A wealthy California city is being overrun by geese which are clogging up its streets with 300lbs of feces per day.
Residents of Foster City in San Mateo County frequently struggle with the mess and strong odor left by the city’s population of 400 Canada geese.
Parks and open spaces in the otherwise ritzy city, where a typical home will set you back around $1.8 million, are now spattered with droppings.
The problem has been growing over the years, and is even sparking health concerns.
In 2022, a two-year-old was hospitalized after she put some goose feces in her mouth while playing in a park, her dad told the New York Times.
Meanwhile, the birds’ droppings are also contributing to high E. coli levels in parts of the local lagoon.
‘We are at the front lines of dealing with this issue,’ Derek Schweigart, Foster City’s parks and recreation director, insists.
Even though locals in this liberal Silicon Valley area are skeptical, some are considering drastic measures. “The birds have just taken over,” said Mark Beltran, who works in corporate finance in Silicon Valley and supports euthanizing the birds, believing it would help resolve the issue.
Foster City (pictured) is being overrun by geese which are clogging up its streets with 300lbs of feces per day
The birds’ droppings are also contributing to high E. coli levels in parts of the local lagoon
Residents of Foster City in San Mateo County frequently struggle with the mess and strong odor left by the city’s population of 400 Canada geese.
The problem has been growing over the years, and is even sparking health concerns (pictured: Buckets of collected goose droppings)
“This lovely place where we live can’t be used as it was meant to. I’m not advocating for killing birds, but for preserving our local environment,” another local expressed frustration.
When Foster City’s X shared a post last summer encouraging park-goers not to feed, provoke or approach Canada geese it prompted a furious response.
A resident expressed their exasperation by asking, “Can we hunt them instead? We have lovely parks, but they’re completely covered in goose droppings, which is terrible for those of us with children.”
But problems with the geese date further back than just last summer. The goose population doubled between 2020 and 2022, and so have the complaints.
Susan Lessin, who has lived in Foster City for 30 years and is part of the San Mateo County Bird Alliance, noted that the issue has escalated since the pandemic. People spent more time outside and quickly realized they had to watch their steps.
Raju Gadiraju, a biopharmaceutical executive, told the NYT he no longer lets his dog run off its leash because the dog ‘likes to eat geese droppings’
‘It’s just disgusting,’ he added.
With 24 parks and more than 160 acres of open space, there is plenty of room for the geese to play. There is also plenty of room for them to poop.
With 24 parks and more than 160 acres of open space, there is plenty of room for the geese to play in Foster City (pictured). There is also plenty of room for them to poop
The droppings do not clean easily – to get rid of the poop requires regular power washings
Parks and open spaces in the otherwise ritzy city, where a typical home will set you back around $1.8 million, are now spattered with droppings
The animals can also be dangerous and become particularly aggressive during nesting season. They have been known to chase off small dogs and children
Each goose can produce one or two pounds of droppings each day, which can seriously stack up.
To make matters worse, the droppings do not clean easily. To get rid of the poop requires regular power washings.
The animals can also be dangerous and become particularly aggressive during nesting season. They have been known to chase off small dogs and children.
Foster City officials took serious measures earlier this month. The city council approved a $400,000 contract with a wildlife company to deter the geese from habituating at seven ‘high impact’ parks.
This will involve measures such as using drones, balloons and dogs to scare – or ‘haze’ – the geese.
However, the contract only approved non-lethal measures to get rid of the birds.
Other San Mateo County locations with less open spaces and lagoons have far fewer Canada geese and far fewer geese-related problems.
Redwood Shores and Redwood City Port had fewer than 200 as of 2025, while San Mateo itself barely had 100.
The Daily Mail reached out to Foster City Council for comment.
