Living with Wildlife
Living with Canada Geese
Canada geese reside year-round locally throughout much of Colorado, and large numbers of migrant Canada geese occupy parts of Colorado during the fall and winter. Canada geese provide valuable hunting and viewing opportunities, but, in urban and suburban areas, local concentrations of geese can lead to conflicts between geese and people. In suburban and urban areas, hunting is usually not an option, and Canada geese often create problems during the spring and summer.
Living with Canada Geese
Keep Geese Away from Your Home
Most conflicts between people and geese in Colorado involve site-specific nuisance and property damage issues. The following information provides some habitat management methods to assist in preventing geese causing issues on personal properties.
Stop Feeding
Do not feed or allow feeding of geese or other waterfowl. If geese are being fed in the area, it will be very difficult to persuade them to move elsewhere.
Fencing
Physical barriers, such as fences and boulders, can prevent geese from entering an area.
- The fence should be at least two feet high and have openings no larger than three-by-three inches.
- Chain link, chicken wire, construction fence, and wood can be used.
- Where appropriate, electrical fencing can provide a harmless—but effective—shock to discourage geese from entering an area; check with your local authorities to see if there are safety restrictions on electrical fencing.
Landscape Changes
Geese dislike visual barriers between ponds and feeding areas.
- Planting trees, thick bushes, or a dense hedge between grassy areas and water may make your property less attractive to geese. You may need to use other methods such as fencing or repellents temporarily.
- Geese prefer mowed grasses; so leaving a buffer area of tall grass and wildflowers can create a visual and physical barrier to resident geese.
Lawn Repellents
There are several commercial repellents advertised to keep geese off of lawns. These products must be applied according to label directions to be effective. They may need to be reapplied after rain, or twice weekly in dry conditions.
Living with Canada Geese
Discourage with Hazing Methods
If geese are present around your house or property and causing conflicts, there are several ways you can encourage them to leave. Deterring geese is most effective when geese first arrive at a location. Repeated hazing can cause geese to relocate, but you must begin again if geese return.
In general, a permit is not required to scare, repel, or herd geese to protect your property, as long as the birds are not killed or harmed. Non-lethal hazing can be done any time EXCEPT for during the active nesting season – meaning the nest is inactive and there are no eggs or fledglings. Always check local ordinances and obtain any necessary permits they may require before beginning any hazing methods, though.
Residents are encouraged to try all non-lethal methods before applying to use any lethal control techniques.
Humans can haze geese by vigorously chasing them with a broom or water hose.
Loud and surprising noises can be a deterrent to resident geese. Where allowed, 12-gauge 'cracker shells' and other sharp, percussive sounds can prompt geese to move to another, more peaceful location.
Geese can sometimes be scared away using various shapes and movements. Scare tape is thin, shiny ribbon, often silver on one side and red on the other. Place the reflective tape where it is visible to the geese and make a low fence across the area where you don’t want geese to cross. Tie short lengths of the shiny ribbon on the cross tape—the flashing and rattling of the tape can frighten geese. To be useful, it needs to be inspected daily.
Landowners and land managers have used highly trained border collies with skilled handlers to chase geese off their properties. Leash laws in most cities and towns do not allow dogs to run free to chase geese. However, where allowed and used consistently, this method has proven successful in persuading geese to avoid local sites. To find a trained dog and skilled handler, use general internet search terms such as "goose hazing business" or "using dogs to haze geese." This is not a method to be tried with a pet. Dogs cannot be allowed to harm or kill geese or other waterfowl.
Some landowners have acquired swans (with clipped wings—so they cannot fly) and released them on ponds or lakes to frighten away geese. This method is not recommended where the swans will come in regular contact with people, as they can be aggressive to humans as well as geese. Check local laws to be sure swans are allowed in your area. Be aware that swans can also breed, and care must be taken to ensure you don’t create an overpopulation of swans.
Living with Canada Geese
Lethal Methods for Management
Colorado Parks and Wildlife, in cooperation with the United States Fish and Wildlife Service, manages resident and migrant Canada and cackling goose populations in the state. Recreational hunting is the primary tool used by CPW to manage these populations, in coordination with the USFWS and other states and provinces in the Central and Pacific Flyways. However, hunting cannot effectively address some human-goose conflicts.
Because Canada geese are protected by federal and state laws, any activities that result in handling, damage, or destruction of geese, eggs or nests, require permits. Individuals can register online to obtain a permit from the USFWS to destroy eggs and nests on their property.