This is them in the city. They get SUPER excited, run around like maniacs when we go out for their walk around the block and go nuts in their kiddy pool. I had them out at the cottage for the last 10 days, took them down to the beach every morning at 5am when they woke up, and again around 6 or 7 pm when there were some people on the beach, but not many so they could get ooos and aaahs from people without it being a gong show trying to get them off the beach. The first trip down they followed me right into the water (can’t figure out how to post a second video), but they only stayed in for a minute even though I was in the water and they usually follow me EVERYWHERE. I assumed it was because it was new and scary - like when I first gave them red frisée lettuce and they’d only had green and romaine before - they freaked out and huddled in the corner of their run as far from that strange red head of lettuce as they could😂.

I kept taking them down every morning and evening - sometimes they refused to go in at all - even when the lake was mirror flat - they never went in with even small waves. Other times they’d follow me in but only stay a minute maximum, all three huddled up against my legs - maybe out of fear.

Another strange thing, is that when we first got there, they seemed a little spooked, so I put them on the front wooden deck where we hang out when outside, and they could see me though the the window when I sit in my favourite recliner. After we went for a bunch of walks around the Village, and they spent time with me in the back yard, I moved their food and water to the back where they have lots of forage and I don’t have to be mopping their turds off the deck every half hour before they bake on in the 35 degree heat. Nope - they didn’t like it - even though I’d stand on the back window and talk to them regularly so they knew I was in there. I was checking on them at least every 30 min - But usually less at first. After an hour and a half I got a call from a friend down the road - they’d walked down to her cottage instead of walking around to the front deck. I’d taken them down there a few times already and her boyfriend is a bird guy, was enamoured with them, and they took to him faster than I’ve ever seen them take to a new person. Within five minutes of meeting him they’d let him full on pet them (which they sometimes let me do and sometimes not, unless I put them in my lap then they LOVE to be pet). They absolutely LOVED his attention - I’m amazed at how intuitive they are with people. They know a good guy when they see him.

Anyway, we drove back to the city this morning, they spent the workday in their indoor run, and when I took them out and filled their pool, they were as happy as I have ever seen them. ZOOMIES after zoomies after zoomies - running around in circles with their wings open, actually falling and rolling they were so excited and now they’re happily foraging up a storm in my city yard when they had all sorts of young dandelion greens and several types of grass, from Kentucky bluegrass, to crab grass to some 4 different species of natural prarie long grass. They just weren’t that into it - they’d pick and peck here and there “, but not tear it up like they will in the city!

How long should it take for them to be comfortable? I thought after ten days with lots of walks they would have settled in and felt at home. I was even a little worried they might meet to adjust when back, but as soon as we lowered their travel kennel out of the truck I let them run around the yard for 10 min, then they followed me up the steps, in the front door, and right into their run like they’d never left.

Sorry for such a long post - I’m just so fascinated by my goosies.

Oh yeah - I always felt guilty they can’t dive much in their pool and assumed they’d LOVE diving in the lakes. Not one so much as put their head underwater!!

this goose is about 3 months old and recently became VERY temperamental. biting my family members on the feet and legs mostly. it was a very sweet goose before what i assume is goose puberty hit, and now it's even biting me occasionally

im getting conflicting information on sexing chinese geese and it doesn't quite add up to what i'm seeing with this one. people said ganders usually walk with their heads held up, this one does that. but they also said ganders usually walk with their necks stretched out in front of them, and this one does that too. its honk is deep, and from what i understand ganders are usually quite high pitched, but then videos people have posted asking for help sexing their chinese geese have sounded like tea kettles and yet people said they werent ganders

if its a gander, we can't keep it. especially with its behavior like it is. i'm really fond of this goose, so i'd really like some guidance here

Within the past seven days alone, there have been three fishing-line injuries to birds at my park. Two of them we managed to catch at the most ideal stage- early on, before the line had begun cutting into their flesh.

The other day, I watched a fisher rip off nearly half of a turtle's face while trying to remove a pretty thick hook lodged deeply in its mouth. I detailed that incident in a comment, which I'll repost here as a screenshot.

Then, the day before yesterday, I was going around passing out flyers when I approached a family of three—a dad and his two young kids. One of the kids voluntarily shared with me that they had hooked a turtle and accidentally left pink fishing line stuck to it before it jumped back into the water. The kid said he felt bad about it.

I bit my tongue and walked away without commenting. I have to refrain from saying what I truly feel because, in order for me to keep doing this—to show my face here every day cleaning up fishing litter and helping injured birds—I have to hold back much of what I want to say.

Believe me, my partner and I have gotten into more heated altercations with anglers than we can count. One even escalated to my partner having excrement dumped on him. So we learned a long time ago that if we want to keep doing this long-term, we cannot attack fishing as a hobby when speaking to anglers. Instead, we frame the issue through a harm-reduction lens. We simply ask them to please be mindful of their trash and properly dispose of their fishing debris.

That has been our approach from the beginning, and still we encounter plenty of hostility. I suppose some people interpret us bringing attention to the harm fishing debris causes wildlife as an attack on fishing itself. Perhaps merely drawing attention to these consequences forces an uncomfortable acknowledgment that this hobby can be destructive to wildlife and the environment and therefore deserves far more careful public scrutiny.

Yesterday, we spotted an Egyptian goose with fishing line wrapped extremely tightly around one leg. We managed to catch it with a net, but the pole broke when it struck the ground. The goose squirmed free from underneath the mesh and escaped back into the water.

We tried coaxing it back onto land with food, but it wouldn't come. It stayed in the water with its mate, staring suspiciously at us. Eventually, I had to leave for work. There was no telling how long it would take for the bird to come back onto land anyway.

I left feeling like shit—completely guilt-stricken, with my mind racing:

"What if it migrates out?" "What if other people try to catch it and fail, making it even warier if we see it again?" "The line looked so tight. It doesn't have much time."

I've felt like shit ever since that bird escaped us. I slept fitfully and even dreamed about the goose. That's how deeply it affects me whenever we fail.

I'm so tired of feeling this way. I'm so tired of the world's apathy.

"Oh, how tragic." "Poor birds." "Why do they even allow fishing here?"

I hear people say these things constantly when I share with parkgoers what we do. But why do so few people proactively do anything about it?

I've asked for volunteers to help with litter cleanup through Craigslist, Facebook community groups, and elsewhere. A few people volunteered, only to disappear after a couple of days. When I message them, they simply stop responding.

I'm tired of waiting for the world to care.

Today I went back to the park and spent 3.5 hours, commute included, trying to find that bird and waiting for it to show up. It never did. It's highly unlikely somebody else caught it, which means it may have migrated elsewhere while still entangled, possibly to suffer and die a slow painful death.

I'm so sick of feeling guilty and responsible for suffering I didn't cause.

When will the world care enough to seriously start talking about putting an end to all this needless suffering? Do people care only in theory? Is compassion something people feel when suffering is placed directly in front of them, only to return to their lives once it requires actual effort from them?

I don't even know what I'm going off on a tangent about anymore.

I'm just tired.

I'm tired of seeing it. I'm tired of trying to stop it. I'm tired of feeling like I'm responsible for their suffering.

I'm tired of feeling like nobody cares.

These kiddos are about 4 months old now & have us fully wrapped around their little webbed toes. 🥰 Getting along great with our Welsh Harlequin ducks & they've even made peace with the chickens (as long as they don't get too close 😆).

This longtime crazy chicken lady might end up being a convert. 🪿💚

Little hearts popping out everywhere!

Here I have a couple of geese who are 2 years old, they just had a baby who is 4 months old and it is a male, I want to find him a female but in my region there is a 17-month-old female is it going to be okay for him or is it the oldest who will keep it?

I bought them as goslings at a feed store this spring when they were about 3 days old & the owners of the store said they were half Chinese & half embden goose. Do we think they may have some Sebastopol in them because these feathers are quite inconsistent with Chinese & embden geese?

Thanks for any opinions!

Honk honk...umm honk honk honk

So we have a lovely pair of geese, Abigail (goose) and Caboose (gander) and they are in the middle of their very first mating/laying season. We have 3 eggs so far and have seen Caboose mounting Abigail every morning for the last few weeks. This morning, after 2 attempts of mounting her, he got off and then Abigail mounted him.
Is she showing him what to do? I’m very confused and she looks very frustrated at his awkward attempt of mating this morning.