7.15.2009

Yeah, but is it Goose proof?

Picture: a pair of dirty jeans. Nothing spectacular, unless you realize that they were once clean jeans, hanging oh-so-innocently on the line to dry. Then came The Geese.

You see, if there's anything - and I mean just about anything - that is within reach of their nibbley pink beaks, it will be tasted, tugged, and gnawed. Line-drying laundry that hangs low enough to the ground is no exception. They'll watch the clothes swaying in the breeze, like a serpent to a snake charmer's brass horn, then streeeeeetch their necks to grab a hem. Next it's tug-tug-pull YOINK! A brief squawk of consternation as the clothing drops to the ground, then the item will be set upon: trampled, chewed, and probably poo'd upon. Then they'll get bored and leave it for awhile.

Outdoor furniture and the porch curtains are no exception to the chewing, either. Any natural or man-made fibers left unattended will be gnawed to threads in a few scant months. They've even pulled the rubber guards off the outside wheel wells on one of the cars. The only materials that can resist the destructive powers of the geese thus far are metal, concrete, and stiff water hoses. So around here, we don't ask ourselves whether or not something is dog proof. The question is, "is it goose proof?"

[pics: gnawed laundry, and the guilty parties.]

6 comments:

  1. And "will it blend"? (in a goose gizzard no doubt)

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  2. My geese make me laugh-but they are so, so naughty. I lost several of the little caps on their plastic gravity waterers before I just gave up and started using my finger instead.

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  3. Oh yeah, and I would love to find some pools other than the plastic baby ones-ours have a life span of no more than six months, what with the stomping and all.

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  4. @Sara: we plan on renting a backhoe and digging out a small pond hopefully this Fall. I plan to line it with bentonite clay, and put in a pond filter/pump to help keep it clean. So looking forward to not having to pump and refill pools every day!

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  5. Love to see that you also hang out your clothes.

    Anyway, I used to have that problem with our geese until we got the GSDs. Now they don't venture that close to the house anymore. But I can relate. Kids.

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  6. I've heard of goat-proof but goose proof is too funny!

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