Border Collies, Bots Chase Littleton Geese From Parks

LITTLETON, CO -- Goose poop is a problem in Colorado green space, especially in mild winters with little snow. In Littleton's Clement Park, between 6-8,000 Canada geese congregate daily on the lake, leaving goose poop everywhere. Park officials worry that by spring the goose poop problem could be a crisis.

But, it turns out there's one thing that can dislodge a flock of geese: fear of a predator.

Call in the border collies. Trained collies from "Up and Away Goose Control" were on patrol Wednesday, contracted by Foothills Parks and Rec district, and filmed by Denver 7.

“The border collie is the most effective tool because it does mimic a natural predator of the goose,” Up and Away Owner Tim Eubank told the station. “We’re making the geese think that there’s a fox out there, that there’s a predator out there.” Eubank's also got a remote-control water bot that scares the birds out of the lake.

The idea is to urge the feathered flock to move elsewhere, hopefully a to wildlife area.

"Hazing" Canada geese with trained collies gets the PETA seal of approval as a way to manage goose control. Experts say February is the time to make geese feel unwelcome, when there are no goslings to protect.

The collies and bots have been patrolling the park this week, and park officials believe it's working, Channel 7 reported.

Watch the video of border collies at work above.

Image Screenshot via YouTube