The distinctive Canada geese that populated the GastonCountyPark in Dallas were a joy to many who watched them through the years.
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But the birds’ excessive waste also prompted complaints from numerous visitors. So county officials, who agreed the flock had grown too large, paid to have 144 of the birds rounded up and euthanized Tuesday.
That decision to eliminate the entire flock ruffled the feathers of Carolina Waterfowl Rescue, an Indian Trail nonprofit that says the county acted too hastily, when it could have simply had the fowl relocated.
GastonCountyParks and Recreation Director Cathy Hart said the county was simply reacting to a longstanding problem the best way it knew how.
“It’s pretty common for (overpopulation) to happen around ponds at schools, parks and airports,” she said. “This is a (euthanization) service that is used a lot, unfortunately.”
Carolina Waterfowl Rescue Director Jennifer Gordon said the county never made its intentions clear. Her organization had been trying to work with GastonCounty to manage the problem, and had already relocated some of the birds. Had they known the entire Canada goose flock was going to be destroyed, they would have relocated them all, she said.
“The bigger issue here is that all animals deserve to be treated humanely,” said Gordon. “They had options to do that and they didn’t use them.”
Birds seen as a nuisance
Non-migratory Canada geese populations have been on the rise in recent years. They stand out with their brownish gray bodies, black heads and necks and white face patches.
Yet while the birds are attractive, their droppings are less appealing to the nose and shoes. A single goose can produce a half-pound of feces per day, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Wildlife Services division.
The waste often coated the grassy areas around the park’s ponds, athletic fields, picnic areas, concert stage, restrooms and parking lots. Before summer events such as Pops in the Park, the county had to repeatedly spend time and money power-washing areas and cleaning up feces, Hart said.
“It was really time-consuming,” she said. “We had citizens complaining they couldn’t even use the trails out there because of all the geese droppings.”
Canada geese are federally protected. But their increasing reputation as a nuisance has prompted the USDA to offer an option for removing them. Park staff must first try other approved methods to disperse geese and prevent them from reproducing, said USDA spokeswoman Carol Bannerman.
GastonCounty paid the Wildlife Services division $1,666 to send a team to the park Tuesday morning. The geese are moulting — shedding old feathers and growing new ones — and unable to fly away. So specialists herded the birds into a temporary corral, placed them in poultry crates and transported them elsewhere to be euthanized via gas.
“They are euthanized following guidelines approved by the American Veterinary Medical Association … and disposed of as required by a U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service permit,” Bannerman said.
No warning?
Hart said she made it clear to Gordon in early May that Carolina Waterfowl Rescue could remove any of the birds it wished to, and relocate them to a sanctuary.
“On May 23, they came out and removed a number of the birds,” she said. “We’ve allowed them to do that any time they wanted.”
About 10 domestic ducks and geese are still at the park, Hart said.
Gordon said it’s not normal for her nonprofit to rescue an entire flock of Canada geese.
“Realistically, we wouldn’t come in and take every bird from a park,” she said. “We left what was a very reasonable amount of geese out there.”
Rebecca Duffeck, a Carolina Waterfowl Rescue volunteer who lives near the park, has looked after the geese and ducks for years. She said there were no more than 40 to 50 Canada geese living there.
Gordon and Duffeck say Hart never divulged that a contract was being signed to wipe out the entire flock.
“We were talking to them, offering to help them with the geese and at no point did they tell us what they were really planning,” Gordon said.
The nonprofit could have transported the birds to a 300-acre preserve it owns in South Carolina, she said.
Hart said the county recently put up signs at the park directing visitors to not feed the geese. In recent years, park officials also tried measures such as enclosing picnic shelters near the ponds with temporary fencing, spraying the ground with goose repellant, allowing the grass to grow taller around the lake, and even removing fertilized eggs.
Gordon disputes that adequate steps were taken to manage the goose population. She believes the county violated the USDA’s requirement.
“There was no planning or thought put into this,” said Gordon. “If they don’t have a management plan, the geese will just return. And they can’t just keep killing geese over and over.”
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What a dilemma this is.
Unfortunately when we entice wildlife into our recreation areas, there are problems associated with that. This story with the geese is a prime example. Migratory birds used to do just that…migrate. But when we create lovely parks where people go and take loaves of bread to feed to the geese…they stay. Easy food is quite an enticement.
I do not think that euthanizing is the right choice. If they spent the money to go out and gather them I don’t see why they didn’t transport them to a less public arena. I don’t understand why there was not more open dialogue with the Carolina Waterfowl Rescue. It sounds like they would have been open to removing and relocating more of the geese. Of course, as with any situation, I am only hearing what is shared. I was not involved.
I hope that all parties involved can learn from this situation. Looking for other avenues other than disposal is much more humane and probably actually less costly. Also…the public needs to be educated about the challenges that come when feeding wildlife living in our backyards. I encourage people to be mindful of their habits when in public recreational areas. If you want geese in your yard..then build a pond and throw out all the bread you like when they are passing by. If you don’t want to slide through slippery nasty goose droppings when you go to your local park for a picnic…don’t throw bread or leave your food stuffs out for them. If they don’t have easy access to food…they will follow their natural habits and continue migrating!