Sebastopol Geese

[MamaSheepdog]

Has anyone had any experience with them?

One of my neighbors has a one year old pair that they are giving away for free. She says that they were kind of aggressive with her ducks but now the ducks know to stay away from them.

My chickens and ducks have a large area to range in, but I don't want the geese to beat everyone up... plus I have hens with chicks right now.

Think I should give it a try? I do have an area that I could pen them up in, but wouldn't want to have to keep them separate forever.

 

[MaggieJ]

I've no personal experience of them (my breed is Pilgrim, the sweetest of geese) but they are so gorgeous that I think I'd take a chance. All geese (even Pilgrims) can get rather testy in the spring due to hormones, so you may find they will settle down now that the breeding season is over.

What's the worst that could happen? If they don't work out, you could sell them or you could eat them. They might be a bit old for roasting, but there are wonderful recipes for such things as goose sausage (I have a great book devoted to the culture of geese, including recipes . . . and you'd have the down to harvest and those gorgeous curved feathers too. They are likely moulting at the moment (our Elsie is dropping feathers everywhere) but once they are through that they will be beautiful.

 

[Homer]

Had to look that one up. :shock: Never had heard of them. Everything I read say they do tend to be a bit cranky,. Good eggers and make great lawn mowers.

 

[Dood]

I love geese, I had a pair each of Africans, Embden and Pilgrim for many years in my youth and when we only had chickens and on a much smaller scale

BUT

they can be very bossy around the food and water source (even if they are large - 30 x 15 and 20 x 15 size ponds on my farm) and they don't like new additions to the flock so would attack the chicken, turkey and duck pullets that were big enough to be put out into the pastures so it was decided they had to go

Of the 3 breeds, the Pigrim were the nicest and I kept that pair the longest but they were perhaps too nice as a coyote got them

 

[caroline]

I have Pilgrim geese and they are not nice to the ducks [I have no chickens]
and so it's a good thing that my ducks can get through the fence and away from the geese.

 

[CochinBrahmaLover]

That is an AMAZING deal. Seriously, GET THOSE!!

They are HUNDREDS of dollars, even if you don't like them you could EASILY sell them for $50 each. More even.

Get them!

 

[MamaSheepdog]

What's the worst that could happen? If they don't work out, you could sell them or you could eat them.

Well, I can't eat them- these people are the type that wont even sell their goats to be eaten. They just set up an aquaponics system and I have been teasing that they are going to name all of the fish and wont be able to eat them. :roll:

They are in denial on the fish deal and want to trade me fish for rabbit meat, so we will see.

they can be very bossy around the food and water source

Hmm- I'll have to set up two wading pools then.

they don't like new additions to the flock so would attack the chicken, turkey and duck pullets that were big enough to be put out into the pastures so it was decided they had to go

That would be an issue since we get new birds every year. Still, I think we could have a separate area for them if necessary.

That is an AMAZING deal. Seriously, GET THOSE!!

Twist my arm a little harder! :lol:

I will message her now at your command! <br /><br /> __________ Mon Jul 20, 2015 9:04 am __________ <br /><br /> Update- just got off the phone with my neighbor. She has already placed the geese with another lady that has a pair of Sebastopols as well.

I asked why she was getting rid of them, and she said it was because they are very destructive. They nibble-nibble-nibble on everything. Thanks to the geese their truck has no brakes- they ate the wiring harness!- and their Polaris has all kinds of lights blinking on the dash because they ate the wiring on that as well. They also destroyed multiple sprinkler timers.

She also said that they are insanely smart, and compared them to goats. She said that they learn how to open gates because they want to follow you everywhere, so keeping them contained is a battle. At night she tells them "Go to bed!" and they walk to the barn and get into their stall.

She mentioned that Toulouse geese are supposed to be very friendly and gentle, and they prefer the company of ducks... so those might be a better option for me if I do get geese. :?

I'm a little worried that they may also be destructive nibblers though. We have two vehicles parked in the "bone yard" which is part of the area that the poultry get to range in, and I don't want them eating the wiring harnesses.

 

[Dood]

Wow!

That's a new one for me

My geese were very smart, obedient and curious about investigating new things in the pasture or ponds but I never found them to be destructive or able to open gates :shrug:

 

[MaggieJ]

I found my geese very easy to contain, but in spring they delighted in trying to find a way out of their huge fenced area. Once I caught them tip-toeing across the patio and when they saw me they burst into goose-laughter at being caught.

Destructive? Not especially, but during the winter of their first year they did chew through a heavy duty extension cord that was coiled on the wall of their goose house. Fortunately, it was not plugged in!

Geese are like charming two year olds - and their sense of humour is on that level. Everything they see gets tasted, although not usually destroyed. When my favourite goose, Willow, died the other two stayed with her until we had the grave dug and then they followed us down there. They stood at the graveside with lowered heads until put Willow into it and began to shovel the dirt over her. Then they made mournful noises and turned away. They mourned for quite some time.

Only Elsie is left now and I cannot, given my mobility problems, take on another goose. They can live up to 20 years. Elsie is 9. She hangs out with the chickens. Mostly they seem fine together, but she occasionally pulls one's tail feathers if they annoy her.

Having geese has been a wonderful experience. I wouldn't have wanted to miss it for the world.

 

[Deer Heart]

I had a Chinese goose that was the meanest thing I ever did meet. Attacked both of my dogs to the point they were too afraid to go outside, attempted to drown my rooster and two hens (one of which was successfully drowned before I got home the other hen had feathers ripped out and was soaked and goose was caught red handed with the rooster!) It was terrible for me because the goose LOVED people and was always honking for me to come out and play (it would fondly "nibble" my clothes while following me around) but HATED everything else. If it wasn't a human, they LOATHED it and plotted its early demise.

I still feel such remorse, but at least they were the tastiest damn bird I ever did eat.