Letter to the Editor: And Then There Were Ten

by

Photo credit: Pam Reeves

My husband and I live in The Beach in Toronto. Still vibrating from the fallout, sadness and ever-widening Boston bombing story, we were delighted and inspired by a wonderful experience we had in Oakville today. Let me share it with you.

Heading into your wonderful library, my husband and I saw a small group of people watching a young man release a baby gosling on the back lawn. Within seconds, a pair of Canada geese swooped down from the roof of the swimming pool and began to check out the newborn. While one of the adults smelled the infant, the other began to push and peck at it and just as quickly, the young man gently picked up the gosling and placed it back into a grass filled carton.

It turned out that the young man, Dan Pazderer  and his colleague Brad Fielding were officers from The Oakville and Milton Humane Society and they had been summoned by residents who had found the very young goose walking aimlessly near the river. Goslings of this age are not usually away from their parents and these men had to find a family for the baby. Time was running out.

Hours before, my husband and I had seen a family of 9 feathery babies with their parents proudly skimming the waters along Sixteen Mile Creek. We told the officers and immediately they took off to try to locate this goose family, which they did.

When the entourage of geese came close enough to shore, the young officer, Dan skillfully slipped the orphaned gosling into the group of goslings and off swam the newly enlarged goose family, Mother, Father and all.

Dan explained that geese have so many babies that the parents do not count them and so the adoptive baby will be raised as one of the mother’s own.

It was thrilling to watch and apparently these Humane Society rescues happen several times annually in Oakville. The day before the officers had rescued an entire goose family, with ten babies, from the roof of a city building.

This is just a day in the life of this wonderful organization who have the interests of our wildlife at heart.

It was a thrilling day for all of us in attendance. Well done boys!!!! Very impressive!! We are even sending a donation to show our thanks. 

It restores our faith in humanity and showcases all that is good in mankind, !!!!

Bob and Pam Reeves

Toronto, Ontario