New Life ~ Goslings for Easter

 New goslings for Easter ! My Sebastopol Geese keep trying to raise a family but the last two years Ella was unable to successfully hatch her many eggs. It was very sad for me knowing all the diligent  care and tending of her eggs laid in a nest in the goose pen was of no use, none hatched. Even sadder was discovering that each and every egg had a fully developed gosling inside that could not break free of its' shell.

This year Ella began laying eggs under the rhododendrons, a place she'd never be able to protect herself or her eggs from predators or our pet dogs. I took her eggs from that beautiful but unwise nesting site and placed them in an incubator. Then I re-located 2 eggs in a nest box made especially for Ella in the goose pen. I kept Ella and Fella confined during egg laying season so she would not choose another site. This last Thursday night and on into Saturday some of the eggs began hatching.

The goslings had poked small holes in their shells but were unable to get out. I peeled tiny bits of their shells off and found even the membrane inside the eggs was too hard for the babies to break free of. ( I DID keep water in the incubator and misted the eggs with water every night .) I needed to be careful how I peeled the shell and membrane away so as not to rip delicate baby goose skin and cause them to bleed to death, so I wrapped each egg in warm , wet washcloths and held them firmly while I slowly began taking pieces of shell off to give the goslings room to move and help me extricate them. I also needed to roll back their membrane covering slowly. It was a long process for each egg but looky here.....

... 3 of the 4 successfully hatched Sebastopol goslings ! One baby was still working herself out of the shell when my husband snapped this pic of me and my new little geese. There are 3 more eggs in the incubator due to hatch in a few days. These little goslings have imprinted on me and get very excited when I say "babies, babies, babies ", just like their parents, Ella and Fella , who get very excited when they hear my voice and follow me around like puppies because they're imprinted on me .

There is new life everywhere here at Cedar Pond. New lambs, baby doves, chicks, goslings, new flowers just beginning to bud. New life here in this world is but a small reflection of the blessing of new life given to all who ask for it from God, and unlike our temporal earthly life and joys, new life from Jesus is eternal, "Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death , in order that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we might walk in newness of life." Romans 6:4

Easter blessings to you !