Article Courtesy of WPLG
Channel 10 News
By Saira Anwer and Roy Ramos
Published December 15, 2021
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WATCH VIDEO |
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MIRAMAR – Residents of a Coconut Shores neighborhood inside Miramar’s Silver
Lakes community are upset over what happened to the beautiful geese that used to
fill their lake.
Those residents now say what happened to those geese was cruel.
Aurora Wonder has
lived in Coconut Shores for 28 years, nearly three decades
spent feeding and admiring the geese from her Silver Lakes
Miramar home.
“They killed them,” Wonder said. “We have the videos. That
they’re floating. Dead.”
She and her neighbors were devastated to learn that dozens
of geese in the lake were killed on Tuesday.
A local pest management company told Local 10 News’ Saira
Anwer they received a call from a property management
association hiring them to kill what they were told were
“invasive geese.”
Neighbors said they thought the company used poison to do
the job.
“The poison was put there exactly because they knew that was
where they were going to come and kill them,” Wonder said.
Wildlife expert Ron Magill
described the images of the dead geese as clear cruelty to
animals.
“From what I saw, at least from one of the animals it looked
like a type of poison,” said Magill. “That was given to the
animal dying a slow horrible miserable death.”
Magill told Local 10 there are other ways to remove an
animal that may be a nuisance. |
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Residents of a Coconut Shores neighborhood inside
Miramar’s Silver Lakes community are upset over what happened to the
beautiful geese that used to fill their lake.
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“Any animal that is a nuisance or non-native can legally be humanely removed
from the area,” he said. “The key word is humanely. I look at this video and
this does not look humanely at all.”
Local 10 News’ Roy Ramos spoke with Rolando Calzadilla, the owner of Pest
Wildlife Pro, the company commissioned to remove the geese. He said cruelty
was never the intention.
“It was for them to remain on land, fall asleep, pick them up and take them
away and then humanely euthanize them,” Calzadilla said.
Unfortunately, Calzadilla explained that after he gave the geese a sedative,
they were spooked by a passing car and flew back into the lake.
As he went to retrieve them, residents started to notice he was doing and
became upset, so he called the police.
“By the time I waited for the police to come, some of the geese were in the
water too long and they may have drowned,” Calzadilla said.
In a letter sent to residents, SilverLakes Community Association, Inc. said,
in part:
“...The Associations contract with Pest Wildlife Pro required that the
vendor remove the birds by legal means in compliance with all Federal, State
and local laws and ordinances. Please be assured that SilverLakes is
discussing the actions taken by the trapper and will address any deviation
from the contract.”
Wonder does not speak softly about those responsible for killing her beloved
geese.
“Horrible, I hate it,” she said. “I hate Silver Lakes.”
A neighbor who didn’t want her face on camera told Local 10 News in tears
that her daughters named the ducks in the lake outside their home, and she
can’t sleep at night after seeing them dead.
“More than 45 animals dying in front of my yard,” the resident said. “They
were the most beautiful thing we had. They were not bothering anyone, they
would not cross the fences.”
Neighbors wondered if the geese were pests, why weren’t they just relocated?
Or why weren’t geese-loving neighbors like Wonder simply told to stop
feeding them?
Miramar police told Local 10 News they have since cited all parties
involved.
“This is animal cruelty,” said Wonder. “You don’t kill animals like that.”
Miramar Mayor Wayne Messam also reached out to his residents with a
statement that read, in part:
“...the manner in which they were removed violates the city’s Bird Sancuary
Ordinance. ...Based on the geese being Euthanized within City limits, a
notice of violation and Summons to Appear will be delivered to the
Association. Pest Wild Life will be issued a Summons to Appear as well.”
According to Miramar Police, the Gray Leg Geese are not a protected species
which means killing them was not a criminal offense. However, with the
association and pest control company both being cited, they will have to go
before a judge. That judge will determine the fines they will end up facing.
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