So, every day I drive to work past a horse farm. There are a bunch of Canadian geese that are always there. The past three years I have noticed that in the Spring, there are two geese who always hang out near the side of the road and I'm guessing the female is sitting on eggs because she will be there for days and days, always in the same spot, just sitting, and then there are always little goslings running around. And I also am guessing that the second goose is perhaps a male (daddy). I don't know anything about the mating of geese, it's just what it looks like since it seems to happen every Spring. So, three days ago I'm driving by and I see a dead goose :( Now there's the other goose in that same spot, right near the dead goose, and I think she's sitting on her eggs! It seems so very sad to me! She hasn't moved in three-four days so that why I'm thinking it's the egg thing again. It really makes me want to cry when I drive by, so someone please tell me that even if it is a female goose sitting on a nest, that she probably doesn't care about the dead goose. All I can think of is that they were a couple, and now one of them is gone. :(

Oh that's so sad. I can understand how upsetting you find it.

I would love to tell you she wont care, but I can't...I am not sure if geese morn the death of relatives the way alot of animals do. I am so sorry, and I know this would upset me, too.

Geese do mourn in a way very similar to humans. A few years ago some teens broke into a petting zoo and killed some animals, one of them was a goose. The mate of the dead goose wouldn't eat or drink and just walked back and forth over the body of her dead mate. It was so sad and touching. A lot of people were outraged so I wrote a letter to the editor asking why people were sad about this goose but they aren't sad about the thousands of geese that die each week to become sunday dinner. There was no response to my letter of course.

*Sigh* I was afraid of that. :(

Oh that is so sad and would upset me too.
Did anyone see March of the Penguins? not to hijack the thread , but the way the penguins mourned the death of their babies? OMG how heart wrenching to watch, and i wish everyone who says they are "just animals" with no feelings would see that.

you may want to stop and ask the people who own the property. if a dead goose is just sitting there for some time the people may not be taking proper care of them and maybe you can help. geese are very sensitive animals and i think they mate for life so of course she cares. that's a sad thing to see....

:( :( Geese mate for life... so I am sorry to say the remaining goose is surely sad- It may not be the dad that has passed. I have read that if something happens to the momma bird that the dad will pick up the "nesting" habits....

How sad! Many species of bird mate for life, too. DOves are one of those-- we've had many the "lone dove" hanging out in our yard after its mate was intercepted by one of our cats or another hunter creature. They'd sit alone in the tree and coo... the only thing we could do is offer lots of yummy birdseed... poor dears. I can't imagine being in their place. Even amongst humans, there is an abnormally-high rate of divorce and multiple marriages in a single lifetime. If I lost my ficance', I would be just as sad and lonely as those poor mateless doves :(

Thanks for the responses. I think I knew it, I was just hoping against hope. Very interesting about the possibility that the male could be the one sitting ont he nest. I wonder why they chose that particular site instead of a place more private? This is at least the third year I'm seeing them there. As far as the owner of the property, it belongs to the 'County'. Since I work for the County, I will make some phone calls tomorrow to see about the dead one. Maybe I can get them to at least remove it. On the other hand, now that I'm thinking about it, maybe I shouldn't draw attention to it because then they might disturb the nest and think it would be a good idea to get rid of the eggs before they hatch? (I'm a catastrophic thinker). There are way too many people who can't stand the geese around as it is.

If you take the mates body and the eggs, just kill the goose and put it out of it's misery. That would be too much. Those eggs may be the only purpose that goose has for eating and trying to live right now.

I'm not sure if I made myself clear, but just in case, I was reconsidering calling anyone because I was afraid they would disturb the living goose and the eggs and I didn't want to see that happen. I didn't mean to suggest that they should get rid of the eggs! Anyway, I didn't call anyone and the goose is still there on the nest. I didn't see the dead goose today, however, so someone might have taken it away.

You're being stupid and the goose doesn't care.

Thanks! I was wondering when someone was going to jump on that! :)

Oh, sorry.

I saw the goslings (?) !!!!!! Oh Happy Day!!!! :)

awww! That makes me happy. I seriously felt sick to my stomach when I first read this thread, I felt such empathy for that poor goose.

That's how I felt every day having to drive by it! The babies are so cute! I'm glad it turned out ok. :)

You're being stupid and the goose doesn't care.

Wow real sensitive dickwad

Suddenly your an avian expert?

Wow real sensitive dickwad

Suddenly your an avian expert?


He was making a joke based on the title of the thread: Someone tell me I'm being stupid and the goose doesn't care....

:)

Karen knew that, based on her response.