An abandoned baby goose?

[ann]

hi guys! Long story short, my school is like a zoo, we have dogs, parrots, doves, peacocks, ferrets, a tortoise, rabbits, koi fish and more. There is a large enclosed courtyard with a pond and LOTS of plants. there are ducks that come and go, and many raise ducklings in the courtyard. Today my friends and i saw a baby Canadian goose. It was about the size of a chicken, but had no feathers, only fluffy grey down. There were no other geese to be found and it was peeping and crying all day. Throughout my entire last period of the day i heard it calling (2 1/2 hours after seeing it). My friend said she saw it yesterday too. Neither of us have seen a parent. I know that geese and ducks are born able to walk and feed themselves, and there are usually bowls of duck food in the courtyard, but can it still be alone like this? I was going to tell someone tomorrow. I guess I'm asking what you guys think i should do, if anything should even be done. Thanks!

 

[U2gal]

Enclosed?

Maybe the parents flew off. Wild geese shouldn't be enclosed into a fense area. Food runs out.

Or perhaps the parents were killed

 

[Molcan2]

If its enclosed, maybe a student found it and put it in the courtyard Poor little baby, I hope it can find its parents. Is there a park nearby that has adult geese with chicks? Maybe its family is close by? I would at least make sure that it has acess to the food and is able to eat it. They really dont like being by themselves

 

[Kalidasa]

It might have been abandoned by the parents if it can't walk or defective in some way. The parents aren't going to risk their whole brood for one chick who can't keep up.

 

[chippy]

I would contact the local wildlife shelter/ rescue... don't deal with it yourself, they will know what to do.

 

[ann]

I agree that geese shouldn't be fenced in, but don't worry, its not a fenced in enclosure. The school building is like a big square, inside the square is the courtyard. The courtyard is outside and open to the sky . I think I'll talk to a wildlife center and if nothing is done, I'll talk to a teacher. Poor baby, it has been raining all day

 

[Molcan2]

Is the yard completely enclosed? If so unless it hatched there, it wouldnt have been able to get in on its own I like the wildlife recsue idea, they probably other babies that can keep it company.

 

[ann]

Me too, it could be raised with other geese and live a normal life . But that's what I can't figure out....other than the sky, it is completely in closed by the building. There is no way it could have gotten there on its own. I have never seen geese in the courtyard, and its old enough that if it hatched there, the parents would have been there for a while and been seen. it's possible a student brought it, but it seems strange. Maybe a bird of prey dropped it, but it isn't injured...and the largest bird of prey we get here is a red tailed hawk. But like I said before, just not injured, and I don't think a hawk would give up that easily...geez this has me stumped...

 

[Molcan2]

It sounds like someone let it go there Keep us updated on how it goes.

 

[ann]

ok, so today i found out it's been here for about a week . I didn't have time to talk to a teacher today, we just started finals so i cant miss my buss (i have to get home to study). During today's test, which was 3 hours long, i heard the gosling crying..the whole time! At one point i heard weird honking sounds, but i still think its alone, maybe it was just trying to get the hang of honking. I'm going to call a wildlife rehabilitation center now. I'll keep you posted.
edit
i just called and emailed the center and am awaiting a response

 

[ann]

OK so the center said i would have to bring the gosling to them. I have no problem with the idea of catching a goose, I think it would be a good learning experience, but I'm a student. I don't think i can walk around the halls with a goose in my arm like it was no big deal. If a teacher saw me just casually walking around with a baby goose, it would rain detention slips. Tomorrow I'm going to talk to the principal and give him the centers number. I could tell him about the goose and its situation and ask him if he would like help. wish me luck!
~Update 6/23/13~
the goose is still at my school, but is doing fine, his feathers are coming in and he is swimming. I still plan to talk to the principal and see what i can do, but for now, he seems to be comming along fine. i just want him to be able to find a flock to migrate with in the fall.