Rearing Geese
By Jabo
@jaboUK (64361)
United Kingdom
November 28, 2017 1:54pm CST
When I was a young wife with two small children, I chose to stay at home with them, rather than go out to work. Consequently, money was a bit tight, so one year we decided to raise our own geese for the Christmas table.
So, with five friends we bought 6 young goslings. The deal was that my husband and I would look after them, as we were the ones with the land, and our friends would buy the necessary food.
Now let me tell you that geese are evil creatures - they hissed at and frightened the children, they honked at all hours of the day and night, and they even pecked a hole in our conservatory door.
On top of all that, they didn't even get fat. Looking back, we probably should have kept them cooped up instead of giving them loads of space to run around in, but I've always thought that any creature should be as free as possible.
Anyway, they repaid us by remaining relatively scrawny, and after we'd paid someone to do the deed (to kill and pluck them), we found we'd hardly saved any money at all.
They didn't even taste good, though this could have been because while I was eating, I was seeing them alive in my mind's eye.
I've always been like that, as though I eat meat, fish and fowl, I don't want any reminders that they were once living creatures. That's why I never have fish in those restaurants where you can see them swimming around in tanks, and choose which one you want - no thank you.
So our venture into geese-keeping was never repeated. We go the conventional route and settle for shop-bought turkey now.
Have you had any frustrating experiences when trying to save money?
Photo from Pixabay
41 people like this
38 responses
@much2say (53959)
• Los Angeles, California
28 Nov 17
Because it is likely I would think of an animal I'm taking care of as a pet rather than something to eventually eat, I couldn't do it 
.
Growing indoor herbs frustrate me. There are some herbs I would just love to have on hand in the kitchen . . . just to take a snip of when I'm cooking - I only need a little. Most of the store herbs come in too big of a bunch for me . . . so I figured growing them would be cheaper as I wouldn't need too much of it at a time, and it wouldn't be wasteful. Well, I get a couple uses, and then the plants shrivel and die . . . I can't tell you how many little herb plants/pots I've bought that did not survive . . . in fact I've lost 2 thyme plants recently.
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Growing indoor herbs frustrate me. There are some herbs I would just love to have on hand in the kitchen . . . just to take a snip of when I'm cooking - I only need a little. Most of the store herbs come in too big of a bunch for me . . . so I figured growing them would be cheaper as I wouldn't need too much of it at a time, and it wouldn't be wasteful. Well, I get a couple uses, and then the plants shrivel and die . . . I can't tell you how many little herb plants/pots I've bought that did not survive . . . in fact I've lost 2 thyme plants recently.5 people like this
@much2say (53959)
• Los Angeles, California
28 Nov 17
@jaboUK I guess even nasty geese can still be familiar faces - maybe they weren't nice, but you'd definitely get to know and remember them with their strong personalities.
Herbs - I seem to find it easy to not keep them alive 
!
!1 person likes this
@allknowing (130066)
• India
29 Nov 17
Rearing and then eating them could bring out the kind of reaction you had.
The only frustration I can think of is when the shares I bought did not go up.
4 people like this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
29 Nov 17
@allknowing Oh yes, that's annoying about the shares - I always seem to buy them at the wrong time.
4 people like this
@m_audrey6788 (58485)
• Germany
28 Nov 17
I understand the feeling of being frustrated of trying to save but still ended nothing
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
28 Nov 17
@m_audrey6788 Well, we did learn from the experience - don't try anything like that again!
2 people like this
@m_audrey6788 (58485)
• Germany
28 Nov 17
@jaboUK Yes. Thanks for telling me this 
1 person likes this
@DianneN (246720)
• United States
28 Nov 17
My father's words of wisdom, out of many, were to never scrimp when it comes to food. i used to go with my father to buy chickens for dinner way back when you could choose any live one you fancied. I could never look at them. Our new daughter-in-law became a vegan five months ago. She sent me a link regarding how awful the treatment of animals is and how unhealthy. Since I do love my meat, fish, shellfish, and poultry, I didn't open the link.
3 people like this
@shaggin (71664)
• United States
28 Nov 17
I do not eat meat but I can completely understand why you do not want to know what you eat like picking out your own fish to be killed and cooked for you at the restaurant. Did you raise the geese from birth or get them when they were a little older?
2 people like this
@BelleStarr (61047)
• United States
28 Nov 17
I had to laugh because one policy that I always adhere to is that I will not eat any animal that I have seen alive, I don't pick my lobster, no way. lol
3 people like this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
28 Nov 17
@BelleStarr That's something I've always adhered too as well - I don't know what I was thinking of when I agreed to rear the geese.
3 people like this
@LadyDuck (458006)
• Switzerland
29 Nov 17
I agree that geese are evil creatures, they scared me when I was a kid, ducks are small and a lot more friendly. I would have been unable to eat the goose. I cannot eat animals that I have seen alive, my stomach refuses the food and I feel sad and frustrated.
2 people like this
@VivaLaDani13 (60337)
• Perth, Australia
5 Jun 18
@jaboUK I am sorry that wasn't exactly a positive experience. I admire the risk taking and commitment considering all that happened.
I can't say I have been through anything like that but I can tell you straight away what stresses me out when trying to save. Christmas. That holiday almost bleeds me dry.
1 person likes this
@VivaLaDani13 (60337)
• Perth, Australia
6 Jun 18
@jaboUK I still like it. It's just that it drains my money lol
1 person likes this
@responsiveme (22926)
• India
4 Dec 17
Me too
Long long back my father bought two hens and they were put in the court yard tied up with a string , to be eaten the next day.
Within the night they were named Blackie and Brownie by us kids and my parents had to build a henhouse for them were they stayed on for years and laid eggs and had chickens instead of going into the cooking pot.
We cried and cried and the water power saved their lives.
PS...Are you all in Spain now?
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
5 Dec 17
@responsiveme Blackie and Brownie were very lucky chickens.
. Yes we're in Spain, have been here 2 weeks now, with another 2 weeks to go
. Yes we're in Spain, have been here 2 weeks now, with another 2 weeks to go 1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
6 Dec 17
@responsiveme I suppose that people who live near the sea take it for granted.
1 person likes this
@responsiveme (22926)
• India
6 Dec 17
@jaboUK soak in the sand...And the sea...I love the seaside ..Must be because it is so far away from where I live
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (159002)
• Boise, Idaho
29 Nov 17
This reminds me of the movie I was watching again the other night. Friendly Persuasion with Gary Cooper and Dorothy McGuire. Such a good film about a family of Quakers during the time of the Civil War. Some Union soldiers come to their farm and one soldier is going to eat the pet goose. He has it in his arms. Dorothy's character picks up the broom on the porch and beats the soldier with it explaining that this goose is a pet. When Gary Cooper's character learns of this he is appalled since she is the one that is usually spouting the Quaker gospel all the time which includes not harming another person. It's a cute movie.
1 person likes this
@celticeagle (159002)
• Boise, Idaho
29 Nov 17
@jaboUK ......It is a cute movie.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
29 Nov 17
@celticeagle Sounds a fun movie. Dorothy's goose was nicer than mine!
1 person likes this
@JamesHxstatic (29242)
• Eugene, Oregon
29 Nov 17
I never raised geese or chickens, though Anne grew up with chickens and an orange grove. She is far more thrifty than I. I have never saved well.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
30 Nov 17
@JamesHxstatic Chickens and an orange grove sound idyllic.
.1 person likes this
@JamesHxstatic (29242)
• Eugene, Oregon
30 Nov 17
@jaboUK The orange grove was great. Keeping the chicken coop clean was not so much fun, even though there were only six or eight chickens.
1 person likes this
@nanette64 (20364)
• Fairfield, Texas
29 Nov 17
I know what you mean about a critter being in your minds eye when eating @jaboUK . I definitely won't do the Lobster thing if seen swimming. I do have to say though that when me and (you know who) had the Organic Farm, the chickens we had were strictly for egg laying. The eggs sold so fast (as they were Jumbo), that the chickens could hardly keep up. You guys might have made more money by having a veggie garden. Seeds are cheap and the bounty is excellent.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
30 Nov 17
@nanette64 I bet those eggs from your chickens tasted good
1 person likes this
@nanette64 (20364)
• Fairfield, Texas
30 Nov 17
@jaboUK O yeah, they were delish.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66857)
• Philippines
30 Nov 17
i think geese are seldom here in the city. usually, ducks are kept in small pens, but i have not seen a house with geese in their yards.
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
30 Nov 17
@ridingbet We lived in a rural village at the time I'm talking about, so it wasn't unusual fro pepople to keep livestock on their land.
1 person likes this
@ridingbet (66857)
• Philippines
30 Nov 17
@jaboUK i mean here in my place. i haven't seen a house with geese in their backyard.
1 person likes this
@Shiva49 (26200)
• Singapore
30 Nov 17
Being a vegetarian all my life I do not face this issue of thinking that the food I was eating was alive a while ago.
However, one friend told me even plants have life!
I was rather fortunate that I earned more than my needs and so saving was a natural accretion though not much to have a blast - siva
1 person likes this
@YrNemo (20261)
•
28 Nov 17
Only six geese? I remembered seeing someone with a small block of land, perhaps 15 m x 30 m (I was only a little child at the time, everything seemed to look big back then), but she has a flock of about 20 or 30. They were worse than evil, they chased after anyone who dared pass that high and fancy gate/fence (that family was very wealthy I heard). My sister, who was a friend of the owner's daughter, was chased and 'bitten' on the bum once or twice.
Strange, I remembered those awful geese as giant, white and with a very long neck. The ones I saw on youtube were so like white ducks (small). Could my childhood memory distort things that bad? 
1 person likes this
@jaboUK (64361)
• United Kingdom
29 Nov 17
@YrNemo We only wanted six - one each for everyone. I think our memories can get distorted - for instance I remember it being sunny all the time. I don't think so - this was England! But I think you've remembered right about the geese being evil
1 person likes this
