Keeping Urban Geese Happy

By Kirsten Lie-Nielsen
Published on January 17, 2018
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Geese seem to love open roads.
Geese seem to love open roads.
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Geese love to wander if they are not kept in a pasture space.
Geese love to wander if they are not kept in a pasture space.
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Geese need room to spread their wings.
Geese need room to spread their wings.
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A flock of healthy geese have bright eyes and active characters.
A flock of healthy geese have bright eyes and active characters.
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“The Modern Homesteader’s Guide to Keeping Geese,” by Kirsten Lie-Nielsen gives extensive details and tips for raising and caring for geese.
“The Modern Homesteader’s Guide to Keeping Geese,” by Kirsten Lie-Nielsen gives extensive details and tips for raising and caring for geese.

The Modern Homesteader’s Guide to Keeping Geese (New Society Publishers, 2017), by Kirsten Lie-Nielsen expert geese wrangler, tells everything there is to know about raising geese on a farm. From the history of guardian geese to their health and dietary needs, anyone looking to add some farm heroes to their lives will learn everything necessary to raise and care for their own flock. The following excerpt is from chapter 6, “Keeping the Neighbors Happy”, which exposes the secret on how to live with happy geese and happy neighbors.

Keeping geese in an urban environment can be a challenge. They are large birds, with wingspans that measure five feet or more, and as such they need space to stretch those wings. The proper pasture with plenty of room, amusements, and food will help to keep your geese happy even when your neighbors are close by.

Fortunately most breeds of geese are incapable of flying to the neighbor’s or further afield. The majority of domestic geese have bodies heavy enough that even their vast wingspans cannot get them more than one or two feet off the ground. Even totally flightless birds do like to make a show of running, wings outspread, when they find a wide open space. If you keep your geese in a run, the most you should see of this behavior is a daily display of wingspan by beating them and, frequently, calling a celebration of his or her beauty.

Space Requirements

Whether you’re in town or the countryside, outdoor space requirements for geese is an important consideration. Adult geese require pasture that allows about 10 square feet per bird. In a backyard urban area, you might be tempted to scrimp on giving up so much real estate to your birds, and while 10 feet per goose might seem to overreach what you have to offer, keep in mind that providing adequate space means that your geese will not only be more content, but they will stand a better chance of maintaining good health. Crowded animals are more prone to being aggressive to the other animals they find themselves confined with. The tighter their space, the higher the possibility of injury inflicted on one of the birds, especially one at the bottom of the pecking order. Birds injured in such situations suffer from wounds that might easily become life-threatening.

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