GOOSE BUSTERS CANADA GOOSE CONTROL GOOSE BUSTERS 1997 Started - - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

GOOSE BUSTERS

CANADA GOOSE CONTROL

GOOSE BUSTERS

• 1997 Started Business– Goose removal only –

5 sites, 822 geese removed–avg. 164 per site

• 1998 Became sole proprietor
• 1999 Added Nest Destruction
• 2011 Added Dog Hazing
• 2013 – 138 GR sites - 4162 geese relocated
• avg. 30 per site, 134 ND sites – 803 nests and

3,784 eggs, 22 dog sites

CANADA GEESE

• Federally Protected Migratory Bird
• Must have permits to handle
• Must be licensed to handle
• Live 20-25 years
• Able to have babies for 15-17 years
• Come back to where they learn to fly
• Mate for “life”

HOW CAN WE CATCH THE GEESE?

• In June Canada Geese molt
• Molting is where the geese lose their flight

feathers – rendering them flightless (most of them)

• The juvenile geese do not have their flight

feathers yet

• In late June / early July, the adults re-grow their

flight feathers and the juvenile geese grow their flight feathers

• Both the adults and juvenile then “learn” to fly

together

SERVICES GOOSE BUSTERS OFFER

• Goose Removal
• Nest Destruction
• Dog Hazing
• Lawn Spraying (Flight Control Plus)
• Stringing Ponds

AREAS GOOSE BUSTERS SERVICE

WHAT IS GOOSE REMOVAL

• Goose Busters arrive onsite with 1-2 crews (4-

5 people per crew)

• Goose Busters set up a “catch” pen
• Goose Busters herd (walk, kayak, run, etc…)

the geese to catch pen

• Goose Busters pick the geese out by hand and

put into trailers

• Goose Busters drive away with all your geese

WHAT IS NEST DESTRUCTION

• Nest Destruction is the process in which the

State allows you to legally remove the goose eggs from the nest.

• Open to anyone in Oakland, Wayne, or

Macomb counties

• Must “qualify” for program elsewhere

WHAT IS DOG HAZING

• Dog Hazing is the process of removing geese

from sites with the assistance of trained dogs

• Geese think the dog is a predator – fly away
• No barking, wildly running around crazy dogs

– specially trained dogs that “stalk” the geese

TIMEFRAME FOR SERVICES

• Dog Hazing – Year round if have resident

geese, beginning of March – end of migration (end of November) for non-resident geese

• Nest Destruction – Middle to end of April,

when the geese have been on nests over 10 days, up until they hatch (28 days of incubation) – DNR mandated dates

• Goose Roundup – Middle of June until late

June – DNR mandated dates

DEADLINES FOR PERMITS

• Change from year to year
• 2014 :
• April 1 for nest destruction
• May 27 for goose roundup

CUSTOMERS WE SERVICE

• Lagoons
• State Parks
• County Parks
• Lakes
• Residential Communities
• Businesses
• Municipalities
• Retirement homes
• Apartment complexes
• Zoos
• Golf courses

WHY REMOVE GEESE OR EGGS?

• Waste products add nutrients like BOD

(Biochemical Oxygen Demand), Ammonia, and Phosphorus.

• Nutrients cause Algal Bloom – which die and

sink causing additional oxygen demand.

• Waste also adds to fecal coliform bacteria

count – most lagoons don’t remove. – End up in rivers.

WHY REMOVE GEESE OR EGGS?

• Nuisance
• Step in feces – slippery/dirty
• Nesting mothers attack employees
• Bring duck weed and other nuisance plants

with them from other locations

WHY REMOVE GEESE OR EGGS?

• Consume up to 4 pounds of grass a day –

which is 3-4 pounds of fecal matter per goose per day.

• Feces is 76% Carbon, 4.4% Nitrogen, and 1.3%

Phosphorus – which cause harmful algae blooms

• Attract predators

HOW CAN YOU CONTROL GEESE?

• Hire Goose Busters!
• We come out in mid June and remove all

geese that are onsite and relocate throughout the State

• If you have relocation in 3 of 5 years with an

average of 25 geese removed per year, you can then participate in the nest destruction program

DO THE GEESE RETURN?

• We relocate all geese onsite that can be

caught

• The State of Michigan DNR states that…
• 0% of the goslings caught return – they return

to where they learn to fly – we catch them before this stage

• The following year – 60-80 % of adults may

return

• May get fall migration geese stopping in.

LAGOON EXPERIENCE

• YCUA – Ypsilanti, 1999 – 2005 Do own now.
• Sugar Springs – Butnam Township – 2008-present
• Genesee County – 2012
• Ann Arbor – 2012 Aggressive geese removal only

WHAT STEPS DO YOU HAVE TO TAKE?

• Request Goose Removal Permit from the

USDA

• Contact local DNR for approval
• Pay $200 permit fee from State
• Hire Goose Busters!

CONTACT INFORMATION

• Goose Busters
• 800-521-8777
• www.goosebusters.net
• E-mail: Goose_Busters@yahoo.com
• Business cards at booth

QUESTIONS??