Gosling imprinting HOW?

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

Ok, I have just raised 2 pilgrim goslings and 3 ducks and they are 9 weeks old. They never seemed to get used to me, I held them a few times but they never seemed to accept me as their leader/mother... in fact as they grew they seemes to become more afraid and pile up in corners when i came to change their feed/water. I didn't know what to do so i moved very slowly, spoke in a soft, low voice and tried to disturb them as little as possible. Now at 9 weeks old they still shy away from me when I go into their yard, they make an ugly racket when I herd them into their coop but otherwise seem ok when I'm on the other side of the fence.

I know i must have done something wrong... Now i have another chance...since the geese were both male and the ducks are so fun to watch, I have gotten 1 female goose and 2 more ducks all day olds today. I have handled the gosling (since she will likely be the leader due to size) a ton and now she is following me around when I put her down and she sleeps in my apron pocket when I sit down... should I do the same with the ducks or will they pick it up from the goose? Is there anything more I can do to keep this process going?

Any pointers from duck and goose mothers would be great!

 

[scratch'n'peck]

I would do the same with the ducks to encourage them to imprint on you. I have also found the fewer waterfowl I brood at one time the easier it is to form a bond. Keep spending a lot of time handling them and find some treats that they like such as lettuce, greens or peas. good luck and have fun

 

[Rosebud 18]

I have a male pilgrim gosling thats 5 weeks old and from day 1 he has been so friendly with me and my husband both. He eats out of our hand and lets us pick him up and pet him. The female died but she was friendly to. I got 8 ducks with them and they follow him around like he is their mother but they are a little skidish of us.

 

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

Quote:
My older ducks do the same withthe two geese, especially the indian runner, she is always wedging herself inbetween them and following them everywhere. So far I have my gosling crying when i'm not around and the ducks still seem approachable, but not imprinted yet. Looks like I'll be holding them a bunch today again. Thanks for the help!

 

[FarmrGirl]

Quote:
OMG! My runners hang out with the geese constantly. When they were all babies the runners would pile up with the goslings like they thought they were one of them!

 

[DuckDuckDuckGoose]

My 11 day old gosling imprinted on me right away then the same day I found him (may 6th)(gosling was aprox 6 days) I went and bought a Khaki Campbell duckling that is 1 day younger and im not sure if the duck imprinted on me or the gosling but they both sit on my lap and follow me all around. It is the cutest thing, I have never had a bird do that to me so imprinting is new to me. I kinda like it right now but not sure about later on.....
t

 

[Sore Thumb Suburbanite]

Quote:
My husband is worried about this behavior when ours grow up... now that I have them following me and trying to get out of their cage when I come by...he thinks when they're older they'll squak and rush to the gate when I come outside. I guess I'll find out in a few more weeks. Whatever happens, it will be better than them running away and squaking.

Congrats on your imprinted babies, I'm sure they'll act fine later on.

 

[DuckDuckDuckGoose]

Hope yer hubby has made friends. They just might be chasing him out the gate! lol
But not all geese are mean.
T.