East Grand Rapids employing unusual technique to keep geese at bay
By Madison Bennett | MLive
Those visiting John Collins Park this summer may spot East Grand Rapids' most unusual city employee.
Grace, a border collie, works to reduce the park's geese problem by chasing them away. This is the city's second year utilizing Grace.
Jill Hendrickson, Grace's owner, has been running her business, Webs and Paws, for two years. The duo works at about four or five locations in the Grand Rapids area, Hendrickson said.
"She loves the work; for her it's play," Hendrickson said.
One of the job sites is East Grand Rapids' John Collins Park, where an overflow of goose droppings caused the city to come in contact with Hendrickson and her goose-chasing dog.
"Canadian geese like to find manicured, green space to eat, and when it's nice and open like John Collins Park, it allows them to see any potential predators coming their way," said Fred Bunn, EGR Parks and Recreation director.
One goose can drop one to one and a half pounds of excrement in the park per day, according to Bunn, and when you have up to 80 geese in the park, it can add up to more than 100 pounds of droppings.
Bunn had researched different methods of dealing with the geese problem, including noise makers, dog statues, and streamers, but none of them seemed feasible for a public park, until he came across the use of border collies.
"Grace basically is like introducing a predator back to the area," said Phil Weber, grounds maintenance supervisor for EGR.
Grace and Hendrickson even go as far as getting into the water to scare the geese off. While Grace swims out chasing the geese, Hendrickson will jump on a paddle board and join her.
to keep geese at bay
Jill Hendrickson and Grace at Collins Park in East Grand Rapids playing fetch. Karen Waite | Mlive.com (Karen Waite)
By Madison Bennett | mbennet2@mlive.com
on May 26, 2017 at 9:00 AM, updated May 26, 2017 at 9:06 AM
Jill Hendrickson and Grace at Collins Park in East Grand Rapids. Karen Waite | Mlive.comKaren Waite
Those visiting John Collins Park this summer may spot East Grand Rapids' most unusual city employee.
Grace, a border collie, works to reduce the park's geese problem by chasing them away. This is the city's second year utilizing Grace.
Jill Hendrickson, Grace's owner, has been running her business, Webs and Paws, for two years. The duo works at about four or five locations in the Grand Rapids area, Hendrickson said.
"She loves the work; for her it's play," Hendrickson said.
One of the job sites is East Grand Rapids' John Collins Park, where an overflow of goose droppings caused the city to come in contact with Hendrickson and her goose-chasing dog.
"Canadian geese like to find manicured, green space to eat, and when it's nice and open like John Collins Park, it allows them to see any potential predators coming their way," said Fred Bunn, EGR Parks and Recreation director.
One goose can drop one to one and a half pounds of excrement in the park per day, according to Bunn, and when you have up to 80 geese in the park, it can add up to more than 100 pounds of droppings.
Bunn had researched different methods of dealing with the geese problem, including noise makers, dog statues, and streamers, but none of them seemed feasible for a public park, until he came across the use of border collies.
"Grace basically is like introducing a predator back to the area," said Phil Weber, grounds maintenance supervisor for EGR.
Grace and Hendrickson even go as far as getting into the water to scare the geese off. While Grace swims out chasing the geese, Hendrickson will jump on a paddle board and join her.
Grace and Hendrickson visit the park five times a week. Their season starts on March 15 and runs until Dec. 31.
Hendrickson, a Grand Rapids resident, graduated from Cornerstone University, where she worked on the grounds.
"My boss was like, 'What do you want to do with your life?" she said, and that's when the business idea was brought to her.
Hendrickson had purchased Grace from a woman in North Carolina, who trains dogs specifically for the geese-chasing work.
At the time, she already had a few clients when she sent a cold email to the city, which led her to Bunn and Weber.
"The population (of geese) was such that the amount of droppings they were leaving in the park was truly becoming a nuisance," Bunn said.
They had been fighting the issue for nearly five years, according to Bunn, and it had left Weber and his team having to dedicate too many man hours cleaning up the waste.
"We had been struggling to find something that would assist us," Bunn said.
The city is paying $2,394 for Grace's services for the 2017 season.
In addition to Grace, Weber said they use a product called Scram, which is a mix of spices that can upset the geese's stomach when ingested.
While Bunn and Weber said that park-goers should still expect some droppings from the geese, Grace has helped reduce that amount dramatically.
The difference has been "night and day," Weber said. "It's been a big burden off of us."
This story originally appeared May 26, 2017 on MLive.com.