Month: September 2020

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Noisy, messy, bitey! What’s the upside to having geese!?

I own my crazy – I mean, have you SEEN how many animals I have? Yes, it’s crazy 🙂
Nothing tops the level of crazy in my family’s eyes as having our pair of geese. Walter and Barbara (get it? Last name Walters?…) Or better known as Daddy and Mommy Peep. These two have a serious soft spot in my heart, despite the crazy looks I get from my own family. They are disliked by some people, but well loved by me! Maybe I just have a strange sense of humor, but these guys really humor me. They always amuse me when they think they are flying by running really fast and flapping their wings. Or when they are so focused on something that they trip, or run into an object. Or how devoted they are to one another, and always are looking out for each other.
I have Buff American Geese, and I got them at just 3 days old from a hatchery in California. I specifically wanted this breed because they are supposed to be more docile, good parents, and they are critically endangered. Also, they can’t fly, so they are stuck with me 🙂
Many people get geese for both the eggs, and for goose meat. These guys are on the larger side of the medium goose breeds, and the males get up to twenty-five pounds. They were developed in the US, and are considered endangered due to the low numbers of people owning this breed. There are fewer than 500 breeding birds in the USA, so they are in danger of going extinct. I figured, since I was going to get geese anyhow, why not get a breed that needs some help?
Originally I was looking for an option to help protect my chickens when we were dealing with a fox problem a few years ago. The fox was taking some of my favorite bantam (little) sized birds, and I was getting ticked off! It was after my favorite one named “Pigeon” went missing that I finally snapped. I did my research on caring for geese and ordered my own.
Sidenote: If you haven’t seen a baby goose OMG you are missing out ! They are so yellow and soft and cute! You wouldn’t even guess how big they get and how sassy they become!
So Walter and Barbara were shipped to me via USPS that year, and I picked them up at the post office. Initially their care was similar to baby chickens. They needed a heat lamp, chick starter feed, water, bedding, and some time to grow. What I learned quickly with geese is that they are VERY smart! They also imprint on the person who cares for them as goslings. Well, in our case, that was me. So I became “mom” and they still identify me as such (much more in a sassy teenager way now with the attitude). I would pick them up and hold them and talk to them, and sometimes take them out on nice days to play on the grass. They made this adorable little peeping sound (hence the name The Peeps). Holy Moly did they grow fast!! By 3 months they were big! I had moved them out into the chicken coop, and my plan was to keep them right in there to do their protection job. Geese meet chickens, your new charges. Chickens meet geese, your new protectors! *Queue triumphant music !*
OK, scrap that. *Music winds down*
It didn’t go as I had planned.
Geese are extremely territorial, especially in spring when it’s breeding season. This same trait that makes them excellent watch dogs, guards, and amazing parents can be used for the forces of evil if you have other animals with them! The baby Peeps grew into adults pretty fast, and by the following spring were already starting to get aggressive for breeding season. Aggressive to everything! People, dogs, cats, the wind blowing, birds flying overhead, and yes, even the chickens. They made a nest on the floor of the coop with the chickens, and would actually attack any chicken that tried to come inside the coop. In their minds they were simply protecting their nest. But I needed a plan B, and needed it fast!! I moved them into a second coop that we had, and put all the chickens together in one coop. Success!! The Peeps were happy by themselves, and Mommy laid several eggs. For now, protection for the chickens had to be from the geese!
I thought it was cool that such a large animal was so maternal, so I let Mommy Peep set on the eggs to hatch them out. We got two babies that year, and they were adorable! I was in amazement how good of parents the geese were. Both of them were very attentive to the babies, and watched over them like a team. Mom would tuck them under her wings, and sometimes a little yellow fuzzy head would poke out. The cuteness factor was off the charts!!
As fun as it was to have the goslings hatch out, I didn’t think much farther ahead than this. This was seven years ago, and I was still getting used to having geese. After several months the babies got quite big. It seemed the larger the street gang of geese, the more unfriendly they became. The babies had to go! I ended up selling them to a new home, and was left with just Mom and Dad again. Two at once I can handle. An aggressive pack of them is a bit much.
So after reading all this, don’t you wonder why the heck would I want these things?! (Nick and Aubrey wonder the same thing often enough, and don’t hold back saying so !).
Well, I did get them for protection and an alarm system. That they do very well. They are quite smart and remember people. They know the sounds of our own vehicles and they don’t mind us walking all around them doing yard work. However, someone that isn’t normally at our place gets a pretty high pitched squeak and they are on guard, watching what’s going on. If you visit you might get a loud shriek and a side eye from a goose. They generally don’t go after someone unless it’s breeding season (then it’s no holds barred and they are kept locked in their run). Generally, while good fakers, they run away if actually confronted by a person. Nevertheless they are kept in a fenced in area of our property, for everyone’s safety.

I’ve handled the over-aggressive nature of the geese by putting together their very own coop and fenced-in pen inside of an already fenced in area. When we are in the thick of breeding season, I can leave them in their run and they can be as cranky as they want by themselves. You can’t change nature, but you can sure work around it! They are now located behind one of my chicken coops. Anything that tries to come by the fence at any time of the day or night gets a loud shriek, and if warranted, an attack charge at the fence! They have been known to deter coons and possums, and have even yelled at the fox! They are seemingly fearless birds!
My geese are very much a bonded pair, and are like a married couple. They watch out for each other, and Daddy guards the nest while Mommy sits on the eggs. He is never far from her and comes running at any noise she makes.
Another benefit of geese are that they can subsist on grass the majority of the spring, summer and fall. They always have their own container of feed, and they eat solely that in winter. But the rest of the year, so long as I let them graze they are pretty self sufficient. The downside to this is in spring I have to be prepared for two Jurassic Park Raptors on the loose in the back part of the property!
Starting usually in March or April the female starts to lay her eggs. She lays one egg every two or three days, and buries them under the pine bedding in their coop. This goes on until sometimes into June as the female creates a “clutch” of eggs she plans to sit on. Aubrey likes to think of it as a treasure hunt to see if the geese started laying yet. Goose eggs are quite large – one egg can fill a 10″ frying pan! They are quite tasty too. The trick to collecting goose eggs is that you need to get inside the coop, find the buried eggs, and get the eggs out before the parents see you. They will come after you if you aren’t careful! And yes they can bite…HARD. Not that we blame them as they are just protecting their nest. However, unless there is a buying market for baby geese, and I’m willing to care for any babies sometimes for months until sold, I generally pull the eggs so they cannot hatch. I also pull the eggs because if the female starts to lay too early for our climate, the eggs can freeze. So instead of wasting them, we use them 🙂
(Side note: Geese don’t have teeth, but they have very hard bills with serrated edges that are good for clipping grasses- their main diet. When they bite it’s like a little steak knife pushing into your skin – not fun!!).

Geese are much more cold tolerant than chickens, so in winter when it’s snowing here they will be out and about, leaving their goose prints along the walkway in the snow. The chickens, meanwhile, are hunkered down in the bunker and refuse to put their little chicken feet on snow! (This is for real. I have to toss out straw or hay onto the snow before the chickens will step outside! )
Geese have a much higher water need than chickens. They need to be able to submerge their heads into a water bucket all times of the year. It helps keep them clean, and their nostrils from blocking. I use a large trough with a submersed heater for them in winter, but I have to keep an eye on it. The geese are curious and get bored in winter, and sometimes will pull the heater out by the cord. Then their water freezes over, and I have more work to do to clean it out. I also find all kinds of random objects in their water. Rocks, sticks, dog toys. Whatever they find sitting around they will toss it in their water, and try to figure out what it is and if it’s edible. Weirdos.
Geese are also different from chickens in that they don’t roost up high at night. They spend their lives on the ground, and their coop just needs some bedding on the floor to keep them happy.
Personality wise, I’ve found the geese to be extremely intelligent, curious, and wary of people they don’t know. I’ve had lots of entertainment with them following me around the yard while I’m weeding flower beds, patiently waiting for me to give them something yummy. They especially love dandelion greens, and will make soft little squeaky sounds to remind me that they are right there and would like a treat.
My geese aren’t very affectionate birds, but they do like attention. They love treats – apples, any leftover veggies, and one of their favs is lasagna! I enjoy grabbing them now and then and holding them to me while I love on them. That has turned into the best deterrent for when the geese are extra cranky and bitey in spring. If they want to act cranky, they know I will pick them up and love on them! (I make sure to hold their beaks though!!) When putting them back down they make sure to shake out their feathers, toss me a side eye, and take off the other direction shrieking in irritation. They then leave me alone. BOOM! Problem solved 🙂
Geese are probably creatures that only some can come to love. Yes they are messy – pooping anywhere and everywhere when free ranging. Yes they are loud – making sure everyone hears them in my neighborhood! And yes they are angry during nesting season – they have no qualms of biting someone getting too close to their nest! Despite all that, there is just something about them that is amusing to me. And since they can live up to 20 years old (!!) they have some time here yet to make me laugh at their antics.

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The honey harvest! Sweat and sweet brought together for a treat!

August and September usually mark honey harvest season for beekeepers in my area. It’s turned out for us that the harvest generally works best on Labor Day weekend. Hopefully by then my bees have had a few months to grow their hive numbers, stay healthy, and put up a good excess of honey. I take some of that excess, and leave some for the bees to eat as well. Every decision I make when pulling the honey is for the well-being of the hive. Above all else I want to keep my bees healthy and fed well going into the cold Wisconsin winters.
I’ve kept bees for several years, and one thing I’ve learned is that every beekeeper does things a little different. The way I do my harvest is based on what I learned from my original teachers, along with some wisdom gained from mentors, and my own experience along the way. Even the kind of hives I have (Langstroth), along with the style of frames I use, to the breed of bee I buy is all individual preference. Whatever works for each person is how they do it.
So, what’s involved in my harvest?
Well, it all starts with the bees. I keep a closer eye on them, and their honey production, from August into September, checking to see how their honey harvest is going. When I feel that we have enough in the hives to be able to take some off, it’s time to get to work. This involves going into the hive usually weekly or biweekly and checking how much honey is on the frames. I don’t want to harvest too late in the season, because it can get cold quickly in Wisconsin. The bees need some time after harvest to put up more of their own honey, and cold or wet days in fall make that hard for them. I also don’t want to harvest too early, as the honey comb won’t be capped with wax – meaning the honey isn’t ready to be taken yet. It can be a fine line to walk as a beekeeper!

I make sure to fully suit up for this job. The bees aren’t very happy when I’m stealing from their food supply, so it’s only prudent to protect against stings. Again, each beekeeper does their own thing. I know a someone who never suits up to work with his bees, and doesn’t seem to mind the stings. Me, I’d rather avoid pain and itching from a bee sting, so it’s suit-city for me!! I have an awesome bee suit that I bought a few years ago that allows air to pass through, but the bee stinger can’t get through it. It also has a built-in hood to protect my head and face, and full arm and leg coverings. I wear my farm work boots to protect my feet, and leather bee gloves to protect my hands.

Each hive gets a thorough check over, and what I feel is excess frames of honey I pull out of the hive and put into an extra, empty hive box on a cart. The frame I take out is replaced with a new clean frame as I go. I do this over and over, going through each hive box, and also checking on the health of the colonies while doing this. Each frame that is pulled from the hive is usually full of bees, so I use a little soft brush to just push them off the frame back into the hive. Full hive boxes are HEAVY, approximate 50-60 pounds each, so it can be a good workout to go through the hives each year when there are sometimes 6-7 boxes on each hive. In 2020 it took me 90 minutes to go through my two hives fully, pull the honey off, and do some health maintenance on each. Lots of heavy lifting and some serious sweating in my bee suit!

Once the frames are off the hives, I’m done with the part that messes with the bees. This is when I can get some more willing help, and usually Nick and Aubrey get ensnared 🙂
We bring the cart with the honey frames into the garage, away from the bee hives, and set up a honey extractor. The extractor is a large metal drum with a rotating basket inside with a crank connected to the spinning basket. It comes apart for washing and storing, so we need to connect everything together again prior to use. When used, it splats the honey out of the opened comb and onto the inside wall of the extractor. They honey runs down the inside wall of the extractor to a spigot that can be open or closed. Each frame from the hives has honey (hopefully) on each side of it. I take a knife, or sharp hive comb, and scrape off -or break open- the wax cap that seals the honey in each cell. Once that is done on each side, the frame is fitted into the extractor, 3 frames at a time, and we start cranking it to spin. We have to stop and turn over the frames to get the honey from the opposite side of the frame.
We keep repeating this process, alternating with opening the spigot to drain the extractor. I drain the honey into a 5 gallon bucket with another spigot on it. I also have a mesh net that I strain the honey through as it goes into the bucket. This pulls out any wax comb, or bees, that may be in the honey. From the bucket the honey is poured out the spigot into large containers that I can bring into my kitchen to jar everything up.
Extracting the honey is another work out. The frames are heavy, and spinning the extractor takes some muscle. I always hope for cooler weather so we don’t roast in the garage while doing this process. Uncapping, spinning, and straining the honey usually takes a few hours for all of us working together.
Jarring the honey is a longer process for me. I wash all the jars I intend on using, and make sure that I have enough lids and rings. This year I had to go to my neighbors and hope they had some extra for me to use! They did! They were saviors 🙂
Once all the jars are washed I separate them by size, and I weigh each jar individually. I keep track of all the weights and jar types, and move on to filling the jars. Each jar is filled, closed up with a lid and ring, get a Black Frog Farm sticker on the lid, and wiped clean. I then weigh each jar again to see what the “honey weight” is of each jar so I can figure out what the price will be for each. I price each jar individually based on how much honey weight there is by putting a little sticker on the glass of the jar.
I base the price per pound of my honey the same as what I see other beekeepers doing for theirs in my area. I’m not trying to undercut anyone, or overcharge anyone. My sole goal in honey sales is to help me pay for any hive losses I will have from winter into spring, and for any equipment that might need replacing.
Anyone with bees will tell you they aren’t into beekeeping for any profits. I’ve found that I enjoy working with the hives, and seeing the bees create all their comb and watching the new bee brood growing inside. I’ve also enjoyed the benefits these pollinators bring to my flower gardens each year!!
More than that, I’ve been able to enjoy honey created from my very own flowers each year. And it’s pretty darn yummy!

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Animal Apothecary- what items to keep on hand.

Emergencies and accidents sometimes happen, and it’s freaking scary when they do. Sometimes you need a vet…pronto! But sometimes you can handle it on your own if you have the right stuff on hand and some know-how. There are a lot of great items that can be used across species that I always keep on hand. I’m not vet by any stretch, but experience and learning from other’s experiences has taught me what to go to first. Sometimes it’s just to help my animal survive until a vet can get here. Each animal injury or illness I’ve dealt with has taught me something important. Sometimes a lot of somethings!

One year I had a goat sick with pneumonia – my Nigerian Dwarf named Tank. It was rough on the poor dude. Several injectable medications, vitamins, and emergency vet calls later and he finally was getting back to good. It was a close call and I’m extremely grateful he is still with me…Tank is my buddy! I learned a lot from that experience both from my vet, and my “Goat Dealer,” and my own observations of his symptoms. I am hopeful that if it would happen again, to any of my herd, that I would catch it sooner and know how to treat it. I didn’t know until that episode that pneumonia is more common in summer than winter due to the higher humidity in our climate. Now, during hot and humid stretches of weather the goats get extra attention from me for this reason.

As you can see in my picture my animal medicine cabinet is…ahem….extensive. Hey, I have a lot of animals!! Some stuff is for “just in case,” and some stuff I use regularly (like my dog’s heartworm meds, and my llama’s worming shots). Unless it’s a prescription, which I get from my vet(s), the remainder of the products are things I get from Wal-Mart, Fleet Farm, or Amazon. None of it is hard to find.
This is by no means an all-encompassing list, but it’s the basics that I make sure I have.

So what’s all in there?

I always have Blue Kote and Vetricyn on hand- both antibacterial sprays. They are the first line of defense for preventing and fighting infection. Blue Kote is especially good for chickens. Chickens are cute and funny, but they turn into little beasts of evil on each other if there is even a drop of blood on one of them. Blood thirsty monsters I tell you ! Blue Kote covers the wound and also stains it bluish purple, hopefully throwing the vampire chickens off. Using gloves are my recommendation with this product. EVERYTHING turns purple when using this, and it stains your skin. Talking from experience here peeps.
The Vetricyn I like use on cats, dogs, goats, llamas for any wounds. My cats especially have a knack of coming in to dinner sometimes with war wounds from a disagreement with each other. Vetricyn is nice because the cats can lick it and not have any ill effects. It gets applied several times a day, and is a gel like substance. It’s expensive, but it works!

I keep Meloxicam on hand for my llamas; mostly for my old gal Peach. It gives her relief from arthritis. It’s like people tylenol. It’s a perscription from my vet, and thankfully a low cost medication. It’s given by weight, so a llama needs 12 pills per dosage due to their size! I toss them into her feed and she gobbles them right up. Meloxicam is also used with cats and dogs, sometimes in liquid form, for pain relief.

Vitamin B injectable has been a lifesaver for my goats. Tank had pneumonia last summer and was lethargic. The vitamin B shots seemed to help with his energy level and to get him eating again. **Side note- goats have 4 stomachs and keeping those up and running is of utmost importance in goats. If a goat stops eating too long it can die.

Extra syringes, vet wrap, and needles are standard in my cupboard.
Fun fact I learned from my vet – needles are good for when an animal has a sudden large bump on it’s body somewhere. If it’s hot to the touch it’s likely an abscess. One way to tell is using a needle quickly poke it into the mass and see what comes out. If it’s pus it’s an infection and needs to be drained (gross, I know!). If it’s something else, blood or clear liquid, and there are other issues going on with the animal, a call to the vet might be in order.

Nutradrench for llamas, and another version for goats in case someone is suddenly ill. This is a liquid that is administered by syringe and is like a shot of pedialyte. It helps with energy and nutrition, and is an emergency go to as well. If an animal is “off their food,” or refusing to eat this is a good go to for them while you wait for vet care.
I always have Iodine on hand. Sometimes for wounds, and also if I’m expecting any babies on the farm. Right now we are expecting a baby llama- called Cria- this fall. After the cria is born I will dip it’s navel into a bowl of iodine to kill any bacteria and keep it from infection. The navel is one area to protect as infection would have a direct way into the body through this opening.
Pepto Bismol for diarrhea, and baking soda for bloat. Pepto is one of those all purpose meds. Goats and dogs especially get good results from it if there is an issue with diarrhea. It’s not a cure-all, but if the symptoms need attention it’s a tool at the ready. Diarrhea can be life threatening, especially in babies.
Bloat is something that can happen with ruminants where stomach gases build up. Baking soda helps release that gas from the stomach (s).

A digital thermometer – most often used on my goats or llamas. It’s never fun to use for either party, but sure helps you narrow down what’s going on! The thermometer is my first go to if someone seems under the weather. A too high or too low temp usually means a call to the vet asap. A higher temperature also can tell you if you’re looking at infection/sickness, compared to dealing with symptoms like diarrhea that might be nothing more than an upset stomach when no fever exists.

Pro-bios paste has been helpful for my goats. Especially the babies. The babies have a lower tolerance to hot and humid temperatures, and the tube of Pro-bios helps to deter any diarrhea in the babies and keep their rumen (stomach system) running.

Packets of Save-a-chick electrolytes help give a boost to baby chicks, or even adult chickens in hot weather who need the extra nutritional boost. I also use this during chicken molting season – when the birds lose their old feathers and grow in new ones. It helps to keep them hydrated during this stressful event.

Finally, I have some stuff that I found is just super handy. A magnifying glass to check animal hair, or, because I’m just old and need to see better. Tweezers, staple suture remover (got that because of a foster dog several years back – long story), pain medications, rubbing alcohol, extra syringes for administering oral meds, scissors, and garden pruners for goat and llama feet.

The two MOST IMPORTANT things I feel that I have in my back pocket are 1. a good relationship with my vet(s), and 2. the ability to give shots.
I have a large animal vet that comes to my farm to treat my large animals. I’ve been able to pick his brain with different situations, and have learned a lot. The vet also has after hours services, which has helped me tons in the past. Everything to just needing advice via phone on how to treat something, to emergency euthanasia has been utilized with this service for our farm. I cannot stress enough the importance of establishing a good working relationship with a vet! My vet knows my animals, and is familiar with my farm. He knows how they are cared for and if there has been any past diseases I’ve dealt with. He also has been willing to find out information to help us with our animals. This has mostly been for our llamas, as not too many people in our area have them. Currently, we are preparing for a llama to give birth in the next few weeks. My vet has been out to check our girl during her pregnancy, and he is ready to help for the birth if needed.
I think it’s also important that that your vet gets to know YOU as well as your animals. I’m a pretty calm person, so if I call my vet with a panicked edge to me he knows I have a situation that needs help NOW. He also has worked with me to decide on treatment options for long term arthritis management for our llama Peach. So when I need a refill on Meloxicam he knows what I need it for and won’t feel the need to visit to OK it.

The other most useful thing has been learning how to give injections to my animals. Certain medications require the shots to be sub-q, sub-cutaneous (just under the skin), and some requires IM, or intra-muscular. The places on each animal to give shots is also important to know by species. What works on a llama might not work on a dog for a shot location. Each medication, and situation, is a little different and I’ve relied on my vet’s advice on where to best inject, using that information for future shots.

Before I had my own animals, I wouldn’t have thought that shots were such an important thing to know, but it’s become a regular thing with the animals I have. Llamas require sub-q injections of a dewormer called Ivermectin every 30 days. Goats and llamas both require annual vaccination shots suq-q of CDT (protects against several diseases), and every few years I vaccinate my outdoor cats for distemper sub-q. I’ve even had a dog that needed regular IM shots for arthritis in her hind legs. Knowing how to give injections has saved me money and time in the past instead of having to call the vet and wait on them to do the shots.

Building my animal medicine cabinet hasn’t happened overnight. It’s been many years of finding what works, and learning how to use different things. Learning from vets, breeders, animal rescues, other owners, and reading whatever I can. Many medications can be used “off-label” (not for intended species) if you know how to do it.

Now, twenty years after moving onto our farm and getting the animals I have, I have a much higher comfort level in my own skills in an emergency, or just in regular care of my animals. While sometimes through lessons painfully learned, it has become my most valuable resource.
What do you think is a good item to have on hand?