 African Geese and the variable numbers of chickens that I have as my current poultry flock. I post unedited videos because I have yet to find a video editor that I'm comfortable with using. I have a strong dislike of speaking in videos because my voice has changed due to radiation treatments and my enunciation has changed, thanks to the life-saving surgeries. I slur and have trouble with certain sounds. This is me, post cancer and with some chronic medical conditions. I have *not* really accepted it, but I will keep getting stronger and working to become more comfortable with who I am. I did earn my Black Belt (my instructor is amazing and I adore him) and I will continue being active in martial arts as I try to get into better shape. I am still housebound and likely to remain so. It's a medical thing. My new goals are to start a garden that will be productive and help to fill out our pantry, and to expand the flock to be completely self-supporting.
They will drive them away from their daily treat of cracked corn, but they don't go out of their way to pull feathers or bite them. I try to be careful about raising, feeding, and training the geese so they understand that their job is to keep the chickens safe. It doesn't always work the way I'd like, working with animals is always chancey, but it works. Aside from a situation I had while brooding the goslings this spring, one of them got a bit bored and pulled feathers off the chicks they were sharing a brooder with, I have never had a bad situation of the geese pulling feathers or hurting the chickens. If you raise your goslings right alongside your chicks and treat them the same basic way, you shouldn't have too many problems. The geese can be bullies, but making sure there's enough space for the chickens to be able to escape if they need to, and that there's something for the geese to do solves most of the problems before they start.
@goldengryphon The way you describe it sounds fun and interesting, but I'm sure you devote a lot of time and effort into training them.thanks for the information.
The flock size varies depending on the season, what stage any chicks might be at, and how hard the predator pressure has been. I have 5 roosters with about 15 assorted hens, mostly Silver Grey Dorkings, that make up the core of the flock. I have 3 African Geese that form a protective gaggle for them. This year, I added two goslings and about 20 Dorking and "barnyard mix" chicks hatched from my flock, so after the attacks by raccoons, dogs, and hawks I have about 25 chickens and 5 geese. That's a pretty typical number. The largest the flock has been is 32 chickens, and the smallest is 1 (after predators wiped out the flock in 2017). I'll hopefully add another 35 + chicks before the year is out, but I'm also trying to build some pens to keep certain groups separated for breeding. It's a work in progress. 😆
It's possible. I have 2 Silver-Grey roosters and there are only a couple of easily seen differences between them. This roo had fought off a caracara that had stooped to get a hen. The hen lost some feathers but survived. I figured the roo had something worth crowing about!
Yep! You guessed it! She's a 5-year-old Ameraucana I got through the mail from Murray McMurray. She lays 2 or 3 medium to large eggs a week in the most beautiful green shade. Such a character!
Other than being opinionated and pretty much completely herbivores, they're easier to keep than chickens. They don't fall victim to a lot of the diseases and problems chickens have, and they graze. They aren't great if you're in a residential area - they are noisy - but other than that? I love having them around. They can live to be 20 years old, and they are considered mature and full-grown at 3.
Thank you! I like to share the videos so I can point to them when people ask "So what do you do for fun?" It's been a learning journey and something new happens every day. 😆
Thank you! Yes, my geese are spoiled and I adore them. I'm currently down to three, but plan to let them see if they can hatch a clutch this year. They tried last year, but the timing was bad. They knock at the back door, have long conversations with me, and we yell together sometimes. Very cathartic! Happy New Year to you and yours!
They are spoiled! I adore them. The chicks are a range of different varieties within the Dorkings. That's why all the variation. They are just coming into the adult coloration - the adult Dorkings (the black and white cockerels and the grey/brown/apricot pullets) are about 7 and 6 pounds respectively. They are built like feathered bricks and are so sweet!
@@vikingmountainranchlife7447 They're about 4 months old. Just teenagers, finally putting on their adult feathers and final growth spurt. I'm really looking forward to seeing them - the coloreds, reds, and blacks are harder to find. I was able to get a mix of chicks, so which ones are which is a surprise! The adults I have are Silver-Grey Dorkings. The roosters are a beautiful and striking black and white and the hens are grey/brown with an apricot breast. Very pretty birds. They all have 5 toes, white skin, and are short. Really. Compared to the other chickens, there's a definite height difference. I have never had trouble with a Dorking roo, they are good to the hens and great at what they do. They are also so amazingly calm! Very chill boys. Where I got this latest group: www.sandhillpreservation.com/ Some basic info: livestockconservancy.org/heritage-breeds/heritage-breeds-list/dorking-chicken/ The most common variety is the Silver Grey - Murray McMurray carries them and their quality is pretty consistent.
That chicken is a very devoted Mom. She sat for 28 days on 2 goose eggs and hatched them both out - the first one died the first night, but the second one is doing well. All birds do, when they're moms, is teach the chicks what to eat and where to find it. They also keep the chicks warm. The gosling is still small enough to fit under a wing, and will always be that chicken's chick.
"The Thing" is a gosling that the hen hatched out. She's been "talking" to it for weeks while it was in the egg, and they are doing well together. This is her first successful hatch and, because the first gosling died, I wanted to keep a closer eye on the new family. The hen is doing very well and is learning how to be a good mom.
And that's just funny. I have geese and chickens that I keep together. The geese are great protection for the chickens, and the chickens are healthy and happy. When the hens are feeling broody, they don't care how large the egg is that they are trying to hatch. Chickens will hatch goose eggs and geese will hatch chicken eggs. So far, I haven't had a situation where my geese have hatched anything, so I don't worry about it. I gave the hen 2 goose eggs when she decided she wanted to start a family because I didn't have any chicken eggs I wanted to give her at that time. The goose eggs were meant to keep her busy. I just got really lucky that they hatched.
Not really. The two smallest geese (Female geese are geese. Male geese are ganders.) can fly for short distances - they never get high enough to go over the fence which is 4 feet high, nor can they fly for long. Being domesticated, they are too heavy for their wings to hold them up. They will battle with their wings, though and it's enough to cause a nasty bruise or break a bone if they hit in the right place.
Dear GG, thank you for your kind comment on SofA video. It made me look at your channel. And I read the About section. If you read mine on my channel, you’ll see, we’re in a similar boat. I’m also trying to overcome my fear of putting myself out there, did one video which scared the hell out of me because how I see myself is not how I look on camera. Strange that hey? It’s taken me all these years to address this issue and my plan is to start making videos asap this 2020.
I'm glad you found me! I have subscribed to you, just in case. ;) Yeah. Many years ago, when the moon was young and so was I, I was very outgoing and did lots of public speaking. I even had a small part of a television cable access channel. Life happened, so I ran away from the psychopath and tried to remake a life. More Life stuff happened. I'm self conscious because I do have visible scars (not anything too awful and I've come to terms with them, but small children will ask questions that embarrass their parents. When you add in the changes in my voice and enunciation problems - surgery and radiation - I can have trouble getting people I know and love to actually understand on some days, but it's usually okay. It just makes me thing about how to best say what I need to say. Maybe *that's* why I run on in writing? I need to communicate, and I can't hold conversations with the critters, so my options are limited. That's why I haven't yet put myself in the videos, or even really formed a plan on what I want to do, video-wise. But, one of my therapists is thrilled that I am still challenging myself and keep doing uncomfortable things. It's not strange that you don;t like the way you look. We all are like that. I have a personal theory that we, unconsciously, pick a time in our lives when we felt good about ourselves (usually late teens or so, from conversations with other people) and that becomes our internal visual image of who we are. Since even fervent belief doesn't change reality unless you put other work in, over time our bodies change, but our mental image remains the same. Been there. Still there on occasion. I was pretty damned confident in my self from about 16 to about 20 or so. I am trying to see what would work, as far as filming, regular uploads, and subject/topic. The geese don't care, nor do the chickens. The dog and cat seem to care a lot, so I don't video them except by accident.
I've watched them for hours - not quite. Chickens, on the other hand, are definitely returning to their saurian roots as top echelon predators. At least for their weight division. Geese seem to channel their inner-hadrosaur - lots of noise and lots of movement, but not so much with the stabby-stabby. - more grip and tear. Lots more ultimate ouchies. I've heard that geese can grab and tear through denim, better that a barbed wire fence, and they don't give up the chase if they think they're in the right. (The last is something a local feral cat learned, which is keeping it's movements away from the poultry and more towards any unwanted critters.) It was quite funny to see a cat treed by large noisy birds.
@@oligb1469 All your danglies were on the menu! That must have been exciting! My SO once flashed the entirety of downtown St Marys, GA during a monthly festival when we were doing a demonstration of Olde English Country Dances. I think it was during Gay Gordon and there was a strong breeze coming off the water. All the fun you 'traditional' kilt-wearing types have! And I recently found that one of the younger black belts at my dojo is starting a collection of kilts, with the hopes of getting one of those spiffy "Utili-kilts" for Christmas. (I told him that if I can find the "pinned, but never stitched" lengths I have left over from my days as a costumer - kilts are popular in The US South and more people are starting to wear them - I'll hand them over for his use. Or stitch them up as a quick "cheater" kilt. We started a list of clever responses to the what's "worn beneath a kilt" questions. I'm sure you have your own and all sorts of silly people who have asked.
@@goldengryphon Ha it was funny I had to give up my prosthetic and hop away, Yep the "whats worn beneath the kilt?" my answer will always be "YA WIFE'S LIPSTICK! Or more than what you've got, a one eyed python and my last my charms (and yes I do call my bits my charms, because I can always say at least I have my charms)" and it's getting popular in the US south? Heh well lots of Scots where sent over there due to crimes.
@@oligb1469 True and true. SO's favorites are "My shoes." "Nothing, it all works just fine." He's been wearing his for off and on since about '93. There are quite a few strongholds of Scots, and they're getting more and more vocal as time goes on - it was nearly impossible to find a bagpiper for my father's service, 20 years ago (we ended up with a DVD version of one of my favorite groups), but I doubt it'll be anywhere near as hard for my FIL, and so on. I'm also pretty sure that y'all over in The Old Country are amused by the goings on of the kilted and non-kilted trying to out do each other with their Scottish Games and such. We know it's over the top, and silly, but there's no one as devoted to their (sometimes randomly chosen) country of origin as a United States Citizen, even more so if they ever were active duty military. Hopping faster than an angry goose? That's something to give me nightmares! I think protecting your charms from random wild , angry geese, is a good plan. And at least you've got a bit of something to scare the beast with. (I was going to type, "a bit of wood", but that seemed rude. And funny. Which is why I included it after the fact. )
Welcome to the Land of Screaming Goslings! (spoiled critters). Ha! I kinda figured a way to talk with my RU-vid peeps! (Thank you for commenting. It took some time to figure out the uploading carp, but I'll keep working at it.)
