If you love animals and have some space, try keeping a pair of geese for pets. After having a large flock of geese I had resolved to keep only two since we no longer bred them for sale, but were keen to keep some on hand for protection. You’re probably wondering how a goose can protect you, but try entering a yard where there is even one goose and you will soon know how territorial they can become. The two geese I had were excellent “watchdogs” and informed me of anyone who drove into the yard or attempted to approach my door. Many times the person was left at the gate to the mercy of honking geese until I came to see what the fuss was all about.
Permission To Keep Geese:
There will be regulations in your town regarding keeping animals such as chickens in your backyards, so be sure to check what the rules are for geese. You may be permitted to have just one, perhaps one pair. Geese do not make so much noise they that are a nuisance to neighbors, but more than two could pose a problem should they all become excitable at once.
Great With Kids:
These animals are wonderful with children too. Ours were very protective of ‘their’ kids. Wherever my kids went on the farm, the geese would always follow and honk relentlessly if the kids even looked like heading out through the gate unaccompanied. The kids were then ‘herded’ back into the yard. You can fence your yard into two sections, one for yourselves and the children and the other for your geese if preferred. Another great bonus with keeping geese instead of chickens is; geese will keep bugs and all kinds of weeds to a minimum in your garden. When weeding, we used to let ours onto the pumpkin field and the need for pesticides and herbicides was almost non existent afterward. When they find a weed to eat, they drive the beaks under the dirt and destroy the roots.
Geese do not scratch the ground, so your precious vegetables and flowers will not be ruined. Chickens on the other hand can cause major damage in just a very short time. Six chickens can, and will ruin your whole vegetable garden in just around one hour.
Eggs:
Geese also produce lovely large eggs which are wonderful for baking cakes, for decorating, for inclusion into a large egg salad or a potato salad. They are somewhat like duck eggs to the taste, and lovely when scrambled. One egg is enough to feed two or three people a hearty breakfast.
You also won’t need a male – female pair when keeping geese. If keeping for pets and protection I recommend you select two females, since males are known to become more aggressive at times. They will not harm those they know, but can be very intimidating. A word of caution though – distract your geese elsewhere when removing the egg from the nest. Remove the eggs as soon as one appears or you will find your goose later sitting on a whole batch which you will not be permitted to get near. Females will lay eggs for you whether a male is present or not.
I once read where a car dealership employed geese as a means to keeping criminal activity to a minimum. The owner was tired of crooks entering his premises and causing some very expensive damage to his vehicles. After placing several geese into his lot, there were no further problems.
Care:
When planning to own geese, call your local veterinarian and read some books from the library. They are very low maintenance and the vet can give you advice on what to feed them and how to administer their worm medicine, and what the intervals for treatment are. (which is easier than worming a dog) The library can assist you in designing appropriate shelter for your new and unusual pets.
