A Stamford, CT border collie named Kate has a full-time job keeping geese off the grass.
STAMFORD – It’s unclear how long resident Canada geese have befouled Mill River Park, but the Mill River Collaborative hopes it has found a way to keep the birds and their droppings off the park’s grass.
Kate, the collaborative’s “goose dog,” arrived for work in September. The border collie is a natural herder. Crouching low and staring, she stalks geese, never touching them but scaring them away.
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“Being able to have grass people can sit on and want to stand on, even, is essential to have the quality of downtown parks that the city deserves,” said Puryear, the collaborative’s executive director.
Now, five days a week, Kate, who cost about $3,000, and her handler Jessica Curtis, a collaborative employee, head down to Mill River Park.
“Kate is fairly effective, but the geese are incorrigible, so we had to start changing our hours,” Puryear said.
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I wish people opted for creative solutions like this more often. We have dogs the town and the golf courses use for this purpose. It’s a full time job because geese naturally return to their breeding grounds.
It’s really good for the dogs and the geese. The dogs get the exercise they need and the geese get to stay alive!