The day before yesterday , a big flock of wild geese went winging in the south , way up in the sky . Mom shaded her eye with her hired man and watched them go . Then she sighed and went back to forking hay .
I said to Uzzi , “ I think she like them . I marvel why we do n’t havegeese ? ”
Imbir ’ the horse overheard me and depart laughing .
“ When we lived in Minnesota , we had two geese , ” he said . “ The gander used to hotfoot across the M with his neck and offstage outstretched , hissing . When Mom saw him come she was frightened and prove to keep him away . He ’d lurch at her and whack her with his wings , and when she ’d turn to run away , he purloin her butt . ”
Uzzi and I search at each other . We did n’t call back geese speech sound like fun . So that night we crept in the house and booted up the estimator . Here are some things we learn about keeping geese .
A gander is an grownup manful goose . domesticated geese match in pairs or 3 of one gander and two goose . Once mat , a gander can be very protective of his gallon , peculiarly during rearing season . That ’s what was in all probability going on with Mom ’s bottom - cabbage cuckoo : He was telling Mom to stay away from his girl . Mom should have left him alone until his internal secretion cool down — or at least worn protective clothing so he could n’t filch . Ow !
Something humans do that upset some geese is hold out their handwriting as if to pet the goose . When geese are mad at each other , they snake their long necks out and hiss . retrieve of what a human ’s mitt and extended weapon system look like to a nervous twat . Do n’t do that !
However , some geese are not very tamed , and once they have a go at it a someone is afraid of them , they sibilate and attack just to keep the man in line . These geese are n’t much fun to have around , and they ’re dangerous if small tiddler are in the menage , so it ’s well to buy meek geese that like people right from the start . If you want tame , friendly geese , you’re able to corrupt baby gosling and raise them yourself . If you do , it ’s of import to know what and how tofeed themso they grow up good for you and strong . If you moderate goslings and speak to them , they grow up trusting people . Geese show tenderness by putting their faces close to one another . you’re able to hold gosling close to your brass to reassure them , but do n’t sample that with antisocial grownup geese !
You should never evoke just one gosling because a unmarried gosling imprints with the human that cares for it . That means the gosling thinks the human is its mom . This is sad for the gosling as it grows up and ca n’t always follow around the homo it loves , like into the menage when the human being move in spite of appearance . Even single grownup goose sometimes bond powerfully with human caretakers so it ’s kinder to keep at least two geese . Then even if they ’re the same sex and do n’t have a mate , they do have a familiar of their own form .
Geese are a huge responsibleness because they inhabit a long clock time . According to the Guinness Book of World Records , the honest-to-goodness twat that ever hold out was George , a gander in Lancashire , England , who lived to be 49 yr and 8 calendar month old . bar accidents , smaller breeds likeChineseandPilgrimgeese often live into their twenty and bigger breed likeToulouseandAfricangeese survive to their middle teenager . Keep in mind that establish a choice , geese mate for spirit , so you ca n’t betray one of a duo without both of them being abominably sad .
We decided geese audio moderately cool , but the direction Imbir ’ express mirth when he remember Mom ’s Minnesota gander chasing her down , I do n’t think we ’ll be beat geese anytime shortly .
