# Raising a goose as a pet?



## Bricheze (Jun 21, 2008)

Last year one of my friends found a duckling wandering around alone, and she took it thinking it was abandoned. She brought it to me because I have a lot of experience with raising birds, especially rehabilitating wild birds. I went back to where she found it to see if I could find it's mom, but no luck. So I raised the little guy for a few weeks. Unfortunately, a stray cat got a hold of him one day :grump: I cried for weeks I had gotten so attatched to him.

I did some research and found that people do own geese as pets. We have tons of wild geese running around, and we collect the eggs to keep their population from going out of control (disease will spread like crazy, the year we decided to start doing it we found 30 dead geese and ducks in the lake) anyways, I was thinking of incubating an egg and raising it as a pet. I just had one question, could I leave him at the farm overnight without human companionship and instead with other geese, and then see him everyday and of course give him a place he can stay for shelter and access to food and water? While he is too young to fend for himself he would definitely stay at my house though.


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## Forty Acres (May 14, 2007)

When I was young (er), I had several pet geese, ducks, chickens & turkeys. They can be a lot of fun. 

The best way is to start with a newly hatched gosling & raise it by itself without any interaction from other geese. It will become a pet (& pest) really easy. Once it reaches adulthood, you can expose it to other geese & it will remain your buddy. 

Good luck & have fun. 

A word of caution. A grown pet goose can be quite protective & they don't like strangers. They can leave purple bruises on visitors & are particularly aggressive towards small children. I had one pet goose that ripped my brake light wires from underneath my pickup.


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

The goose will need a companion, otherwise it will pine for company. The companion can be another goose or a duck.

Check the laws in your state. Some places you cannot keep certain wild creatures as pets.


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## OJ Rallye (Aug 4, 2005)

I suggest a little research on imprinting first.

A couple of years ago I had 2 orphaned Muscovy ducklings. It was cold and wet out when I found them. I warmed and dried them but the mothers with ducklings wouldn't take them in. We named them Orphan Annie and Greg. Greg had accident and died during his first week of living in the house in a rabbit cage.

She quickly learned the way to the back door from her cage. Open the cage door and she'd head for the door to go outside.
I continued taking Annie out for walks and back to the pond for a swim. At about 4 weeks, she started staying out during the day. She managed with the other ducks but was well accepted by Big Guy, the flock boss and my friend.

If I didn't let Annie into the house soon enough, she would pace back and forth by the dog gate waiting to be let in. Then she learned that this wasn't effective enough and started coming around to front door and making a fuss to be let in.

ATTN:Cyngbaeld
When she came in the front door, she neither looked at the tv or went for the remote!

I won't say she was housebroken but she never pooped on the floor on her way to or from her cage to go in or out.

One morning I let her out and a hawk or something must have got her. No sign of her was found that afternoon.

Even the GSDs missed her.


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## Bricheze (Jun 21, 2008)

If he is imprinted on humans, would he get depressed being alone with just other geese at night?


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## Cyngbaeld (May 20, 2004)

I'd raise two together or a goose and duck. You will still have nice pets as the two will imprint on you, but if you cannot be with them, they won't be lonely. A lonely baby goose can be quite a pest. Actually, a lonely gander who got kicked out of the flock by the more dominant ganders can be a pest too.


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## Queen Bee (Apr 7, 2004)

When the kids were small, I wanted geese for our pond.. So we purchased several goose and a gander.. Well, every time they tried to have a nest, we would find it trashed and the eggs broken or gone.. So, I decided to give a broody hen two eggs. She hatched both but only one lived and she was bigger than the hen was. So, We took her to our house, in a basket to raise her.. She was the sweetest thing you have ever seen but she was very needed. I could not get out of her site w/out her honking her head off , I would call her name and she would fly to me.. She played with the kids and slept with our dogs.. after a few months we tried to get her to go to the pond to be with the other geese and she would have no part of it. Each day for weeks, I would walk her to the pond and let her play, but as soon as I got ready to leave, she would be right behind me.. After two months, the gander started trying to protect her from US.. Then one day, she stayed.. but she only lasted a few weeks, we saw a stray dog carrying her over the hill. My dh thought it was because she was not afraid of dogs.. I cried for weeks about her.. 

She was a great pleasure for us and the kids. Would we do it again, only if we had a secure to keep her thru out her life... It was too heartbreaking..


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