An official hazer of geese at work for the Bend Park & Recreation District. (Bulletin file)

The geese of Drake Park add so much to the park experience. 

The gaggle is like a house guest who is reluctant to migrate, poops on the floor, sounds the alarm and may chase you around the house.

Even a scourge of mosquitoes, at least, want you.

The Bend Park & Recreation District’s board is scheduled to review the district’s geese approach on Tuesday. 

“First documented in the 1930’s, conflicts with Canada geese occurred consistently throughout Drake Park’s history,” says a summary for the board meeting. “Large concentrations of geese cause damage to the turf, create riverbank erosion, and leave excessive feces.”

A park district employee “spends about 50 percent of their time conducting goose management at a cost of about $20,000 a year. In addition, the Landscape Division spends approximately $5,000 per year cleaning up after geese.”

The geese of Drake Park have politely declined to leave, despite the park district trying many strategies. Park district staff worked with wildlife biologists. There was the gassing in 2010. That killed 109 geese. A surge of protest has meant that strategy has been off the table. Officials oil goose eggs so they don’t hatch. Dogs have been designated to harass them, officially. 

We’d urge the district to continue to pursue alternatives to gassing them. 

The Drake Park geese are another beautiful part of nature whose habitat we crave to savor for ourselves, without any inconveniences. Many of us do walk around in winter with geese effectively stuffed in our coats. Perhaps, they are getting back at us, as best they can.