I went to Byrd Park today to take a picture of the statue of Christopher Columbus in honor of the U.S. holiday. Unfortunately because of the location of the sun, I couldn't get a decent picture. So I turned my attention to Fountain Lake. Not much going on there, but I did find this sign intriguing. Did you know there are professional goose management companies? I sure didn't. I didn't see any trained border collies but i did see this poor disabled goose. I hope the border collies don't gang up on him. I don't think he'd stand a chance.
It sounds as though we share like sentiments! How do you single out and wrangle Canada Geese for displacement! And...here I go getting political...but I have to wonder if these are our tax dollars at work. Personally I find the geese rather charming, and I've always been able to step around the poop! Thanks for pointing out that we need to care for the smallest creatures in our society... ...and now I'll get off my soapbox...
I've seen this before...don't remember where...but the same kinds of signs indicating the geese would be dealt with! Seemed a little sad to me then...seems even sadder when I see this poor disabled goose!
That is a beautiful picture of this poor little goose. don't like the sign though. what are they doing with these geese? send them back to Canada as if we don't have enough. but we are not chasing them with dogs. sorry but this does get me upset.
They've used dogs in our area before (southeast PA). I do like Canada Geese but they take over everything. There are not really any natural predators in our area except perhaps the occasional red fox or stray cat so their population grows exponentially. A few years ago along the bike trail I enjoy at home there would be massive flocks of them and at times they would sit on the bike trail and just hiss at you if you tried to ride through them. They're very bold and aggressive, especially when they have young, and where they are other species have to compete for food and space. Since they've started using the dogs we've noticed an increase in the Mallard population and a much more manageable amount of geese.
Herding dogs are not trained to attack animals, only to herd them elsewhere. I'm sure they are very closely supervised by their handlers and if a goose were injured in the process they would have made sure it had proper medical attention.
Overall I believe it's a much more natural and humane way to address the problem than other options out there.
Since the numbers of geese were not extreme at the lake, I'm thinking the company has already begun work. Maybe this particular goose is a local and has been given special dispensation. I would like to see the border collies in action. I know they are diligent by disposition and they herd but do not hunt. I wonder how they distinguish a Canada goose from another variety and where they send the C.G. once they have them in their sites. Frankly, I think this sign raises more questions than it answers.
We had a huge goose problem in the city... there are no predators and therefore the population has gotten incredibly out of hand. They've actually been euthanizing most of the ones they're rounding up. Not sure how I feel about that, but when there are so many that they start causing plane crashes, I guess something has to be done.
Goose management at our lake house means a controlled hunt. They then make baked goose, goose stew, goose and noodles and anything else they could. They then take the money they make and it goes to the volunteer Fire Dept. I think they are beautiful but when you live by a lake and you are told the total tons of waste they put in the lake and on peoples docks and lawns , it makes you understand why they have to be controlled in certain areas. Good pic.
Herding dogs are not trained to attack animals, only to herd them elsewhere. I'm sure they are very closely supervised by their handlers and if a goose were injured in the process they would have made sure it had proper medical attention.
Overall I believe it's a much more natural and humane way to address the problem than other options out there.