Article content

Could the world’s most un-wily coyote be the answer to the Canada Geese problem in Ottawa’s premier parks?

Maybe, just maybe, we need a bird-brained idea to solve a nuisance most fowl.

We apologize, but this video has failed to load.

tap here to see other videos from our team. Try refreshing your browser, or EGAN: BOO! Coyote decoy used to spook Canada Geese in parks Back to video

At Andrew Haydon Park, the Ottawa River showcase in the city’s west end, the city is “employing” a decoy coyote to discourage geese from settling in, eating their faces off, then pooping all over the winding paths. Can’t take ’em out? Then fake ’em out!

He even has a name. On the edge of the pond by the bandshell, there is Cayou or Caillou — hard foam things can’t spell — standing at attention, his synthetic fur tail moving in the breeze. From a distance, he looks real enough. Up close, one can spot the moveable legs and ears, and a collar, which has fluorescent green stripes and the words “City of Ottawa” in magic marker.

Photo by Wayne Cuddington / Postmedia

He needs a collar, of course, so people don’t walk away with the static beast or rat him out to the coppers, which actually happened. The city reports that, only a few days ago, a bylaw officer was called to respond to the decoy, which looked as though it were left as a prank. They hauled poor Caillou away only to discover, within hours, that he belonged to the city.