Canada Geese




 
Is your property plagued by a gaggle of geese gathering on your grounds? Are their plentiful piles of poop placing a pungent pox on your pleasant property? Is your beach besmirched? If so, you are not alone. In the past, Canada geese simply passed through New York on their migration route. However, in recent years, many geese have taken up residence in New York. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) calculates that New York state could sustain a permanent resident population of 75,000 geese, but DEC estimates that we currently have 200,000 geese residing in New York. Each goose can create a pound of droppings per day. If you have a large number of geese gathering on your lawn or beach, that can create quite an unsanitary mess!

 What can be done? The problem has become sever enough that DEC has an entire web page devoted to this subject. You can get more details about Nuisance Canada Geese. This web page contains information on a variety of tactics that can be used to reduce the problem. The most effective technique may be placing a string barricade along your shoreline, about 12 inches above the ground. Surprisingly, the geese will not go over or under this string, and this alone may be adequate to discourage the birds from perambulating on your property. Another successful approach is to place streamers of Mylar or metallic reflective tape near the shore. One product, “Duck Tape”, does little to discourage ducks, but has been successful in keeping geese away.

 For additional information on this topic, please read the eight-page pamphlet from DEC, titled “When Geese Become a Problem 

 If you do want to keep geese off your property in the summer, it is best to discourage them early in the season. Once they lay their eggs, they are not likely to leave the area. Also, they molt in the warmer months (June), and cannot fly for about six weeks. They will be less likely to leave their new chosen home area during the time when they are unable to fly. 
 

 
Is your property plagued by a gaggle of geese gathering on your grounds? Are their plentiful piles of poop placing a pungent pox on your pleasant property? Is your beach besmirched? If so, you are not alone. In the past, Canada geese simply passed through New York on their migration route. However, in recent years, many geese have taken up residence in New York. The New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC) calculates that New York state could sustain a permanent resident population of 75,000 geese, but DEC estimates that we currently have 200,000 geese residing in New York. Each goose can create a pound of droppings per day. If you have a large number of geese gathering on your lawn or beach, that can create quite an unsanitary mess!

 What can be done? The problem has become sever enough that DEC has an entire web page devoted to this subject. You can get more details about Nuisance Canada Geese. This web page contains information on a variety of tactics that can be used to reduce the problem. The most effective technique may be placing a string barricade along your shoreline, about 12 inches above the ground. Surprisingly, the geese will not go over or under this string, and this alone may be adequate to discourage the birds from perambulating on your property. Another successful approach is to place streamers of Mylar or metallic reflective tape near the shore. One product, “Duck Tape”, does little to discourage ducks, but has been successful in keeping geese away.

 For additional information on this topic, please read the eight-page pamphlet from DEC, titled “When Geese Become a Problem 

 If you do want to keep geese off your property in the summer, it is best to discourage them early in the season. Once they lay their eggs, they are not likely to leave the area. Also, they molt in the warmer months (June), and cannot fly for about six weeks. They will be less likely to leave their new chosen home area during the time when they are unable to fly.