Everyone has heard stories of geese attacking humans. Read our guide below to discover ways to prevent dangerous attacks by Canadian Geese…
Canadian Geese have become very prevalent in the U.S. and Canada. They are relatively unafraid of humans and have therefore spread to many inhabited areas. Unfortunately, they are normally drawn to water sources such as ponds, lakes, and rivers. These water sources are often found in public places, such as parks, beaches, or business landscapes. All of these places are areas that humans normally frequent and so people and geese have often found it difficult to share these places. Geese leave messes with their droppings, clog traffic with their slow street-crossing, and may even attack people who get too close.
They are not a territorial animal in the sense that they want us to leave their area. They are simply protecting themselves and their young. If you get too close to one and it feels trapped, it will fight you. If you get too close to its offspring, it will strike to make you fight it rather than going after its young. These are instinctual reflexes in the animal. Of course, humans may not always know or have meant to get too close to a goose and found themselves with a nasty bite afterward. Most of the time, it is our own young ones who unwittingly fall victim to a goose attack.
How to Anticipate a Canadian Goose Attack
There are some things that you can look for to tell if you’re getting too close to a Canadian goose. When a goose feels threatened, they will, like many other animals, try to make themselves appear larger than they are. They will stand up straighter, puff out their chests, and spread their wings. They will then begin hissing and walking or running toward you. If you see any of these signs, run, even if you are stronger than a goose. Geese are faster than they look and if it gets close enough, it will peck at you with its beak and bite you.
Unfortunately, not all geese have the same proximity limits as others. Some spook more easily than others. You may be in a group of them and most of them are content to ignore you, but one or two are not. You always need to be on the look-out for the temperamental ones in the group.
How to Prevent Canadian Geese Attacks
The easiest way to keep Canadian Geese from attacking children or other people on your property is to completely remove them from your property. There are multiple humane ways of removing geese from your property. Some popular ideas include buying a Border Collie, buying statues of wolves or coyotes, spreading chemical repellents, and very closely surrounding your water source with bushes.
