7 Reasons Why Geese Abandon Their Eggs

Rearing geese for meat, eggs, or beautiful feathers is much easier than keeping chicken or other poultry birds.

Geese are self-sufficient, meaning you won’t have to spend much time caring for them.

But like chickens or ducks, raising them also has some challenges you will have to deal with.

Some of those challenges include the geese abandoning their eggs.

However, this is very rare as most geese make better mothers than even hens.

But why do geese abandon their eggs?

Continue reading to find out why.

1. Geese Abandon Their Eggs In Search Of Food And Water

Like hens and other brooders, a goose can abandon its eggs when hungry or needs something to eat or drink.

The goose may suffocate and become weak if they don’t satiate their hunger.

However, some geese are stubborn and won’t leave their nest unless you force them.

Food and water are vital for the goose to replenish its body condition.

To prevent the goose from staying out for a long time, you should ensure that it has food and water close to it.

2. Geese Mothering Instinct

One of the main reasons why goose abandons their eggs is that they know every leg they lay has to start developing on the same day.

As a result, they leave the eggs they lay to be exposed to the environment’s temperature.

But once the goose has laid a sizeable clutch of eggs, it will start to sit on them.

Geese usually sit on 7 to 10 eggs. Typically, geese lay between 12 and 15 eggs before going broody. So, if your goose has just started laying eggs and it’s abandoning them, there’s no need to panic.

It’s also important to note that geese lay an egg after one and a half to two days.

Additionally, they love laying eggs in the morning.

When the goose feels the eggs are enough, it will start hatching them so that the goslings will hatch almost simultaneously.

3. Geese Abandon Their Eggs Because They Are Spoilt Eggs

A goose may also abandon its eggs because most eggs have gone bad, typical for most poultry, with hens and ducks included.

If the broody goose realizes that most of its eggs are bad, it will leave its nest.

The best thing to do if the geese abandon their eggs because they are bad is to inspect all of the eggs.

This will help you to save some good eggs and even transfer the eggs that are about to hatch to the incubator.

Geese can also lay unfertilized eggs, which they will abandon after hatching the good eggs.

An unfertilized egg only contains the goose’s genetic material; thus, a gosling can never hatch from it.

4. Geese Abandon Their Eggs Because They Were Trained And Conditioned To Do So

Some geese have been trained to leave their eggs after laying them.

This is very common with geese being kept for their eggs and not for hatching.

As a result, some geese have become conditioned.

Therefore, they abandon their eggs after laying them.

So, if you have just bought a goose and want it to hatch eggs, it’s essential to follow up with the previous owner.

If the goose was trained to lay eggs and leave, it would be hard for that goose to hatch them.

5. Geese Abandon Their Eggs Due To Humans Or Predators

Another reason that may cause the geese to abandon their eggs is disturbance from humans and predators.

A broody goose usually prefers a safe, peaceful, and quiet nesting area.

If the geese feel disturbed or unsafe, they may abandon their eggs.

So, if you have a cat or rat that disturbs the goose, get rid of it quickly.

Alternatively, you can create a safe and secure nesting area for your goose.

Besides, you should also avoid touching and moving the goose eggs because, after some time, it can sense that you do.

So please don’t remove the goose eggs unless you’re rearing the goose for its eggs and not for its goslings.

Apart from humans and predators disturbing the goose, its fellow goose can also be a source of the disturbance.

If you have another goose that has also gone broody, you should separate them as one of the geese may decide to abandon its eggs.

When two geese go broody and are in the same area, they may swap nests, steal each other’s eggs, and even sit on the same nest at the same time.

This is a recipe for disaster because they may destroy the other’s clutch of eggs.

Moreover, one broody goose may abandon its eggs to find peace.

6. Geese Abandon Their Eggs Due To Hormonal Changes

A broody goose can also have hormonal changes like a pregnant woman.

When this happens, it throws them off their broody nature.

Because of the changes, the broody goose abandons its eggs as it no longer feels like being a mother.

Even though this is rare, it still happens.

So, if you have a goose that abandoned its eggs, you should watch it closely and see if it has some behavioral change.

The good thing is that hormonal changes don’t last long.

But if the issue prolongs, you should incubate the eggs so they can hatch.

Leaving the eggs exposed to the outside environment for some time may cause them to spoil.

7. Geese Abandon Their Eggs After Hatching Their First Goslings

It’s also common for geese to abandon their eggs after the first goslings become active and start wandering around.

It does this to begin teaching the new hungry goslings how to feed.

However, it ends up abandoning unhatched eggs, so you should inspect them and take the good eggs into an incubator.

Summary

Now that you know why your geese are abandoning their eggs, you should try your best to create a conducive environment for these poultry birds.

Make sure their nest is safe and away from predators.

Additionally, you should not move around its eggs often as it may distract the goose.

Finally, ensure that the goose has enough water and food so that it does not have to go far away from its nesting area.

With these practices, your goose will not quickly abandon its nest until it has hatched most of its eggs.

We hope that you have found this post helpful!

All the best on your journey to rear geese in your farm.

Amanda

Purrfect n’ Pawesome is the brainchild of Amanda, who has been into researching and writing about pets to help other pet parents in nurturing their adorable pets. Currently, she runs Purrfect n’ Pawesome along with her team of experienced and dedicated pet experts. Along with being an awesome writer and entrepreneur, Amanda is a cat mom to two innocently spoiled cats, Balanca and Scruffy.
She has been writing about pet care and nurturing and wants to share her readers’ experiences, learnings, and knowledge.
Over the years, she had the opportunity to work with various pet owners having multiple breeds, and that exposure gave her experience and the lessons of a lifetime.
Her family, her entire universe revolves around her two cats, who give her endless support and inspiration to move ahead with her objectives in life. Amanda is a live example of a balanced approach to all parenthood questions we all face in life.