SHAWANO, WI (WTAQ)- The Shawano Park and Rec Committee is ruffling a few feathers as they are learning solving a messy situation, is no walk in the park.
Matt Hendricks said it is the inability to take that walk in the park that is the problem.
Canada Geese in Shawano parks may look nice, but what they leave behind does not.
“It’s a health issue, but it is not the goose itself.”
The average Canada Goose leaves behind one to two pounds of fecal matter each day. Most of that is ending up on grass and sidewalks in the park.
Park and Recreation Director Matt Hendricks says his committee is looking into a round-up permit which would result in ultimately, euthanizing the geese in June, but it is not being received well in the community.
He says they have tried other ways.
“You harass them to the point to where they leave the current location. We have done that. We found that it works for about the first month or so, but then the geese just get used to it.”
So far, the department has purchased lights that are supposed to scare the geese away and have put up decoys that are shaped like animals. Hendricks said it is the same result, it does not work long.
The Park and Recreation Committee members are getting guidance from the DNR and other communities who have experienced the same problem, but Hendricks says they have to start somewhere.
“We know this is not a long term solution, but it does provide a short term window in which we can help implement some of the non-lethal measures.”
The Park and Rec Committee will hold a public meeting in April for people to express their concerns, opinions or offer other options.
“I think we will wait to make a decision until after that meeting. Nothing is a done deal until it happens.”
If the round-up plan goes through, it will take place in June when the geese are molting and are unable to fly.
The committee is also exploring the option of oiling the eggs in the goose nests, which prevents the eggs from ever hatching, but that too comes with criticism and road blocks.
Hendricks said the committee was informed that because Shawano does not have a simple waterway system, it may be hard to locate all of the nests.
