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WANTED: homes for 1,500 retired birds

Last updated: 22/07/2010 15:00:00

With eggs just as tasty and three times as big as the average chicken, these birds could help create gallons of pancake mixture and thousands of omelettes.

Now more than a thousand Norfolk-bred white geese are seeking new homes after being deemed to be over the hill when it comes to commercial egg production.

At just five years old, this gaggle of birds at a Norfolk poultry farm could live for another 10 years and continue to provide food for the breakfast, lunch and dinner table.

Officials from the country's largest geese breeder are now calling on local residents to help them rehome 1,500 free range birds that face an uncertain future.

Any of the Gulliver Geese-owned creatures that cannot find a new garden over the next few weeks face a trip to the slaughterhouse.

And despite having a reputation for being fiercely territorial, officials from the Stow Bedon based company, near Watton, said the commercial birds would make perfect pets and have another five years of egg laying potential behind them.

It is the first year that the specialist goose breeder, which has been operating for 20 years and owns about 7,000 birds, has decided to sell its retiring gaggle of egg producers.

Martin Gulliver, managing director of Gulliver Geese, said the geese had already received interest from home cooks, families looking for a low-maintenance pet, and homeowners who want to keep their lawn under control.

“They are five years old and they have got several years life left in them. There is no difference in taste between a goose and chicken egg and they are very popular in making cakes.”

“Realistically there is a limited number of people that would go around the garden and if we got rid of 200 to 300 that would be great. It is a case of finding them a good home or we will have to kill them,” he said.

The ex-breeding geese, which are being sold at £5 a bird, will lay about 40 eggs a season between February and the end of May.

Mr Gulliver added that the perfect combination for people's back gardens would be a male and a couple of females, which only require water, grain and shelter at night.

“Geese are known for being territorial, but these are different and are used to being in a big flock and people have reported that they are very docile and do not attack. You cannot expect to eat them because they would be too tough, but they make good eggs and keep the grass down,” he added.

A goose egg is equivalent to three chicken eggs, and makes great scrambled eggs, cake mixture and quiches, said Mr Gulliver. The white Embden goose variety, which can weigh up to 30lb, is believed to have originated in north Germany and Holland 200 years ago.

For more information, call 01953 483306 or visit www.gulliver-poultry.co.uk.

We've got ex-bats hens which produce more eggs than I could ever use, we give them away to friends and neighbours. We also have a couple of goosey girls and they are not only super as guard dogs, they're absolutely brilliant for keeping cats out of the garden. Since we've had the girls there has not been any cat s**t in my veggie patch.

Wish I had room for chooks and geese, would have the ex battery ones straight off. Our local gumtree had an ad for some ex battery ones who apparently just aren't being accepted by his older hens, he doesn't want to see them continually harrassed so is trying to pass them on to someone else where they can settle and live happily.

Geese make great security guards don't they?

Lizx

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Anyone want any geese?

Get lost Liz... this bird does not want a home.
I has one. ;-P
Deanna X