It is pretty easy to find videos of geese standing their ground or even straight up attacking bigger animals, usually cows. Why does it work?
As far as I know, geese don’t have bright colors indicating venom, or big fangs, big talons, super lound cries. Where does this intimidation come from? Why do animals avoid them at all?
Would I, a human, be able to scare the sh*t out of a herd of cows by opening my arms and screaming at them too?
Example: [Geese scaring a few cows](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wyc580u5elc)
In: Biology
I used to raise mute swans. They can snap your femur if they wanted. I’m sure a Canada Goose could do some damage if it really wanted to.
I don’t know if you’ve ever been attacked by a goose. But they are mean motherfuckers and they can hurt you. Plus zero fear, a 5′ wingspan, and usually hang out in gangs. That strategy also tends to work for humans wanting to intimidate others.
I think cows dont really care about humans because they’ve been around them for so long. However most wild cats, you are not supposed to turn your back on them. You are supposed to make yourself appear big and throw rocks if you can to appear as a threat
If you look like you know how to handle yourself in a fight and approach someone accordingly the average person will back down. It also helps to understand tone of voice.
Well, in the video you linked to, its not really because the cattle is scared. Its more like a little brother nagging the older brother, but the older brothers knows hes gonna get in trouble if he hits the little brother, so he kinda fucks off.
But, the way geese usually scare other animals, is by making themselves larger, usually by spreading their wings out. With those wings, they have a pretty mean slap, and along with their teeth (they have pretty sharp teeth) they can bite themselves out of many situations.
You as a human could do the same to scare away bigger things, just think of how dudes puff their chests when fronting other dudes. Its to become bigger and scarier.
I’m no animal behavior expert, but no animal wants to get injured. If you have nothing to gain from a fight, probably best to not get in a fight with something that is aggressive. If you can come up with a convincing display or sound, many animals aren’t gonna fuck with you. Note that I said *many*.
Most animals even predators are scared of humans. They would rather retreat. Geese arnt scared. They will attack they dont retreat. This is true for several animals. Emus and moose off the top of my head.
Most animals, especially those that don’t hunt, generally really can not be bothered with conflict. So if you make loud enough noises, act that you are bigger than you are, and act aggressive, they’ll back off. Why? Because… They’d rather be somewhere else doing something else than dealing with you.
There’s a group somewhere in Africa that “hunts” by walking up to Lions and stealing their kills. They carry themselves with so much confidence that even lions don’t fuck with them. I could probably find the video but I’m sure it’s easy enough to find using Google.
Geese bite hard and their beaks have serrated edges so they can bite off chunks of flesh if they get really mad. Also they have strong wings and have been known to break a person’s arm just by flapping into them. They can be herded by waving arms, flapping clothing, clapping and loud noises. Waving a stick at them also works but hitting them with a stick can make them furious. Hot tip, when herding geese with a stick, point the stick where you don’t want the geese to go; otherwise just hold it vertically in front of you with your hands at chest height and let it swing from side to side.
You definitely can herd cows (and sheep, horses, goats etc) by waving your arms at them and making a lot of noise. ***DO NOT TRY THIS WITH A BULL OR A STALLION especially if you are between bull/stallion and a female of the species.*** Bulls and stallions generally have massively developed shoulders and necks.
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