|
|
Member
Posts: 376
Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | While enjoying The Oshkosh area between blast off and weigh in's, I was reminded of something.
Geese. Specifically the "residue" they leave behind. 
You literally could not walk anywhere on the lake side of the walkways without trudging through acres of....um....Goose Doody. You literally can not picnic or relax in the grass along an otherwise beautiful Lakeshore in an otherwise beautiful park
And Oshkosh is not the only city with this problem. Many cities are also spending lot's of taxpayers money to try and control this problem. Geese also do more damage than just leave little love bundles all over the place. And as long as they feel safe and are fed by well wishing people, they won't leave. Quite the reverse, the problem is growing in urban areas all over.
What to do? Well, we can't really look to the Govt to do it on their own, that is expensive for taxpayers. Case in point and somewhat related, the Seagul problem. The City of Racine (I think) is having a Govt Expert come in and do a study to see how to relocate the ever growing Seagul "problem". There are so many of them that their droppings arte literally killing the place. And to relocate them, will just shoo them off to other communities, unless the Govt is talking about giving them all condo's. That "expert" is not going to be cheap, and may take a while to do. And while I am thinking of it, where does one find an "expert" on Seagul guano?
I think there is an easier answer, one that was revealed to me as I tip toed through the Goose Tulips while fishing along the shore. As my direction took me south, a roller blader with a German Sheperd was heading North along the path. The dog was happily bounding hither and yon within a few yards of her companion Human. The Geese got one look at the approching canine and voom! The ran off into the water like a shot, all 200 of em!
The sight of one dog and poof, the were in the safety of the water like a shot. They stayed there for over an hour too. This also reminded me of what a local Country Club does. They have groundskeepers constantly chasing the geese off by using golf carts and fire crackers.
So my thought is, why pay a lot of money to clean up after a bunch of unsanitary geese, just let dog owners run their dogs in these areas, all day long. If the geese feel threatened, they don't hang about. If they don't hang about they also won't nest and make more goose poo machines.
I can also encourage Goose hunting as a way to help control the population, but I think the city, specifically the police, would wish to have a little chat with anyone hunting in a city park. The DNR might take a dim view of that too.....
The only flaw in the dog scenario is then we would have more dog doody in the grass......
Just some thinking on my behalf, what do you think?
| |
| | |
Member
Posts: 3899
| Flying rats is what I call them now. Used to really like geese, and hunting them. But now, there are so many in the parks and golf courses, and retention ponds..... well they are just a nusiance now. As for the dogs chasing them, that is just a temporary thing. I say ban feeding them, and make the fine big. Find the nests, and destroy them. Drive them out of the parks, and you'll have more people using them, instead of the flying rats.
As for the gulls. Well, they are federally protected. Can't kill them. All a city can do is spray the nests and eggs with veggie oil, and hope this birthcontrol works. It's so bad in every city on the Lake Michigan lakefront. The new Midwest Center in Milwaukee has so many nesting pairs on it's roof, the smell was getting into the ductwork and driving conventions away. Not to mention the shat raining down from 4000 gulls flying overhead during nesting season. INCOMING!!!! All they could do was try to oil the eggs, and string mono, at great expense. I think it's time to reclaim our citys, buildings, and parks from the birds. They need to reduce the numbers, and soon.
| |
| | |
Member
Posts: 874
Location: Neenah, WI | I don't know about Oshkosh but I'm pretty sure Neenah has a law against feeding ducks and geese. I think Oshkosh tried to address the problem a couple of years ago but I didn't follow it very close. I think the dog idea is a good one. You could just require owners to pick up the doo-doo. | |
| | |
Member
Posts: 1656
| From my understanding, the city of Oshkosh held a "special" hunt last fall at Menominee park to help control the geese population. It was during the regular goose hunting season but they took applications or something and limited the number of hunters in the park.
I hope they continue this practice and other cities "get on board" with this type of hunt. It offers opportunity for hunters and a solution to help control a pestering waterfowl population.
And to nuts with the animal rights activists....those people should starve anyways! | |
| | |
Member
Posts: 84
Location: townsend,wi | IT'S EASY WITH ALL THE TORNEYS ON BAGO.ALL YOU HAVE TO DO IS BEFORE YOU CAN WEIGH A FISH YOU HAVE TO BRING 1 GOOSE TO THE WEIGH-IN. SEE I FIGURED IT OUT. | |
| | |
Member
Posts: 874
Location: Neenah, WI | That's it!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Similar to the "Earn a Duck" program where you have to kill a Cormorant before you can shoot a duck. I like the concept. | |
| | |
| Some years ago, while driving south of Bozeman to Yellowstone I came accross a herd of Elk on the roadway. I used to go through this area quite often, and I knew during the winter season, you have to watch out for the elk on the roadway, especially at dusk. During the daylight they are usually off the road 300 yards or so. Actually, it is quite well known, down to the mile marker range the danger exists.
Well, I stopped, waited for a lane to clear, and then drove through. When I got next to the elk, literally 3-4 feet outside my window, I became intimidated and wished I would have waited a little longer to let the road completely clear. Elk are huge, and I really did not feel safe looking eyeball to eyeball with an elk within 5 feet. I felt like the elk was telling me he really did not care if I wanted to drive down this road. He was walking on it, and I could wait until he decided he didn't want to walk on it anymore. Until then, I would just have to wait, the road belongs to him, not me. I did make it through without issue.
At that point I fully understood that wildlife does not really care who owns the land they are on. It is still theirs, and they will let us use it whenever they feel like it. If I don't like it, the elk just don't care.
In Western US, the standard thinking is the land belongs to the wildlife on it, and we get to use it. In Eastern US, we can't understand why animals could do something so disgusting as poop on our lawn.
I say we just have to enjoy the poop squishing between our toes, or wear shoes. | |
| | |
Member
Posts: 376
Location: Menominee MI, In Da UP Eh? | Youngster, while I can see your point and I agree about wildlife and the land, I also believe there is a time when an area is overrun with animals to the point of making it unsanitary for anyone.
Totally wiping out all the geese and gulls is not the answer, nor was it my point. Getting them to go back into the wild where they came from is more the point. I have been going to Oshkosh for over 20 years, this problem was never that bad way back when.
Geese used to stay far away from urban areas and parks for the most part. And like I said, it is not just Oshkosh. Take the citry of Milwaukee for example. There is not a county park where you can just up and picnic at the waters edge. It never used to be this way.
Once an animal overuns their environment it becomes a nusiance and a health hazard. It is also not healthy for the animals themselves either. The problem with the urban areas is the geese have learned they get handouts, and are safe from predators. The ducks also have lost their fear of man and will come right up to you, babies in tow, looking for a handout.
Something has to be done. | |
| | |
New User
Posts: 1
| Here in Indianaplos there is actually a lady who has two dogs (mutts)and she started her own business. Folks hire her to have her dogs chase the geese. The dogs will even swim after them. It keeps the birds very uncomfortable and if repeated enough, they don't come back. Various communiteis, golf courses and businesses have hired her with quite a bit of sucess. From what the article in the paper said, it keeps them busy full time. I always let my lab chase them at the local park. They start honking when I'm a block away. I really think dogs are the way to go.
Mark | |
| | |
Location: Rhinelander | I like roast goose.......  | |
| |
|
Geeses