Re:Quick-Thinking Cop Captures Runaway Peacock
by hodgesrm on Wednesday May 20, 2020 @12:02AM
(#23243169)
Geese can be nasty. There's a famous story in Livy about how they helped defend the Capitoline fortress in Rome from besieging Gauls who had defeated the Romans on the Allia around 390 BC. [1] It made an impression on the Romans at least, who were not easily impressed but also enjoyed a good yarn.
[1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Battle_of_the_Allia#Account_of...
Re:Quick-Thinking Cop Captures Runaway Peacock
by takk309 on Wednesday May 20, 2020 @01:08AM
(#23243465)
You are right that a good kick will usually do the trick. However, a good bite to the calf from a goose, even with pants on, can be very painful. As a kid we had some domestic geese and the male was some sort of demon creature with serious anger issues. On multiple occasions it attacked me when I would be feeding the geese. While his bill was not too large, if he got purchase he would then do what I referred to as the death roll. He would twist his head around and put the weight of his body into the roll. I got a couple of good sized welts from that demon. He was a master of the sneak attack.
I think people wildly overestimate how much damage a bird can do to a human. In the example you've given, it looks like the only reason he was "losing" was because he wasn't willing to attack the bird in retaliation, presumably because nobody wants to be the guy caught on camera beating up wildlife. [cost of getting "attacked" by a bird and being temporarily embarrassed] < [cost of being seen beating up a bird]
If push comes to shove, I'd imagine these birds can be effectively fended off by simply kicking them. The risk of injury should be low because their mouths aren't big enough to bite human legs, and if you're wearing pants you have complete protection from scratches/bites. If you're feeling bold you can even try something like this: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Br0bDZmNsW8.