Annies Goat Hill Handcrafted Soaps

Yesterday I talked about being soft-hearted for animals.  Today I’ll tell you another animal family I watch each year.  When the Canadian goose pair show up each spring I cannot help but pay attention, in anticipation of the nesting and forthcoming goeslings.

Canada geese (or Canadian) are wild, and migratory.  They mate during their 2nd year, and pair of up for life.  They lay between 3-8 eggs.  Both parents guard the nest during the incubatory stage, between 25-28 days.

Mr. Goose has nose-dived at me twice during incubation (hence the long-distance blurry photo).  When he came after me I was not near the nest.  In fact, one time I was taking clothes off of the line near my house, minding my own business.  I thought I was going to be struck by him.  I grabbed a blanket off of the line and was ready to take cover! He normally doesn’t get that protective.  He had been fighting intruding geese off of the pond all week. 

I have a murky pond in the summer months, despite it being spring fed.  It is a rather large.  And, honestly, I do not want to put any money into it.  I let nature take most of the course.  The only problem we have is with the large turtles that occasionally seize a young goesling.  It isn’t a fun site to see, as the parent geese are somewhat defenseless against the large turtles.

This pair raise 6-7 goeslings each year. They are trouble free, claiming their own pond, except for the occaisonal threat from the turtles and cranes.  So, what do I end up doing? I watch, I look, and I count, at least once a day.  I know, it isn’t going to help.  But, I still have concern and cannot help but notice. 

Nature is a tough thing.  Beautiful, yet difficult.

I enjoy seeing the parents train their young each spring.  They do have an amazing method.  I love seeing the fluffy goeslings, almost ugly at that early stage, change into beautiful geese that eventually become independent. 

Each fall numbers of geese show up.  Seemingly on one particular day.  It is a very loud reunion, of sorts.  When it happens I know the nearly full-grown goeslings will depart with the other youngsters, leaving the pond they were raised on.  And it happens, just like that. 

A new season for all.