A pair of geese have a nest near where I work, and recently, their goslings hatched. Naturally, people have been very interested in these goslings. So imagine my excitement when, while walking by a little pond on the way to my office, I saw three pairs of adult geese, all with goslings!
Unfortunately, the feeling was not mutual.
I want to say here that I was not trying to get close to the geese, take selfies with them, or anything like that. I simply wanted to walk on a path that was constructed primarily with humans in mind and maybe see the goslings on the way. But as I approached the area where the first pair of adult geese were hanging out with their goslings, one of the adults hissed* at me. I veered off the path into some mud to try to convince him/her** that I meant no harm. Having passed this first pair of geese, I passed by the second pair without incident. But then as I approached the end of the path, where the third pair of adult geese were with their goslings, another one of the adults hissed at me. I was in a quandary; I dared not backtrack for fear of angering the previous four adult geese I had passed, but I didn't have a good way to circumvent the goose who was angry at me at that moment. I teetered over a bunch of rocks to give the goose the human-free space it required.
When I headed back to the metro station at the end of the day, I took a different route and avoided the pond altogether. I have certainly altered my commutes to avoid other people who I find disagreeable, but this was my first time changing my commute to avoid animals who dislike me.
*I'm not sure if there is a technical term for the warning sound geese make, but it reminds me of a cat hissing.
**I have no idea how to determine a goose's sex, and I don't intend to get close enough to try.
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