An adult goose can produce as much as a kilo of poop every day, and those droppings can contaminate our water - and your property.
Some lake owners with lawns near the water are having some success at keeping the geese away from their favourite food: the grass.
We’ve created an action plan for the lake to minimize the damage. Take these steps to keep the geese off your property.

Geese want to escape into the water easily. They’ll be more likely to avoid your property if there are plants and shrubs that are tall enough to prevent them seeing over them.
Naturalization is good for the entire lake ecosystem! Dense, wide plantings are more effective than thin narrow ones, leave some paths for yourself. P
Use native shrubs like Dogwood, Bush Honeysuckle, Ninebark, and Buttonbush. The Ottawa RiverKeeper site has more plant suggestions that you could take to a local garden store: Shoreline Naturalization - OttawaRiverKeeper.ca

Fences and rope barriers must be at least half a meter tall and close to the water’s edge.
Successful approaches: lake owners are using big branches, ropes on stakes, ornamental edging (from the Dollar Store), plastic mesh fencing, wires down the middle of their rafts and other creative solutions that block the geese from walking up out of the water. Roll up your fence while you play, then put it back.
More fence and barrier ideas online at Environment Canada in the Managing Cackling Geese Handbook
Other ideas that seem to be helping: J.&C. put in swan decoys along with rope and metal fences, and S. installed an ‘Away with Geese’ light that flashes to disrupt geese sleeping patterns.

The adults are likely to leave early in the Spring, before they moult, if their nesting is not successful.
We searched for nests in May and early June but they were well hidden – two nests did succeed this year. Please watch for them next spring – the male goose stands sentinel.
Contact us at info@lacnotredame.org for help if you spot a nest and want help.