We hear about it from”both sides.” Controversy is Us in the present, so there seem to be two sides. Some people want the geese left alone and there are those who would just have them shot. That is not actually true; we meet more people who feel that the solution to this goose(wildlife) and human “problem” fall somewhere in between. It just seems that there are “two sides”. It seems hard to really see that geese should be “left alone” in some cases where geese are all over a property. Geese can make what I call “wall to wall poop.” This can be disgusting, imagine goose feces all over grade schoolers shoes. Goose droppings can pollute the water at beaches. Male geese can be aggressive toward humans when their female is nesting or the young are being raised.
Of course, the geese did not ask for the development of their habit. But much of the “habitat” we are talking about is human contrived lawns and fields. Wild geese are dabblers, a type of waterfowl that eat off of the bottom of ponds and other water bodies. But geese have adapted with development or had to, like deer and coyote. The real solution, I think, to this problem with wild geese is to preserve adequate wild lands, but in many places that is not happening. I also believe that wildlife should be kept at arm’s length, so to speak. Not hazing deer, coyote, bear, and raccoon from your home can only lead to many issues. I believe animals should have a place in the world we live in; they all are wonderful animals, birds, etc and should be respected.
It can be hard to get people to agree on a solution or if there indeed is a “problem”. That is why municipalities, school districts, and other entities have management personnel to come up with solutions. It is rare that everyone in, say a town will agree if a solution is the correct one. This is probably not news to you. But I guess what I am saying is that goose control with Border Collies, is a solution that lies between killing the geese and leaving than alone.
Hazing geese or other wildlife is the word often used to deter wildlife, in a nonlethal way from a property. On our homestead, we haze rabbits from or near the gardens, as an example. Raptors, coyote and even bear can be hazed effectively to avoid human-wildlife conflict. Science is starting to show that the benefits of hazing may outweigh those of hunting and produce less “problem animals”.
There are other means to haze geese than using Border Collies of course. There are blanks, lasers, decoys( dogs and coyotes) and other herding breeds can be used. Herding breeds, mostly Border Collies are used because of their instincts. Geese understand that Border Collies, when working, have that stalking instinct and move away from it. Remember as in their farm work, herding sheep etc, this is all a “mind game” — this is a prey-predator relationship at work, in a controlled manner. Border Collies do not set out to hurt sheep on the farm; they just use that instinct enough to carefully move sheep, poultry, and cattle from place to place.
We apply the Border Collies’ training and instincts to working with families of geese if need be. This “need” we let the client determine. Imagine being a camp owner when fifty geese, adults and young show up on your beech every morning during the summer. That’s a lot of work hours to pick up the goose poo, and the potential to having your swimming water polluted is very real.
And remember that the most essential part of a farms Border Collies year is working with ewes and their lambs( mothers and young). Sheep go onto pasture not long after giving birth, or lambs are often born in the pastures and raised right there. So it has been for hundreds of years that shepherds and their dogs, herding breeds, have taken care by skillfully moving ewes and lambs from pasture to pasture to remain safe and well fed. For me, this is how we take care of families of geese by actually herding them from a property where they are not welcome.