Fake Coyote Wards Off Geese, Amuses Followers Of Ossining Schools

OSSINING, NY — Ossining school officials have deployed an innovative, inexpensive tool in the never-ending fight against goose poop: a fake coyote.

The artificial coyote deterrent was brought in by Director of Facilities and Operations Jared Mance, who had success with it when he worked for the Onteora schools in Ulster County.

Canada geese are present in large numbers on fields and in parks across the region. Adults relieve themselves about every eight minutes. Wildlife experts say an average Canada goose produces a pound of waste a day.

As everyone knows, "It gets disgusting," Mance said.

In Onteora, a staff member had seen the coyote solution in a catalog and brought it to Mance. They bought some and they worked. "We put a couple out on the fields and it was immediate — the geese were gone," he told Patch.

So when Ossining's buildings and grounds crew was working on getting fields ready for spring athletics (which began Monday), and Mance noticed there was considerably more goose poop than he had seen before, he ordered two of the fake critters. "They're about $45, so it's a cheap investment," he said.

The phony coyote was placed on the baseball field behind Anne M. Dorner Middle School, and its photo posted Wednesday on the district's Facebook page had garnered 136 reactions and 17 shares by Thursday morning.

While he was surprised by the level of interest, Mance knew it would be best to let people know.

In Onteora, the coyotes disappeared one weekend. On Monday, Mance got a call from a police sergeant explaining that after the department had fielded phone calls from people worried about a sick coyote at the school, officers had gone out, found the fake beasts, and confiscated them thinking it was a kids' prank.

"I had to explain, and we had a good laugh," Mance recalled. "I said I'm not paying bail to get them back."

He knew they would eventually create a stir here as well, so he asked Ossining schools Superintendent Ray Sanchez to have something posted on social media.

There's only one coyote out there now, tucked into an unobtrusive corner. Just to keep the geese guessing, "We'll move it around, take it away and put it back," he said.