It is mostly intimidation - if you grab 'em by the neck, they're fucked. That's very illegal for 🇨🇦 geese, and why bother?
I've also seen videos showing geese getting their ass kicked by larger animals who backed off when the goose charges but then realized it just a fucking goose with hollow bones.
One winter, when I was growing up, a Canadian Goose decided to move to my family farm in Pennsylvania. That mother fucker was the meanest of all creatures I've ever encountered. He would chase cars, peck tires, chase you dared to be outside, and most certainly broke skin with his beak.
They're assholes and aggressive, and the intimidation works - they look big and fast and scary! Also, why bother?
I have also seen them retreat quickly from med-sized dogs when they realize the dog won't back down, so ymmv (these were dogs trained to chase them from a park, with no difficulty).
I am very skeptical that a goose, or even a few, could knock me over - and I have had 'em biting my pant legs and hissing a couple of times.
I would be way more scared of an aggressive small raptor or parrot than a goose.
I used to raise domestic geese twice their size. They will not knock you down unless you panic and flail like a goddamned dipshit afraid of a bird that weighs less than 30lbs
We had an aggressive Toulouse who sneak attacked for no reason and popped a friend who was on blood thinners, resulting in a horrifying bruise. We ate him, which fixed the aggression issue.
I been saying that Canada Geese are all bluff. More than once a goose by the pond has gotten aggressive as I've walked past, and my dog has lunged to the end of his leash yelling "CHALLENGE ACCEPTED, ASSHOLE!"
There are SO many Canada Geese in S. California.
A huge population has gone native.
And Geese aren't that hard to deal with. Pinch like heck, but they are still birds without weapons.
With a little practice they are catchable, invert them and they go dormant.
But spread your arms=bigger goose
