Baks and Buttons

With subtitle or not?

Now we have all heard wonderful stories of the work of guide dogs or as they are known in the USA “seeing eye dogs.” Their contribution is well known from guiding their owners daily to saving their lives through terrorist attacks like 9/11. As we all know the primary animal that undertakes this duty is almost exclusively the canine.

Just drifting off piste here I would like you to now consider what you know about geese. That’s right, geese!

I personally know little about these creatures; I assumed that a goose was just a goose. However, I have learned a number of fascinating facts about geese. Let’s be honest, to the uninitiated, one goose looks pretty much the same as any other goose. For most people, other than vegans and vegetarians, their only interest in geese comes mostly at Christmas, when it is an alternative to turkey. The goose, however, has another interesting trait that has been recognised by those who use this ability, as it is an extremely useful guard and early warning system. Did you know, for instance, that the goose has excellent hearing and keen eyesight; furthermore, they are extremely territorial. So, in certain environments, such as farms and other establishments, they are invaluable. They are also very noisy with a very distinctive honk that travels a great distance. During my career as a professional dog trainer, I only came across a flock of these once when visiting a farm, and I can assure you that meeting a dozen or so of these birds rushing towards me with outstretched wings and honking loudly was a sobering sight. Far more threatening than any dog. Dogs I could handle, but geese; no way! I remember deciding rapidly that discretion was the better part of valour, diving hurriedly back into the safety of my car and waiting for the farmer to arrive.

So why are we talking about geese, and what do they have to do with guide dogs? Well, usually, nothing at all, but in 2011, in Poland, a rather unusual friendship developed between a dog and a goose.

An unlikely friendship

Let’s start with Baks, he was a boxer dog who belonged to Renata Kursa, but sadly, was involved in an accident that left him totally blind. How incredibly distressing this must have been. One minute, sight is there, and life is normal, and then suddenly, there is total blindness. It must have been devastating, no explanation, just complete blackness. How do you tell an animal that they will never see again? Baks sadly didn’t take his disability well and descended into a state of despair, showing no interest in his surroundings and failing to undertake any activity beyond sleeping. I guess he probably thought that if he went to sleep, then maybe his sight would miraculously reappear. Needless to say, it didn’t.

Enter Buttons – a four-year-old goose who took on the self-appointed role of “guide goose.” A Good Samaritan who took the disabled dog under her wing.

In fairness, this was an unlikely liaison; dogs and geese are not natural soul mates. On the contrary they are much safer when kept apart, however, Buttons obviously decided that Baks needed help and she was very willing to offer. I am unable to offer any explanation as to why Buttons the goose decided to undertake this task. There are examples of animals of different species developing close relationships, but this one is a first for me. The thought process is difficult to understand, and the practicalities were an obstacle, but Buttons managed to overcome the difficulties.

Guiding instinct

It appears that Buttons developed two distinct methods of guiding her hairy companion. The first was that she would wrap her very long neck around the neck of Baks and gently lead the way. This was a rather cumbersome method and progress was a little slow, so “necessity being the mother of invention” Buttons created a system more in keeping with her natural behaviour. She honked!!

All Baks had to do was follow the sound until he was able to touch his feathered friend, and this was extremely successful, the only drawback being that while Buttons was assisting Baks, the noise level was horrendous. It must have been an incredible sight; in fact, it was so unusual that I guess one could have sold tickets. When I came across this story, one of my first thoughts was to inquire regarding the lifespan of a goose, and being a bird, I assumed that they didn’t live that long. Naturally, I was concerned about what would happen to Baks if Buttons passed away; therefore, I was delighted and relieved to find out that geese live on average between 10 and 20 years. There you go, this site not only provides dog stories, but here you learn even more miscellaneous facts to amaze your dinner guests. Not only are you now knowledgeable regarding the lifespan of your average goose, but I can also inform you that there are 38 goose varieties!

This strange alliance unfortunately created a bit of a problem for the postal workers. It appears that the previously placid Buttons appeared to have learned from Baks the universal art of chasing the postman. Oh well, not everything turns out perfectly.