Someone gave me six toulouse geese last night, and I'm wondering if there is any easy way to figure out which are hens and which are drakes. Some of them have round knobs on their noses, but looking on Murray McMurray hatcheries' site makes me wonder if those aren't Africans. Any suggestions?

-- Chuck (woah@mission4me.com), April 04, 2002

Answers

Chuck, The female is called a goose and the male is a gander. If they have knobs on their head they are not Toulouse but could be a cross. I can only tell them apart when the goose starts to lay but have noticed the goose tends to sag closer to the ground in the middle area between the legs, while the ganders are more compact in that area or hold themselves higher. They are very smart and fun to have around.

-- Karen in Kansas (kansashobbit@yahoo.com), April 04, 2002.

Might look at this link for vent sexing information: Michigan State Univ., http://www.msue.msu.edu/msue/imp/modpo/e1050005.html

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), April 04, 2002.

again responding to a subject I know next to nothing about...

I took on 3 "African Grays" with assurances that two were girls and one a boy. flying on faith. all have knobs. the "male" is slightly larger in body and the knob is a bit more pronounced. otherwise they all look and sound the same. my guys do not have the black knob that Africans are shown with usually so I imagine mine are a x of some kind. whatever else is in the mix, the noisy part of the African sure came through.

BC - you must have an incredible edu database at your fingertips.

-- B. Lackie - Zone3 (cwrench@hotmail.com), April 04, 2002.

B. Lackie,

I just use google and it gives excellent results. I have been trying to see how my research experience works in areas that I have little personal knowledge and with using google, it seems to of allowed me to help people find information. If there is an interest, I'd be glad to share my internet searching techniques.

-- BC (desertdweller44@yahoo.com), April 04, 2002.

The one sitting in a corner hissing is the female and the one trying to rip your lips off is the male! hehehe

-- Novina in ND (homespun@stellarnet.com), April 04, 2002.

Chuck, you might go to a Waterfowl Forum with this question. www.poultryconnection.com., Click on General Waterfowl Forum. Lots of people there raise and discuss geese. They are fascinating aren't they? They always remind me of Llamas, slighly superior and a bit stuck up. LOL Have fun, LQ

-- Little Quacker (carouselxing@juno.com), April 04, 2002.

I can only tell when they pair up. Anyway. When/If you catch them they aren't very happy. (Boy likes to catch them and pet them). I really like them and they will protect your place! Watch for those wings. They will take out an eye and/or bruise you! If and when you butcher them I found that putting their body in a T shirt and pulling their heads out an arm works to restrict those killer wings - I used this method on a 25+ lb. turkey with great success. Hung it upside down on the cross section from my clothesline pole in a Tshirt. Enjoy your birds! They can live 40+ years!!

-- Gailann Schrader (gtschrader@aol.com), April 04, 2002.

The gander underside will be slick and the goose underside will look like she has rolls of fat hanging down. This has been the case of all the geese I have ever had, and I have never had a pure breed.

-- Robin Downing (Southpawrobin1@aol.com), April 04, 2002.

BC - thanks. I am interested in your search techniques. email me privately if you like but it seems like a subject that might deserve its own thread so that others may share.

-- B. Lackie - Zone3 (cwrench@hotmail.com), April 04, 2002.

may i sugest you keep them in a pen or coup up for about 2 weeks so they do not wander off after that they can be let loose and should not wander off

-- nick (ray-@sympatico.ca), April 04, 2002.

keep them penned for at least a month so they dont go "looking for home", we were given 14 geese , and they all wandered off to various places. never did get any but too of them (mighty tasty) and this was on 160 acres!

vent sexing is rather easy, its just gross in thought, with a friend , roll the bird over, insert a finger into thier vent .,or anus , and gently push outward, a "sproingy" type fingerlike progection means congratualtions its a boy!!!, other wise, is female :)

i had read of this and never tried it till we got them geese, and it was rather wierd, being not sure what to look for, logic figured out the rest :)

-- Beth Van Stiphout (willosnake@hotmail.com), April 04, 2002.

Toulouse/Embden can be pretty hard to tell but here are a few pointers that have worked for us.

Ganders will move to the front of the group with their necks outstretched and heads low to the ground. They also may assume a very upright position with their head pointed straight up. They may stretch their wings out and flap them at you. They are a bit more likely to attack (but ours never have.

Geese will move to the back of the group, sometimes grouping together and hissing. They may move back and forth the enclosure together behind the males. They are also usually smaller.

Knobs sound like African or Chinese crosses. The males have a larger knob than the females.

-- Trisha-MN (coldguinea@netscape.net), April 04, 2002.

um, well, gee...I might try the "Beth finger test" but I doubt that I'd admit it in public. but I'm glad Beth did. note to self: file away for future reference.

-- B. Lackie - Zone3 (cwrench@hotmail.com), April 04, 2002.

Fellas: All the folderol about dewlaps, bigger head, aggressiveness etc is just window dressing. If you want to be sure of the sex of waterfowl without waiting until they pair up you will have to learn to vent sex. This is not as hard as you think; the "sproingy type finger" mentioned above is the male's penis. Yes, geese have them, looks like a corkscrew. Look up "sexing geese" on google and you'll find several sites that tell exactly how it is done. Mac

-- Jimmy S (Macrocarpus@gbronline.com), April 04, 2002.

LOL - well yes, the only sure way to tell is to vent sex. That is what we usually do, but not that many people want to flip an angry goose/gander on their back and take a look-see . I have a diagram, info on it if anyone is interested. The easiest way is to get Pilgrim Geese .

-- Trisha-MN (coldguinea@netscape.net), April 04, 2002.

Have five Embden goslings that were received March 14th. After listening to the 'vent sexing' explanation, I realized that I really don't care that much what sex they are. But, if they look the same, what turns on the goose, and what turns on the gander?

-- paul (primrose@centex.net), April 05, 2002.

HORMONES my dear!

-- Novina in ND (homespun@stellarnet.com), April 05, 2002.

Still don't understand. Don't the senses trigger the mind which triggers the hormones?

-- paul (primrose@centex.net), April 05, 2002.