Guard Geese

I seem to remember someone saying that geese guard their flock from hawks - also turkeys can discourage hawk attack (?) I have recently lost a couple of hens to hawks for the first time ever. Could geese help?

I know nothing about geese, but I can tell you for sure a good gander would be of great value, and I'm sure sorry for your lose my dear friend...Hay

if they grazed near the chickens I think it would help

Geese yes, they are loud and rambunctious and will guard the yard. Turkeys I dont know both sets I have had I have lost. The only turkey I have left is Billy Bob and he/she is such a gentle thing will let me pick him/her up (Still dont know for sure but leaning towards a hen) and talks to us when we go out there. But Billy Bob has always been raised with Chickens and thinks she is a chicken..

Porkpal, that was probably me, and yes, the geese make a significant difference. Any time we move the geese to a different pasture we seem to lose a chicken or two. I think we may have lost one or two over the years even with the geese, but it's very rare. We used to have two pairs of geese but we lost the white African goose to some unknown ailment and ended up putting the gander in the freezer, so now we only have one pair of Toulouse. They still seem to do a good job.

I have 2 male red bronze turkeys that run off hawks here..lol.and they get my little critters that come in the coop at nite too..mice n snakes..

Do you coop the geese with the chickens or are they together only during the day?

Porkpal, the geese don't go into the coop. They sleep under it, usually. Hawks don't fly at night, of course, so that's not a problem. When we did have a predator break into the coop one night last winter the geese were terrified but there was nothing they could do about it. However, our coop is now (hopefully) predator-proof.

One advantage to the geese never coming into the coop is that we can give the chickens their sunflower seed treat in the afternoon inside the coop and the geese don't compete for it. That also keeps the litter on the floor stirred up a bit.

Will any breed of geese work as guardians or just certain breeds? I'm wanting some sebastopol geese so am wondering about that breed.

Gwen, I think any breed would do as long as they were of a decent size. I'm not sure how Sebastopols compare; what is there about them that makes you want those?

MissJestr, the chickens love sunflower seeds, and so do the geese. That would be a great idea for stockings for them! Tell Billy from me that he has the true Christmas spirit!

if you want a really big pretty white one get Embden
I think Sebbies are small like the Pomerainian but not for sure
Brown Chinese are small

The sebbies I've seen are quite large but that may just be all their fluffy feathers! GreenhouseGal, they are gorgeous geese!

Aha, what will you do with them? Will they just be pets?

Yes, just pets/yard decor. ;) I also want some ducks, including runner ducks.

We had some Indian runner ducks when we lived on Lummi Island. They were adorable.

I just found out we can have ducks and geese in town here, so thanks for the posts.

There are vidoes of runner ducks online. They are adorable looking. Somebody on here said once they aren't very friendly though.

That would be so neat to hatch out some baby ducks. :D

They say that silkies will hatch out anything. Wonder if a goose egg would be too big for them.

Hawks sometimes hang around here too, but so far, no losses.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtN1YnoL46Q&feature=channel My grandson and I watched this little duck song/cartoon yesterday. It's short and cute.

I love duckies!!!!!!!!

YES! :)

I really wanted Indian runner ducks. I need something to help pick the tomato horn worms off the tomatoes (exponentially bad this past year), etc. Also, DH and I just like to watch the chickens and peacocks. A few ducks can only add to the fun, right? Then I heard from someone on this forum (thank you again for warning me--you know). She said she tried the IRD's and they didn't work out for her. One of the reasons is that they were aggressive towards her other ducks and geese. Well, that won't really do for me as I also want geese. They (the runners) are soooo cute! But I think I've now settled on Silver Appleyards. Reputed to be friendly and layed back. Good foragers. Haven't decided which geese to chose. Something large a layed back as well.

I have 1 runner duck hen here and she isnt aggressive at all..She lives right along with the chickens and my 2 turkeys in the henhouse..

A nursery near me had runner ducks and I don't believe they were aggressive. Probably like anything else, there are friendly and not friendly. I'm getting the friendly ones. ;)

We have had runners and they were definitely not aggressive, but they were nervous and not as friendly as our other ducks.

Perhaps they have a "herd mentality" when it comes to bullying? She was pretty definite that they made a point of abusing some of her other ducks. May have been a pecking order thing? She did also mention that they were nervous creatures for her as well.....At any rate, after doing some further research, I think the Silver Appleyards may be a better fit for me--or at least as good a fit as the runners would be. And I was looking to find a breed that needed a push and I understand that the Appleyards are far less commonly used. Is it a conservation breed?

As for geese, I am looking at Toulouse or American Blue. I understand the American Blue is a lighter breed, but I think they are pretty. Anyone have much experience with Appleyards, Toulouse or American Blue? Something that would send out an alarm when hawks are present would be good as we have many varieties "working" our property. Not a bad thing as I do like hawks (and eagles), just don't need them picking off the hens if I can help it!

Porkpal, have you decided yet?

The Silver Appleyard is listed as "critical" among the endangered duck breeds.

I haven't decided whether to try geese or not. In the meantime I have moved a couple of picnic tables into the pasture where the ladies free range as a quick refuge from air-attack.