The desire to pinch something is a natural goose need. However, bird breeders are concerned with the question of why geese hiss, pinch each other and eat feathers. Various factors cause such problems: improperly selected diet, vitamin deficiency or overcrowding of poultry. It is recommended to observe your pets to determine the cause of their irritability and identify ways to eliminate it.
Reasons for this behavior and methods of correction
Breeders identify four main reasons why birds pinch each other.To correct the situation, different methods are used.
Instinct of goslings
A young bird constantly feels the need to pinch something. Moreover, goslings do not always nibble grass - they can grab a person’s hand or eat each other’s fluff. To prevent the possibility of injury, it is recommended that birds be constantly released for grazing. The goslings will nibble on plenty of green grass and satisfy not only their hunger, but also their “pinching” instinct.
Although there are certain individuals or breeds of birds that show aggression towards humans and each other. A radical method to suppress the warlike mood of goslings is to insert a feather into the nose. Moreover, the feathers are passed through both nostrils. If goslings peck at each other's back feathers for no good reason, breeders suggest smearing the bird's back area with birch tar. The peculiar smell and bitter taste will discourage the desire to pinch.
Vitamin deficiency and calcium deficiency in goslings
Aggressive behavior of goslings and the desire to peck a neighbor can be provoked by vitamin deficiency or a lack of calcium in the bird’s body. It is during the period of formation and development that the gosling’s body needs calcium, vitamins and protein.
Therefore, when there is a deficiency of microelements, goslings nibble each other.
By revising the diet and regularly adding vitamin supplements to the food, the problem can be eliminated. The daily diet is supplemented with vitamin and mineral complexes. The food is mixed with cottage cheese and boiled eggs. An excellent solution to the problem in summer is grazing birds. By pecking on greens, goslings naturally compensate for the lack of microelements and vitamins. Bone meal and fish oil are also sources of protein.
Small containment area
Often, crowding and lack of space provoke outbreaks of aggression.In this state, the bird begins to hiss and can peck not only a person, but also a neighbor. When arranging a poultry house, you need to follow the recommendations.
Area norm based on the number of heads - no more than 10 month-old goslings can be kept on a plot of one square meter. As soon as the individuals grow up to 2 months, they are transferred to a larger room (the norm is 4 individuals per square meter).
If the reason is not established
Sometimes it happens that birds pinch each other without good reason. As a rule, responsible poultry houses carefully prepare the diet and arrange spacious premises for keeping geese. But even creating ideal conditions for raising poultry does not eliminate the possibility of a problem. Veterinarians advise hanging cabbage leaves, armfuls of greens, or even just brightly colored rags in the poultry house to distract the attention of the goslings.
It is also impossible to exclude the genetic characteristics of individual breeds of geese. It is believed that individuals of the Legard breed rarely hiss and nip and are most adapted for living next to humans.
Sometimes the bird hisses due to untimely feeding and the manifestation of an increased feeling of hunger. Therefore, it is recommended to feed geese at certain times. Sometimes aggression is provoked by the appearance of extraneous small birds or dogs on the territory. Geese are strong birds that actively defend their territory.
Do geese pluck painfully?
The bird's beak is not sharp, so it may seem harmless. However, this is a misleading impression. Of course, a goose cannot pierce a person’s skin with its beak, but it can pinch strongly.
If a person is attacked by strong and large individuals, then painful sensations are guaranteed, and bruises and bruises may remain on the body.
Sometimes in a flock of birds one or more individuals exhibit aggressive behavior. In this case, it is recommended to isolate them in a separate enclosure. A goose hatching eggs can also react violently to the appearance of strangers.
Prevention of the problem
It is not always possible to allocate a spacious meadow or area for grazing birds. In this case, in order to avoid attacks by geese, it is advisable to adhere to certain rules of conduct:
- You can't tease birds. It is necessary to ensure that the children do not irritate the geese and do not provoke outbreaks of aggressive avian behavior;
- It is not recommended to climb into goose nests unnecessarily;
- To fend off impudent individuals, poultry houses often use twigs or wicker rods. And after a while, even the sight of the willow will pacify the warlike geese;
- To prevent strong chicks from offending weak ones, it is recommended to separate the goslings and keep them in separate enclosures;
- sometimes aggressive behavior is provoked by illness. When infected with viral enteritis, individual individuals begin to pluck fluff from themselves or their relatives. To prevent the disease, goslings are given special vaccinations. You need to seek help from a veterinarian who will select the drug.
If there are small children in the family, an excellent way to prevent geese attacks would be to install aviaries or high fencing around the bird's grazing area.
Don't underestimate aggressive geese. Because birds plucking is quite painful. The sight of a goose running around with its wings outstretched can be quite frightening to small children.Therefore, the choice of the breed of geese and the arrangement of places for keeping them must be taken responsibly.
