To this: Three months old.
top to bottom: Dominique, Mr. Tudball, The Dude, and Mrs. Wiggins who seems to be the leader of the goose-pack.
Having these 4 geese has been more interesting, more fun, and more work, then I imagined it would be. In the beginning I was put off by all the goose poop, but it seems like the geese have got that part under control and there is less of that around. We have a large tub for the geese to bathe in, and some snow sleds the geese use for wading and drinking. As advertised the weeder geese love weeds and (except for my Hosta) have not harmed the plants in my raised beds and yard. Along the fence line the geese keep the grass growth to a minimum which saves me some backbreaking work. Usually the grass is about 2 foot tall before I'm willing to go out there and trim it down.
The geese haven't learned to fly yet. If the Canada Geese around here are a good comparison, then The Dude looks too heavy for liftoff. In the morning when I first open the goose hutch the geese take off across the yard running fast, flapping their outspread wings. Mrs. Wiggins - the smallest goose- has come close to lifting off the ground. I have observed Canada Geese parents teaching the goslings to fly - usually in late summer. The goslings learn by watching their parents. I can run with my geese, and lead them to a nice flat area they can use for a runway, just like the Canada Geese parents, flap my arms and skip and jump and hope for the best.
We also have 6 kittens and the 4 geese like to come up to the garage to watch the kittens play in the morning. That is what they are doing in the photo. The Dude doesn't like it if our dog, Hannah, joins the kittens, and plays rough. That's when Dude will grab Hannah's tail or ear, and give a yank to remind Hannah what it feels like to get picked on by something bigger.
Four geese can be very noisy, especially when I am standing in their midst and they are all honking about something I'm doing. Bill’s grand niece, Charlotte, was visiting and I took her into the yard to pet the geese. It wasn’t long till the 4 geese gathered around us, honking and trying to touch Charlotte’s red toenails. They made quite a racket, which I thought was kind of scary, but Charlotte wasn’t the least bit distressed. In fact, I think she would have liked to host a tea party for the geese.
......Then again, I can walk across the yard and the geese will be so quiet trailing me that I have to look to see if they are still there.
All in all I think owning geese is very rewarding. Next spring, get some geese if you have the space and time.
Link to my
Picasa web album 4 kittens
