In the North East this year Spring seems to be a bit unusual. Sure we think of April to be a “tease”. But the amount of rain and cold weather seem to be more pronounced. The late snow in some spots seems almost crazy. For some of us this seems a distraction. But what about wildlife and outdoor activity and even farming? Yesterday after a snow fall in the Hudson Valley in New York I saw more than one person at a red light, jump out to remove several inches from their wind shields. I with two of our Border Collies, Moses and Tru had been coming back from a mornings goose control. We had not seen much for geese but one sad looking pair of Canadian Geese huddled at an end of a lovely suburban Lake. Snow was on the ground and the temperature was in the thirties.
How does wild life, like geese cope with drastic weather and severe weather changes? How do farmers grow our food in drought and overly wet conditions? When our sons played school sports, of course a late snow meant a disappointing stoppage to the baseball season. All the geese we had seen on goose control trips the days before the late snow seemed to have vanished except for that one sad looking pair of geese. I am sure they were around, and not too far away. When snow fall happens in earlier Spring, geese seem to fly off to not too far away more spring like conditions. This would be places that do not have snow or iced up ponds. In the North East conditions due to weather can be changeable in a matter of an hours drive. That is not an unrealistic flight for geese.
Here at our home with its small farm, we not only feed the dogs, sheep, chickens and farm ducks, but in the colder, cooler months, we feed the wild song birds. if you don’t do that, you may never have seen the huge jump in feeding birds at a feeder before a very cold night or storm. They need extra food to stay warm. Actually, this is true for sheep and poultry and other farm animals. It is nature’s way. When people now a days don’t understand how farm animals can be outside in cold weather they don’t understand nature. Or we ignore it and don’t consider all the impacts to wild creatures.
How do we live with nature and wild life and make a place for our human society as well?
That last one is way over the top and something that world wide conferences are designed for. What we can focuses on is how do we keep the bear away from the garbage, the wild geese off the play ground and the wild birds flu from killing our egg supply.
I pulled up in our SUV with the kayak and Border Collies to a golf course pond. Ten geese were feeding next to a green. I let the two Border Collies, Blade and Tara out and called them beside me. Blade to my right and Tara to my left. I said “Blade away” and “Tara come by”, and both dogs ran out in their respective directions to get to the other side of the wild geese. The geese feeling the “pressure” from Blade and Tara felt uncomfortable, started honking, thought to go into the pond, but this time, flew away over the golf course and out of sight. Blade and Tara ran back happily to me. They had done their job, and very well, its what Border Collies live for. And those wild geese I am sure could find somewhere else to feed, live and be.