On Labor Day let’s honor working birds. This year … domestic geese.

A couple of domestic geese are often kept with chickens to guard them from predators. Geese are always alert and will naturally honk and shout when they see danger. The chickens run for cover while the large and aggressive geese may attack the threat. Some geese are so aggressive that they’ve injured people. (By the way, Canada geese will attack if you approach their young.)

A farmer who used geese and guineafowl to guard his chickens says domestic geese are the best. Geese alarm only when they see a threat; the farmer knows there’s a good reason to check on the flock. Guineafowl are noisy but they alarm for almost anything.

When you see geese with chickens you can be sure those geese are at work.

p.s. When seen in Pennsylvania, geese like those pictured above are barnyard escapees. Here are some tips on their background: Chinese geese have long necks and knobs on their heads (top photo) and were domesticated from swan geese (Anser cygnoides). Domestic geese in white or gray with faces like snow geese (the attacking goose above) are descended from greylag geese (Anser anser).

p.p.s. Sometimes the geese are fooled. In Medieval manuscripts, stained glass windows and carvings a fox dressed up as a monk or priest preaches to geese and chickens, then ultimately eats one of them. “When the fox preaches, look to your geese.“