Step 1: Stop Feeding the Geese
According to the Pennsylvania Game Commission, primarily "grazing birds, geese feed on wild and cultivated plants. They eat rhizomes, roots, shoots, stems, blades and seeds. Foods: widgeon grass, pondweed, eelgrass, spike rush, American bulrush, cordgrass, glasswort, algae, grass, clover, wheat, millet, corn, barley and rye. They can damage cultivated crops, particularly young shoots of fall-planted wheat. Animal matter isn't a major part of their diet, although they sometimes eat insects, crustaceans and snails." Pennsylvania Game Commission 2001.
Geese migrate to areas where they can support their flock. If you or your neighbors (and this is often the trickier part of the problem) are feeding the geese, they have no incentive to move on in search of a more stable or abundant food supply. While intentional feeding is obvious to spot, you might even be unintentionally feeding geese. You or your neighbors might draw wildlife onto your property or neighborhood by putting out foods such as seed or suet, throwing table scraps out back, or improperly storing garbage in anything except secured cans.
Once you are sure that the geese are not being encouraged to move in through feeding, you have some options:
The Decoy
Like all animals, geese have a survival instinct that keeps them away from situations where they might be harmed by predators. You can take advantage of this natural instinct by putting out decoys (essentially fake birds) to scare away the geese and keep them from landing. Try these decoys:
- Swans, Owls, and Hawks - these birds are naturally more territorial and can sometimes become predators of geese and most geese will avoid the competition when possible
- Crocadile or alligator - these decoys floating in your pond or lake can give the impression that the predator is on the hunt and scare off any future residents
- Scarecrows
Where to buy? Depending on the time of year, you can purchase lawn ornaments from your local big box stores, like WalMart or Target, that can be used for these purposes. You can often purchase alligator rafts from your local pool supply store during the summer months.
Change the Landscaping
Geese are attracted to large open spaces, especially those with ponds or lakes that offer clear landing room. Try some of these suggestions to make your yard a little less open and inviting:
- Plant low shrubs
- Plant taller flower beds like wildflowers or vegetable gardens
- Plant tall grasses (at least 18 inches high) in a 10 foot zone around the shoreline to prevent geese from obtaining a clear line of sight from the pond and discouraging them from settling in
If you have tried all of these simple, yet natural solutions that do not harass or harm the fowl and you are still having geese problems, contact the animal control advisory board at lsacb@verizon.net on additional resources for preventing geese destruction that will keep you out of legal trouble.