NEWTON COUNTY, Ga. — A golf course in Covington is asking permission from the city to shoot some geese that have been causing a problem for years.
Workers tell Channel 2's Berndt Petersen that up to 20 geese live there all year long, and make a big mess of the greens.
Regulars who play at Ashton Hills Golf Club say some out here make a mess of things.
"It's so dirty,” club member Daryll Losch said. “And it never gets cleaned up. It just lays there."
The owners say some Canada geese flew south for the winter one season --- and they never left.
About a dozen birds are permanent residents, and the goose droppings can turn a putting green into a minefield.
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Managers say they've tried everything to get the birds to scram.
"We've used goose repellent sprayed on the greens," manager Brian Raines said. "We've tried dogs -- my superintendent has a dog. He chases them a little bit."
Nothing worked. But now, the state has given the club permission to shoot some of the geese, which is causing quite a stir on social media.
One poster wrote, "Killing these birds for what birds naturally do all for the sake of helping the owner of this golf course keep his pockets padded is horrid."
"I'm not a hunter,” Raines said. “I don't own a gun. I've never shot any animal. I never thought that was for me. Unfortunately, we've tried everything we can do."
Most of the golf course is inside the Covington city limits.