Geese: how do I trap, kill, and prepare them?

[JVS]

At the store recently, I noticed that prices are on the rise. Yet on the way back, I notice large numbers of geese around town. I even had to sit in stopped trafic waiting for several to cross the road. I doubt it would be legal for me to go around shooting them, but is trapping legal. Also, one friend has suggested that these geese are somehow polluted (rats of the air perhaps?) when compared to the kind one buys at the store. What say you Lounge?

[BrotherBuzz]

1. They be tought old birds to eat. Perhaps to could trap a mated pair...

and raise a bunch of goslings. Just an idea. :shrug:

[JVS]

2. I could have trapped the goslings even. They walk so slowly across the street

[AllegroRondo]

3. Id check with local laws first

you may need a license to do that, and only in certain seasons.

[JVS]

4. The law, (snorts) always coming down on the poor who try to keep from paying the corporate overlords

[Deep13]

19. Christ, no shit!

:( Really, why can't we eat pigeons? They're everywhere in the city.

[hedgehog]

34. I knew of a guy who used to keep an eye on pigeon nests and snatch

the squabs for dinner when they got to the proper size.


Of course, the nests were in the middle of an oil refinery......


He considered it appropiate revenge for all the bird droppings. We always wondered about his liver and kidneys.

[skygazer]

5. Domestic or wild?

Maybe snares, dunno. If you've got a good throwing arm, you can knock 'em on the head with a rock or something and stun them long enough to wring their necks. They're a bitch to pluck, though. You're better off skinning them. Meat's a little greasy, I've always found. I prefer 'em spitted and roasted.

[JVS]

8. They hang out near all the drainage ditches in town, like by the mall

[skygazer]

9. You sure they aren't teenagers?

Some of those kids wear wierd outfits....

[JVS]

10. Friend or foe?

[idgiehkt]

37. Ick.

you want to eat something that lives near drainage ditches...

:puke:

[JVS]

39. I live in the plains where by drainage ditch I mean these big pools that are dug so that...

when it rains, we don't have a flood. They are not sewers so much as catch basins

[pitohui]

6. it is legal, get a hunting license for your area, contact fish and wildlife for info

you need to contact your state fish and wildlife to learn where to go, in many areas, the hunting of geese is on the agenda to be encouraged because they are an overpopulation that is destroying their northern breeding grounds which impacts many, many, many other species of birds that are being lost as a result

trapping is a fraught issue in many areas, it is or can be considered cruel as opposed to hunting, also the hunter has a brain and can take aim only at the proper species, the trap is not necessarily selective, but in some areas you cannot shoot off a weapon legally and trapping may be available as an alternative


best to do is speak with your local game authorities and follow the advice they give you

most places, they will be DELIGHTED to recruit a new goose hunter but hunting/trapping need to be properly licensed and regulated for the management of ALL waterfowl and the safety of the public

they will also provide you with tags, recipes, contacts who will clean the geese if you don't want to do it yourself, really, all the information you need to take the goose to the table

good luck, goose is not cheap in the supermarket, your investment in your hunting or trapping license should pay dividends

[RebelOne]

7. You can't just go shooting geese anytime of the year.

There are hunting seasons for them.

[pitohui]

22. true but fish and wildlife will tell him the seasons for his area EOM

depending on the area, there may be trapping seasons or trapping may not be allowed at all

really no substitute for talking to the guys and gals in charge of managing geese in one's own local area

[zanne]

11. And don't you worry about going to hell...

Never mind what those nay sayers will tell you; that you're being evil and inhumane and that you place your own life on a higher plane that the rest of God's creatures. Don't listen to them. Go on--take your chances!:evilgrin:

[JVS]

12. No problem there.

[zanne]

15. I usually don't preach at people for hunting....

But chicken is pretty cheap, y'know? You don't really need to eat duck.

[Squatch]

28. Read the OP. He's asking about GEESE, not ducks.

[zanne]

31. So what? nt

[Squatch]

44. Ducks aren't geese.

[pitohui]

47. plus geese are an overpopulation, ducks are declining

by killing, cooking, and eating the geese, he may actually be helping some species of ducks or other waterfowl

[Deep13]

20. "...that you place your own life on a higher plane ..."

For the record, I place my own life on a higher plane than the rest of evolution's creatures. (The only exception is my Sweetie.)

[zanne]

23. Why?

[Deep13]

24. Self preservation.

Something about Darwinsim. I seem to have been programmed with a desire to preserve myself and my family (basically my Sweetie). Like most animals, I have no problem using other life forms to further that purpose.

If you have a chance, watch the Penn and Teller's Bullshit episode about PETA. I would adopt their closing remark with one qualification. I would not kill every chimp in the world to save one crack whore with AIDS, as that would render the species extinct for all time. I would, however, kill every one in captivity for experimental purposes to save one crack whore if such a thing could actually work.

[zanne]

29. At least you're honest about it. nt

[BreweryYardRat]

13. If prices are so high that it's cheaper to trap, go for it.

No sense in having to cut poultry out of your diet when there's plenty available.

[Critters2]

14. If you must eat dead animals,

it would be easier to go fishing in some of those many retention ponds that attract the geese. May be some fish in the Boneyard, too. The Sangamon runs through my dad's farm. I could prolly get you permission to fish there.

As to preparing goose, I don't eat meat, so can't be much help.

[SmokingJacket]

16. From a US Dept of Agr Farmer's Bulletin, 1954:

"To kill a goose, hang it up by its feet and cut the jugular vein in the mouth just below the base of the skull with a 4-inch, narrow-bladed knife. As soon as the goose starts to bleed, loosen the feathers by sticking the knife through the groove in the roof of the mouth and rotating the point of the knife in the rear lobe of the brain at the base of the skull. The feathers may also be loosened by a sharp blow on the back of the skull with a heavy stick. A cup is usually attached to the lower jaw to catch the blood.

"Dry picking produces a nice-looking carcass and leaves the feathers in good condition, but semiscalding or steaming methods of picking are much easier. . . ."

This way of killing poultry is the old-fashioned way that is still recommended for poultry on small farms in "small flock" manuals. If the geese are going to a standard small commercial slaughter plant they could be killed this way or similarly (as in live poultry markets), or they could be subjected to hand-stun guns prior to neck-cutting. If they go to a standard large plant, they would be immersed in a waterbath "stun" cabinet, a long trough of splashing cold, salted electrified water designed to paralyze the muscles of their feather follicles (the role of the knife through the mouth to the brain in the old-fashioned process), so the feathers come out more easily. Birds are intentionally kept alive through the slaughter process so their hearts will pump out the blood. Many birds are scalded alive following bleedout, which for chickens is about 90 seconds in a bleedout area. After that, dead or alive, they go into the scald (semiscald) tank."

Still want to do it???

[JVS]

18. I thought it would be more like, cut throat and then pluck feathers.

I had no idea that there was a method to loosen the feathers.

[Squatch]

30. Just use one of these:

But, do it outside because it leaves one hell of a feathery mess.

[JVS]

42. what is that device called?

[Wapsie B]

43. To kill poultry I've used a Machete

on an old stump used as a chopping block. Bleed them out then immerse them in a 5-gallon pail of scalding hot water to soak the feathers. Remove from water and start plucking. Dressing the bird is just a matter of using a knife to score a hole at both ends of the bird and pull the guts out, leaving an empty cavity. Then soak the bird in cold water.

[Kixel]

17. They are funny

It's amazing how they waddle at their own pace even with a line of cars waiting.

I don't like goose-it's too much dark meat. I'd say buy some turkey chicks.

[Deep13]

21. True, as are ducks, rabbits and various critters.

I have a mated pair wild of mallards living in my yard someplace.

[Squatch]

25. Schnitzel-ize their asses.

Or, breasts, if you prefer.

[JVS]

26. holy shit dude. Chickenbreasts that are schnitzelized are kick-ass...

can you imagine what schnitzelizing a darker fattier type of poultry would yield?!

[Squatch]

27. With a little Jägersoße und Steinpilze?

[JVS]

35. Jawohl!

[Evoman]

32. I went to school with a guy that once came across a Canada goose walking down the street

(urban area). He went up to it, grabs its neck and broke it. He stuffed the carcass in his backpack, then took it home and ate it.

I really like the geese, so I was taken aback.

[JVS]

33. was this High School or College?

Either way, that shows some true cheap-living grit!

[Evoman]

36. University, 4th year.

[HEyHEY]

38. Trap? Cook? Prepare?

Dude, just jump on the fuckers and start eating them live.... ten thousand tiger sharks can't be wrong!

[JVS]

40. tigersharks that eat birds on the prairie?

[HEyHEY]

41. Tell any bystanders , "This is a delicacy in Canada," as blood drips from your mouth

[Twillig]

45. Kill them?

O.K. , but keep them around a while.

Think of all the foie gras you can get out of them. As you said, prices are on the rise!


:hide:

[doc03]

46. They are migratory birds and are controlled

by the US Government you have to buy a State Hunting License and a Federal Migratory Bird Stamp to hunt them, you can get the stamp at the Post Office. When you shoot one just split the chest and pull the skin apart then cut out the breast meat, through the rest away. A co-worker of mine brought me a half of a goose breast last fall, he said he marinates them for 12 hours, then cooks them in a slow cooker for 12 hours. It was very good so tender you could pull it apart with a fork, it is very dark meat and actually tastes like beef (not chicken) like everything else. He said if you roast it like you would a domestic bird a dog couldn't chew it.

[pitohui]

48. correct

i haven't done goose in years but i agree w. the slow cooker recommend

[laylah]

49. MIght you be

in the place where "Father Goose" was once revered...and now many are wondering why?

As for trapping, check with your local Fish and Wildlife would be my suggestion.

[Blue-Jay]

50. You need two things:

1) Steel-toed boots
2) Garbage bag

You can become legendary as "Johnny Goose-kicker". People will write about your exploits for generations.

[JVS]

52. An American folk-hero, he spread the way of goose-kicking among the poor.

[RPM]

51. Just keep it in a cage and feed it until the liver explodes.

Go sell that stuff on the Chi-town black market and uses your proceeds to buy Boyardee Ravioli, Stagg Chili and some Poutine.

That would be some good eating.

[JVS]

53. smuggling, sweet