Wild geese populations can be controlled on a property when they get overpopulated. Geese numbers get so high that their droppings cover fields and pollute the water. Geese can be confrontational with humans and can take away the use of an environment from other species of birds and animals. Ever since Humans have been Humans, there has been lethal and non-lethal ways to control wild animals and birds from running over gardens and field crops and homes. In modern America, the trend is to want to leave the wild animals alone. But sentiment changes when deer eat a homeowner’s bushes or a bear rips into garbage cans or a coyote grabs a small pet.
Of course, Humans have used weapons to keep wild animals from invading their homes in historic times or even today in remote locations.But non-lethal means were also used to keep deer out of a maturing crop of corn for instance. There is a diorama in the New York State Museum in Albany which shows Native People using noisemakers to keep deer out of their much-needed crops. What is being used in that diorama are noisemakers which are the precursors to birthday party horns and rattles. And Humans have used dogs to keep their homes, property, farm animals and crops safe for thousands of years.
The State of New York’s plan for the very large overpopulation of geese is to use lethal means. Hunting in farmers fields is part of that solution. The other lethal means is the Federal Government’s Fish and Wildlife Dept, where deemed appropriate, is to net and gas geese during what is called the yearly molt.Geese shed their wing feathers once a year and then grow new ones. During this time, geese cannot fly. However, New York State and the Massachusetts and Connecticut and organizations like the Humane Society recognize non-lethal means as very important and useful in goose control.Top of the list is goose control with Border Collies.
Lethal means in controlling geese is not possible very often due to the inability to hunt in specific settings. And many people don’t support killing the geese. And that is were non-lethal goose control with Border Collies comes in. As already stated, controlling geese and other wildlife with dogs is age-old. What is new is using Border Collies for this. Border Collies are dogs bred to herd sheep, mostly but in the last few decades, their skills and other abilities have also been used to keep geese away from properties. Border Collies work with their handlers very well and are good at thinking on their feet when working in all sorts of environments. Both are excellent qualities when working on public properties. Border Collies have a strong work instinct to move sheep and thus geese and a weak bite and a “no kill” instinct.Those last two qualities add to the non-lethal part.
Add this is why I call our goose control service with trained and experienced Border Collies and handlers, humane and effective. The effective part comes in because for the most part when we work a property our clients are pleased with the results. There are far fewer geese or none at all that stick to a property when repeated visits with the Border Collies are scheduled. And nobody gets hurt.That is job number one for us, the safety of our dogs and the geese. We take that all very seriously.
So when we herd-chase geese off a client”s property as I did the day I am writing this with Blade, I work him as I would our sheep.I set him up on what we call an outrun, and off he runs around the geese.Working Border Collies unnerve the geese.The geese instinctually think a wild predator is moving in and they fly off. We visit enough times, and the geese do show up a lot less. We do have the one mix breed dog, Nash, who has learned so much from our Border Collies. I know I can count on him.So when we come visit a property for a goose control visit, with two or three of our Border Collies, Skye, Jim, Blade, Tara, and yes even that mix breed guy, Nash, they will work the geese like they were working our sheep.It’s just that sheep don’t fly or swim. And that’s the point, to get the geese to go and stay somewhere else than the property we are working. Hopefully, we will maintain enough wild places, so geese have a place to be as us Humans have our places.