One Long Island town hopes that the use of dogs chasing away Canada geese will result in the birds staying away permanently. September 24, 2024.
© Thomas J. Turney/The State Journal-Register + © Kevin Neri/Statesman Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK
(Oyster Bay, NY) – A Long Island town has gone to the dogs. Well, actually — it’s a geese problem. And now the Town of Oyster Bay has turned to the use of dogs in a bid to solve the bird battle.
Invasive Canadian geese have become a major problem and nuisance in Oyster Bay. Each bird drops up to four pounds of droppings daily — often the waste contains dangerous salmonella, e coli, and MRSA. So town officials hired a company that uses Australian Shepherds to chase the birds away, twice per day.
Officials say the method is ideal because the dog patrols don’t harm the birds. They just herd them all together and eventually the flock takes off. Further, the hope is the spooked birds will then stay away for good.
Earlier this year, outrage ensued in one New Jersey town in connection to the goose grapple. In Peapack-Gladstone, officials hired a company that uses carbon monoxide gas to euthanize the birds. The USDA is involved in that effort. Some residents in the Somerset County town — located about ten miles north of Bridgewater — signed a petition aimed at saving the geese.
