"It's a fairly unusual situation with an invasive species that has no natural predators in our ecosystem," says [Ald. Mark Clear, who sits on the Board of Park Commissioners]. "[Canada geese are] not migratory and have settled in and made the parks their home. Many of our beach closures are directly related to poop."The ruined shorelines are reason enough to destroy the vermin. You want more evidence that they are making swimming in the lakes dangerous? I don't.
Opponents of the roundup...say the city hasn't proven that the bacteria blamed for at least 84 beach closures last year came from goose droppings...
"Where is the risk?" [asks Lori Chadli, a Madison resident]. "People like to blame them, because they see the droppings, but there's no evidence."
According to a 2011 report..., conservation resource supervisor with the city Parks Department, seven of 42 water samples collected in 2003 tested positive for a virulent strain of E. coli. This same strain.... was found in 50% of the goose fecal samples collected.
The comments over there at the Isthmus are hilarious. One "blake trimbell" says: "Murdering geese will not solve anything and should not be our earth friendly, progressive city of Madisons` initiative." But murdering geese is the perfect solution! If the parks were teeming with rats, would you invoke progressivism? But rage on, Mr. Trimbell, because you're helping expose "progressivism" to the light of mockery.
I was going to make fun of some more of the comments, but now I see they're all from Trimbell.
Canadian geese are beautiful creatures who deserve to live on this planet as much as any other speices. They were thought to be extinct in 1950, until a flock was discovered in Minnesota in 1962. Wouldn't it be awful if they became close to extintion again?In a word: no.
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Have Gun, Will Travel..
Geese-aphobia is not understood until a large invasion force lands on you. Like the 82nd Airborne, they descend in flocks onto a landing zone, then honk at everything that moves , then eat whatever they want until an order is given to move out to occupy the next target. They are said to love "The smell of napalm in the morning".
Are the damned things fit to eat?
If so, feed them to the unemployed.
Why do environmentalists so hate natural selection?
In a related item Argentinians losing interest in Beaver
You think the beaches are bad, play #12, #13, #15, and #16 at Odana Hills. Fuckers are not only numerous but aggressive.
A seven iron is not only the proper club on #13, but also...well, never mind.
Fore!
"They were thought to be extinct in 1950," is, of course, complete nonsense.
New York City is send geese to food banks.
Ann's sounding like Yul Brynner talking to the Mexican farmers, "You've got to be prepared for killing, and more killing, and more killing after that, until the reason for the killing is gone".
I can see her all in black with her little fedora and a six-shooter, but I think Meade's gonna draw the line at a shaved head.
Unless he likes that kind of thing.
NTTAWWT.
Phil 3:14 said...
In a related item Argentinians losing interest in Beaver
ironrails will be crushed, but Troop will fill the void
It was only a sub-species, the Giant Canada Goose, that was in danger of becoming extinct, so the "danger" is a matter of whether you are a "lumper" or a "splitter."
I believe Canada goose meat is kind of rich, so that it needs to be cooked properly, but then it is good eating.
Of course the idea that the Federal Government, or a State government for that matter, is going to cook anything properly is rather ludicrous, so we should look for a lot of prisoner complaints and probably a class-action lawsuit claiming "cruel and unusual punishment" and inhumane conditions in our prisons in general.
"Fuckers are not only numerous but aggressive."
I know! They seem to have teeth or some kind of serrated bills that are teeth like and they come at you in a bold and scary way. I've been a little scared while on a bike, so I don't see what a little kid is supposed to do. Kids not able to go to the beach? Kids afraid to walk down by the lake? That's no way to live.
By the way, the geese are fiercely protective of their own young... of which they have a lot.
Oh, what's the big deal?
"Initially, a private citizen offered to donate the $5,000 the kills will cost, but rescinded the offer when the city couldn't guarantee his anonymity."
Smart man.
Give me a supply of steel shot, and I will personally tend to the city's goose problem.
They really are beautiful birds. The ones here in Northern Virginia are quite bright, too. I live near a regional park with a lake, and I see them flying overhead on their way to the petting zoo -- ready to scarf up any loose grain and feed that the hoofed animals leave behind. They seem to know precisely when feeding time is.
Sometimes a flock will land in the neighborhood and start munching grass and depositing poop. When they're in the yard I'll come out on my deck and the flock will waddle out of the yard, honking as they go. What's surprising is that they seem to know precisely where the boundaries are and they'll stop just outside them. Then the couple geese on sentry duty just look at me as though to say "okay, we're out of your yard, buster, so you can just bug off."
The geese can be aggressive, as the little boy next door found out when he chased them waving his little plastic sword.
@Professor, back to undergraduate biology class for you! The last bird with teeth died out at the end of the Cretaceous.
For being birdbrains, Canadians are relatively smart and have no trouble adapting to live with our "human" environments.
Like deer and coyotes, there are now more of them than there ever was "naturally," and that is only going to get worse.
But by all means get rid of them. Or learn to appreciate the fine art of dying from virulent strains of E. coli. The Germans can fill you in on the details.
these geese fouled an old favorite fishing hole of mine..apparently goose poop creates algae, who knew?
also here in Maryland we make delicious jerky and sausage out of them..they are a pest.
Canadian geese are beautiful creatures who deserve to live on this planet as much as any other speices. They were thought to be extinct in 1950, until a flock was discovered in Minnesota in 1962. Wouldn't it be awful if they became close to extintion again?
Is this commentator insane?
Why not just allow people to shoot them with airrifles. You can kill a goose if you shoot them in the head and after some harassment, trust me, the others will move on.
Giving those of us with shotguns the opportunity to shoot them too.
Canada geese are inefficient mechanisms for converting grass into toxic waste. They should be eliminated.
Phil 3:14--I hear they don't like beaver at P-Town too. Titus can fill you in.
Last time I was in Lake Tahoe, I took an early morning run [if you can call what I do running] around a lakeside golf course. It was full of the disgusting droppings. I was shocked though to hear of this E-coli in the water- that should sway public opinion in favor of mass murder of these dirty birds. And who the hell will miss them when they are gone?
wv = slownip = plastic surgeon who charges by the minute
Count me in with those who see resident geese as vermin.
You need more coyotes and golden eagles.
I don't care for the geese and think they are gross.
I didn't know people swam in the lakes in Madison.
I don't think I have seen swimmers in Madison, except minority children, natch.
My spaniels kick the crap out of them when they venture into their territory. They honk and waddle just until the spaniels reach them and flutter into the air to escape. Some are not quick enough and the spaniels nail them as they flutter up. Like all geese, they are greasy, but tasty if cooked correctly and you like dark meat. I say kill them and feed them to people who are hungry. They crap all over everything. I'm in Central IL and we never had them around when I grew up. Now they inhabit drainage ditches and every small pond. I don't mind the migratory geese and ducks in the fall as they consume grain left in the fields after harvest which is of some benefit. These other jokers just float and waddle around and are up to no good, mainly just procreating, eating, and crapping. What a life.
You are not going to eliminate Canada geese any more than you are coyotes and prairie dogs.
But free hunting will help to reduce them to manageable levels, maybe.
Who will miss them? Hunters and also states and the federal government that extract fees from hunters. In addition the makers of shotguns, steel shot, and really warm clothing makers. Not to mention the folks that build geese calls.
I'm not in favor of killing them all. I am in favor of culling them.
Canadian geese are the Teachers union among birds.
You can harass the geese in the public parks areas and "encourage" them to leave for greener pastures. It won't make them go extinct no matter how many crocodile tears Mr. Trimball sheds.
If you want geese come and get some from our area....please. They flock here by the thousands, perhaps even hundreds of thousands. Snow Geese, Canadian Geese, Ross Geese, Swans (I know, not geese but tons of them as well). They make so much noise in the wild rice fields below the bluff that our house is on, that we can hardly think or sleep.
Beautiful to look at and nasty when they take up residence on the golf course or defecate in the rivers and ponds.
Canadian Geese are good to eat. Also Ross Geese. Snow Geese not so much. Swans....um.....nevermind...illegal :-)
Canadian geese, yum.
Canadian geese - the other white meat.
I like the "rats" analogy. At a property owner's meeting once, this person on my committee (a public school teacher, BTW) said she wished Canada geese would live in our community pond; she seemed a little upset when I strongly opposed and referred to geese as "rats with feathers."
Yeah, if you're gonna cook the things one has to be sure to prick the skin well all over to let all the fat drain out during the roasting/cooking process..we always have a Christmas Goose rather than Turkey,, as there is just the two of us, so have a lot of experience in "Cooking someone's Goose." lol. (BTW my wife, a S. Louisiana "Creole Queen" [and NOT in Titus' way, lol]from Opelousas does a DYNAMITE carbnet savingnon, and raspberry/cranberry sauce for the goose!)
They were thought to be extinct in 1950, until a flock was discovered in Minnesota in 1962
My BS meter just went off the charts.
There are way too many of them, and they are way too prominent (easily noticed by people) for that to be true.
Eco-liars practice Taqiyaa the same way radical Muslims do: they figure it's okay to lie because their cause is just
Curious George: tell the greenskeeper to invest in a swan or two, then clip their wings.
If there's anything those geese fear, it's a robust swan.
'Course, the swan also craps, but certainly not the volume of dozens and dozens of those PITA geese.
Kids not able to go to the beach? Kids afraid to walk down by the lake? That's no way to live.
In liberal la-la land, geese are FAR more important the human children. I guess liberal kids don't play outside.
Oh that's right - liberals don't have kids. That would impede their "lifestyle" choices.
The Great Canada Goose, a sub-species of the Canada Goose, is what allegedly almost went extinct. There were plenty of the others which will take to migrating again if they are eliminated from area golf courses and parks.
I wish a lot of these geese would peck the guy to death. I love nothing more than bear eats bear lover stories or beauties drowned by killer whales. The animals are never blamed. Fascinating and fantastic.
Madison should take a page from the Simpsons and introduce the geese' natural predator. Then when the predators run amok, introduce the predators' predators. Ad infinitum.
And I just realized I have to quacking clue what the proper plural possessive of "goose" is. Geese'? Geese's? Geeses'? Goose's?
When I eat a wild goose, I generally skin it (I hate plucking and it reduces the gaminess) and put it either under bacon in the oven (being careful not to overcook) or in the slow cooker which makes a pretty good soup.
"I didn't know people swam in the lakes in Madison."
Rent a paddleboard at Lake Wingra and go out into the middle of the lake. Swim from there.
A golf course in Illinois that I used to pay when I was staying in Chicago, gradually became infested with geese. When I was a teenager, I played that course every day (my father had a driving range nearby) and never saw a goose. About ten a ago, I noticed that the course now had a small sheep dog, maybe a sheltie mix, and it would chase the geese all day. There seemed to be fewer of them. The next year, the dog was gone. Some environmentalist or PETA member complained.
The geese were ruining a beautiful course I had played for 50 years. I quit playing golf about 5 years ago so haven't had a recent update.
Geese are good eating if cooked properly. I've spent many hours in blinds in southern California looking for them and for ducks.
Sounds like you need some coyotes.
http://urbancoyoteresearch.com/Justin's%20Masters%20Thesis.pdf
Then the human element is removed and it is all natural, like an asteroid strike. But be sure to keep your cats and small dogs inside.
All of God's creatures deserve to live. Like, you know, Bacillus anthracis or (if virus are living) variola major.
They are all part of Gaia's wisdom.
Yeah, if you're gonna cook the things one has to be sure to prick the skin well all over to let all the fat drain out during the roasting/cooking process.
Wild ducks and geese do not have the fat that domestic birds have. They are very lean. You actually want to ADD fats when cooking.
My favorite way for Canadian Geese is to breast the bird. Boneless breast meat. Pound with a meat mallet to tenderize. Marinate for several hours and either quick sautee or barbeque. Geese and duck should be cooked to a medium rare state. If you cook them well done, you might as well be eating old shoes.
A duck or goose ragout is also very good as it keeps moisture in the meat.
Canadians can be pests, and they're mean little buggers. I was working in the yard a few years back, and one snuck up and bit me on the calf. Hurt like hell, too.
Shoot'em and send'em to the land fill.
If you want to eat'em, deep frying is best. Same with turkeys. If you're not used to eating game, you won't like goose. It doesn't taste like chicken, or turkey--more like duck, but not as good.
If they live in Wisconsin they are American Canada geese. They would have to live north of the border to be Canadian Canada geese.
WV: nofoonc, and no foo, WI, I say.
The key is to simply grab them around the neck and twirl them around a couple times, then let go. Once you do that to their "leader" they become much less bold and aggressive.
Plus its kinda fun.
Free-range, farm-raised goose is absolutely delicious, much better than turkey in my opinion. I don't, however, really recommend Canada goose. The two times I've eaten it, it was unpleasantly gamy (and I generally like dark-fleshed game birds) and, though it was prepared by a knowledgeable cook, the texture was stringy, even in the breast.
When cooking goose, I recommend braising. I first brown it all over, then give it a good long braise in my enormous 19th century Dehillerin braisière.
The best thing about cooking (domestic) goose, however, is that you get a crock full of wonderful goose fat out of the deal!
Sounds like you need some coyotes.
.
.
.
But be sure to keep your cats and small dogs inside.
Not to mention toddlers.
It's seems we've forgotten everything we've learned.
Prior to the industrial revolution, EVERYONE knew that wild game had to hang for a couple days to cure-
tenderizes and takes the gamey taste out, making it succulent and tasty.
Pretty much goes for all meats...
"Canadian geese are beautiful creatures who deserve to live on this planet as much as any other speices. They were thought to be extinct in 1950, until a flock was discovered in Minnesota in 1962. Wouldn't it be awful if they became close to extintion again?"
Thought to be extinct? Wow, they sure populated fast! I bet they were no where near extinction!
Kind of reminds me of my sister who didn't want me shooting pretty deer. Cows were ok to kill and eat as they were, uh, ugly, but little old Bambi? Nosirreee!
I wonder if Obamacare is gonna make that distinction. 'Beautiful people get to live, ugly ones die... Onward Progressives!
BTW, my sister did vote for Obama. She now eats crow instead of cow.
I'm not sure what kind of geese visit the lake in our county park every year. I thought they were Canada geese, but they seem migratory since they don't stay. The portions of the shore line they prefer are so littered with goose crap you can't move without stepping on it.
Yes, they are fit to eat. They need proper cooking as their meat is tougher than turkey or chicken. The touchy - feely, Disney cartoon world, liberals need to get over it. Humans are part of nature too, and part of our role is as a predator.
It's actually healthy for the species to kill off some to prevent over population. Deer in parks often die from starvation in harsh winters because of population. The Smoky Mountains National Park has hired professional hunters to cull deer and boar populations on occasion.
The geese are pretty and pretty nasty. Kill off a bunch of them.
Young geese are good when roasted, or braised. Older geese not so much. According to the USGS, the last banded goose I shot turned out to be 12 years old!
We just breast them out, and take the thigh meat, as well. That's about it on a Canada. It all goes into the freezer, and when we have 10-15 pounds it's off to the venison processor who turns it into delicious smoked sausage. It's as good as venison sausage.
Imagine this scene from Door Conty at Monona park. It could be a lot of fun!
The Giant Canada Goose subspecies was believed to be extinct in the 1950s until, in 1962, a small flock was discovered wintering in Rochester, Minnesota,... http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canada_Goose
A sub-species was believed to be extinct.
It also says Canada geese are migratory although "In North America, non-migratory Canada Goose populations have been on the rise."
Kind of reminds me of my sister who didn't want me shooting pretty deer. Cows were ok to kill and eat as they were, uh, ugly, but little old Bambi? Nosirreee!
This attitude always bugs me, too. Cows only live to be eaten, milked or both. Deer run free. Very few end up being shot by hunters. More are killed being hit by cars. In Ohio deer cause more car accidents than drunk drivers. (We obviously need more stringent driver's tests for deer.) Venison is tasty and much healthier than beef or pork. Plus, you can hang their heads in your den or garage.
We will fight them on beaches, we will fight them on the golf courses, we will fight them in the parks, we shall fight them on the lawns. We will never surrender.
We have before us an ordeal of the most grievous kind. We have before us many, many long months of struggle and of suffering. You ask, what is our policy? I will say: It is to wage war, by sea, land, and air, with all our might and with all the strength that God can give us; to wage war against an amount of Goose Poop never surpassed in the dark, lamentable catalogue of Goose Poop. That is our policy.
You ask, what is our aim? I can answer in six words: It is victory over Goose poop, victory at all costs, victory in spite of all wimpy progressive Goose love, victory, however long and hard the road may be.
Tasty tasty geese.
It's not "kill," the word you are looking for is "harvest."
Look, these geese could be our salvation. When the petroleum economy collapses and oil based fertilizers are gone, we will need an alternative to feed the teeming masses. The South American guano deposits are depleted and the windjammers that used to take the stuff to market are long gone. Prodigious quantities of goose poop will be our salvation, and best of all, its a locally produced resource.
is it canadian geese or canada geese? I know its not canada dry.
joewxman,
It's Grey Goose and you can mix that with Canada Dry with a lime twist (only a Philistine would do w/out the twist) for a nice refreshing afternoon cocktail.
It's Canada Geese. Or simply Canadas.
I nominate Ann Althouse to head the Canadian Geese Death Panel. She could line them up on Bicycle trails and run them down while Meade picks off any strays that get airborne. Just don't kill the AFLAC Duck by mistake.
Canada Geese like manicured lawns down to the water's edge. You want to keep the Canadas out and welcome the Mallards? Let the flora grow tall at water's edge. The Mallards like it because they can hide. The Canadas don't like tall flora because they think something can sneak up on them.
wv: bosibl
Protect the geese, but sacrifice the [virginal] human life? What a demented cult.
Does this deviant mentality derive from Aztec influence or a conservation of traditional pagan rituals?
Whatever happened to the innate need to increase the fitness of the species. When did humans decide that preservation of other species was a priority over preserving their own?
I may be naive, or deceived, but I thought increasing the viability of our species was the goal.
It's an odd thing to witness when individuals deny both God and nature. Seriously, what is the alternative?
Until we identify a reasonable balance, that does not compromise the viability of our species, it would seem rational to preserve human life first and other species second.
Canada geesedon't have teeth made of bone, but they do have serrations (for all practical purpoes, teeth) made of strong cartilage.
Here's a pic at http://cdn.webecoist.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/09/Bird_Teeth_1b.jpg
kimsch:
Avoiding mortal measures through mitigating actions would be the preferred alternative. Assuming the action is economically feasible, it should be considered.
I bet Virgil Xenophon would help me and my Bofors take care of the problem.
Farpl!, as my word verification for this post says.
FARPL! Battle cry of the Althouse Anti-Goosers!
Geese are known for spreading the bacterium campylobachter through their poop. We live in coastal Connecticut and one of our sons contracted this diarrhea-inducing bacteria twice during the Summer when he was two years old. The state health department got involved on concern it was a food contamination outbreak. Eventually, the elder statesman of pediatricians in Town pointed out the goose poop link. Most likely our son, while playing in our yard which was poop spinkled, touched his shoe soles and then put his hands in his mouth. Viola!
More here: http://aem.asm.org/cgi/reprint/74/11/3583.pdf
I often work in Denver, and Canada geese swarm the area during the winter months. They might be OK if 95% of them were culled. As it is, there are far too many, and they crap all over. I despise them.
When I was a kid, my father had the bright idea of getting a couple of geese, supposedly to keep the grass down. Boy, was that a mistake! They were viciously mean. After 2-3 months, they mysteriously vanished. I'm sure my father took them out and shot them.
What I see happening here is the domestication of canada geese, with farms being established for the raising, slaughter, and processing of the animals. Goose for Christmas dinner, and turkeys for Thanksgiving.
hahaha im so glad you all are getting so worked up over the goose issue! and its MISS TRIMBELL to you!
the goose slaughter is asinine. its not gonna solve anything. alternative methods should be sought to solve the goose "problem". and yes, if you are gonna murder something, it should then be eaten....and comparing geese to rats is completely moronic....just because this blogger ann is a nazi against certain species on the planet doesnt mean they should die. its a bunch of crap...who are you GOD ANN ALTHOUSE??
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