Decoy dogs used to scare geese away from golf course

Canada geese looking for a free lunch on the putting greens of an Elk's Lodge golf course in Salisbury, Maryland, have a new obstacle in their path. Strategically placed on the nine-hole course are silhouettes of dogs, designed to pivot with the wind, making them seem more real to the birds.

The course has three of the wooden decoys at this time and places them on greens near the water. "They have worked. I was not a believer until I saw it with my own eyes," said David Reichenberg, the course manager.



The golf course, next to the Salisbury Zoological Park, has ponds and grasses that make it attractive to geese grazing. The birds' droppings disrupt putting, and the birds eat up grasses by the root, Reichenberg said, adding there has been a 95 percent reduction in the number of geese on the greens since the decoys were installed about two weeks ago.

A member made the decoys after hearing of their use at several PGA Tour courses. "We're hearing from people the trick is to move them around. We put a black and white plastic bag in their mouth to make them look more ferocious," Reichenberg said.