jmgoyder

wings and things

May 21

He used to love me!

by jmgoyder

Godfrey, the gander, whose other name is now ‘the Godfather’ was, to begin with, our only goose, and he adored me. He was given to us as an adolescent.

Then we got little Pearl, who Godfrey cherished so much that as soon as Pearl was out of the brooder and free-ranging, Godfrey started to bite me, hiss at me and our relationship is still at a stalemate. Here is little Pearl when she was little!

Since then, our gang of poultry has grown and I was hoping they would all roam around freely during the day in a playful way, but the Godfather has them all organized into a kind of army! They all come to me for bread and lettuce but they do it sneakily because Godfrey disapproves so violently.

Pearl is the one on the far left.

I really miss Godfrey loving me – oh well!

Wings

29 Comments »
Apr 25

Gosling advice needed for one of my readers please!

by jmgoyder

I have copy/pasted an interesting query here so if any of you poultry people have advice for Ashley, please comment here or see her comment on my ‘Imprinting’ post from way back. Thanks in advance.

Ashley M commented on Imprinting

While I was driving home 2 nights ago in the pouring rain, I found a newborn gosling in the middle of the road. When I ran and picked him up i looked around for any others or even the mother and it turned out he had been separated. I went to a local feeds store and picked up starting feed. So far, he’s been eating very well and is really happy. He has been following me around at my very heels and hates to be separated from me. So, I’ve had to sleep with every night. I’m assuming he’s imprinted on me and it’s the cutest thing. This morning i didn’t shut my bedroom door all the way and he ended up in my bathroom while i was taking a shower and i ended up putting him in with me. He loved it!!! again, he remained at my feet. I’m only 19 and a freshman in college, thankfully, living on my own in my apartment. I purchased diapers for him so I’m curious to see how that turns out. My concerns are him maturing and learning to fly. I would be so heart broken if he flew away south in the winter and never returned. If you could let me know what else i can do to raise him and what to expect when he matures. Thanks, Ashley!

Wings

22 Comments »
Jan 25

Imprinting 2: On the other hand ….

by jmgoyder

Despite my last post, there is something about this imprinting thing that niggles at my sense of right and wrong, or whatever you want to call it – animal morality? Dunno.

It niggles in the same way that the idea of putting poultry in nappies (see a previous post – many moons ago), niggled. I think it niggles because there is something false and coercive about adopting a baby gosling, duckling, or any infant bird, with the express purpose of imprinting; it seems too much like animal experimentation, almost circus-like.

I put my hand up as someone who was ‘guilty’ of being interested in this imprinting thing – yes. However, when  it soon became apparent that Zaruma (our first duckling), and Pearl (our first gosling), much preferred each other’s company to mine, I realized how silly I was being. After all, they still love me too!

I guess I have always had a strong aversion to coercion so, unless a goose wants to come up and give me a cuddle (a rather bizarre but lovely thing if it happens naturally), I don’t ‘go there’.

Even if I wanted to, guess who would soon stop me? My competitor – Godfrey! And, despite our differences, I have to concede that he is a much better gosling-cuddler than I will ever be because, last time I looked in the mirror, I was still a human. Go Godfrey!

Wings

6 Comments »
Jan 25

Imprinting

by jmgoyder

I find the phenomenon of imprinting absolutely fascinating and it was one of the things that got me interested in acquiring some geese in the first place. Apparently, birds imprint on humans and other species more readily than any other kind of animal, with geese being the most ‘imprintable’.

Basically, imprinting occurs when the newborn gosling knows itself to be of the same species as the first creature it encounters. Obviously, this is usually the mother goose but if the newborn is adopted by a human soon after hatching, or else is found abandoned, it will attach itself to the adopter with incredible tenacity. The article below describes imprinting in more detail.

http://www.thegoosesmother.com/id6.html

When I first heard about imprinting and geese, I desperately wanted to do it (a lonely moment of madness perhaps?) and, yes, it certainly did happen with all of the goslings, even when we purchased them at a week old. For example, Pearl, Woodroffe and Diamond (our Sebastopol goslings), and Ola and Seli (our Pilgrim goslings) were, from the very beginning, very pattable, pick-up-able and needy of my presence in their lives.

They’re a little big now to pick up but they still follow me everywhere. The imprinting thing didn’t happen with Godfrey, the godfather of gandersom, because we got him at two years of age. He only follows me when he wants to get a bite out of my leg!

I love it!

 

Wings

11 Comments »
Nov 30

The patter of little feet

by jmgoyder

This picture was taken a few weeks ago and I’m very glad I took a few shots like this because all four of these goslings are now HUGE! I have never known anything to grow as fast as a goose (well, except maybe a miniature pig – see previous posts.)

The first time I heard the sound I was outside the front of the house, getting firewood. I thought it was a roll of thunder but when I looked up, the sky was clear, so I realised it must be Son on his drums.

That is until they came around the corner – six geese at full speed, their huge webbed feet slapping the ground into a primeval beat. When they spotted me, their stampede became more frenzied until they reached me and I told them I’d run out of lettuce.

Disappointed, they waddled quietly away.

Note: ‘the patter of little feet’ quote comes from the following poem:

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, “The Children’s Hour“

Between the dark and the daylight,  When the night is beginning to lower,   Comes a pause in the day’s occupations,   That is known as the Children’s Hour.

I hear in the chamber above me   The patter of little feet,   The sound of a door that is opened,   And voices soft and sweet.

http://www.americanpoems.com/poets/longfellow/thechildren.shtml

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Wings

15 Comments »
Nov 12

“Those thieving birds”

by jmgoyder

Silverchair’s song, “Those thieving birds” is one of my favourites and I was tempted to call this blog “Thieving birds” but I thought that might be just as obscure as the weird metaphors in this beautiful song (check it out …. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iCQ-TWipBhc )

For me, the idea of thieving birds, despite its darker implications, means this: These birds have stolen tidbits of my heart then returned them to me like nuggets of gold. Yeah, I know that sounds a bit cliched and twee but hopefully the pictures will do the talking here.

Top left: Pearl, our first Sebastopol gosling

Top right: Tina Turner, the rooster I thought was a hen

Left: King peacock competing with white peacock

Right: Emery, the emu chick at two months of age!

Wings

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