Can You Keep Sebastopol Geese With Chickens?

Temperament is rarely the problem

Sebastopols are among the calmer goose breeds and are not usually the aggressor in a mixed flock. Ganders in breeding season are the exception, as covered in are Sebastopol geese friendly or aggressive. Through spring a gander may push chickens away from his goose, which is worth watching but rarely serious given room.

Space is the variable that decides it. In a large run, mixed flocks settle. In a cramped one, everything gets worse for every species involved.

Feed is the real issue

Chickens and waterfowl want different rations. Layer feed is not appropriate for geese, and medicated chick starter is actively a problem for them. Geese also need more niacin than chickens do. In a mixed flock you either feed an all-flock ration to everyone and supplement layers with oyster shell separately, or you feed separately.

Full detail in the diet post. Getting this wrong is behind a lot of the leg problems people report in goslings raised alongside chicks.

Water and mess

Geese need water deep enough to submerge their heads, they splash it everywhere, and they will turn a dry chicken run into mud faster than you expect. Chickens do badly in permanent damp, so site the water where the mess does not sit under the coop.

Housing them together at night is usually more trouble than it is worth. Geese do not need a coop, and they will foul one thoroughly. Separate night housing solves most of the friction. The care guide covers what geese actually need.

Common Questions

Can Sebastopol geese live with chickens?

Usually yes, given enough space. Sebastopols are calm and rarely the aggressor. The practical problems are different feed requirements, the amount of water geese need, and the mess that creates.

Can geese and chickens eat the same feed?

Not ideally. Layer feed is not appropriate for geese, and geese need more niacin than chickens. Either feed an all-flock ration with oyster shell offered separately, or feed the species separately.