How to Get Rid of Canada Geese on a Golf Course

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A dog abatement program, with Border Collies or similar, is a great way to keep Geese off a golf course!

As much as you may not wish to hear it, there is no one-size-fits all magic remedy for a nuisance wildlife problem, and this is definitely the case with rather larger animals, such as the Canada goose. This bird can get really big in the right conditions, and with real size, comes real strength. The males, called gander, are bigger than their female counterparts. The females can weigh in between 2.5 to 5.5 kg, with the males at 3 kg to 6 or 7 kg. This species is well known to be the largest goose species across the globe.



As well as being the largest of all bird species, it’s also probably one of the most adaptable. It doesn't mind living alongside humans, and has actually started to do it a little too well. The fact that we’re feeding them doesn’t help. We should stop doing that. In fact, if you have a problem with the geese on your property, making sure you're not feeding them is the first thing you should do.

Many geese will give up on one particular area if they can’t rely on the handouts of humans to subsidize what they find to eat themselves. We have been feeding these birds for a long time. They know us as the animal who sometimes brings food now, and almost always gives it to them when they peck, honk, or flap their massive wingspans in our direction. Human food actually lacks nutritional content for these animals, so feeding them is counterproductive anyway.

If you live in an area close to water, you will need to make doubly sure you're protecting your property. You do not want to have a nesting pair of geese on your land. They will be angry and defensive, and this puts you, your children, and even your pets in danger. If you remove the long grasses or shrubs that give them cover and food, they won't have a reason to set up a nest there. They will be encouraged to move along. This is a good trick for any wild animal invasion — have a good tidy up and make sure you're not providing these creatures with food or a home. Those are the two things they look for the most.

Barriers and fencing can be installed, but these have shown to be most effective when they are installed before the bird has encroached on your land, not after. What they can be used for, however, is to break up the “landing strip”. These are bird birds, and quite awkward and lumbering ones on land sometimes too. They require a wide and open space that is about thirty feet or so in width to be able to safely land, and also safely graze. If you have a wide open space like that, and barriers aren't effective at keeping flying birds out of it, you can try to use barriers to break up the open space instead.

Geese really don't like anything other than open space, so by making sure you don’t have lots of that, you can make sure they aren’t looking to land on your land. You can use some clever design work to make your yard or property an un-landable spot.

Sticking with the theme of fencing, you could always look at using electric fencing, or even netted room/grid style structures to protect your land. Electric fencing can work well around the perimeter, but obviously won’t stop the bird from flying in. You can use the barrier method for that. The point is to make a hazard for when these birds are in flight. If they can’t easily land there, they won’t. That’s flying out the way, so now you just need to figure things out at ground level. Luckily, something that is around two to three feet in height will work quite well at keeping them out.

Read my How to Get Rid of Canada Geese on a Golf Course guide.
For more information, you may want to click on one of these guides that I wrote:
How much does bird removal cost? - get the lowdown on prices.
How to get rid of birds - my main bird removal info guide.
Example bird removal photographs - get do-it-yourself ideas.
Bird job blog - learn from great examples of bird jobs I've done.