How dogs are helping keep the Gordie Howe bridge construction on track

By Ali Hoxie

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    Michigan (WXYZ) — There are so many ways in which a man’s best friend is used. You can find dogs at police departments, hospitals, and schools to name few places.

But, have you ever heard of a dog on a construction site? There’s one special dog playing an important role in the Gordie Howe International Bridge construction.

Her name is Demon, but she’s not scary, at least to us humans. She is scary to birds and is helping keep them from nesting at the new bridge.

On a typical work day, Demon wakes up at 4:30 a.m. and heads to the worksite of the bridge in Windsor.

“It’s something different to see, it’s something nice. Everyone likes dogs,” Nicole Soucie, the owner Kingsport Environmental Falconry, said.

According to Soucie, she keeps all the geese, ducks, killdeers away.

“All we do is run her and she moves them along naturally to a new location,” Soucie said.

Birds nesting on construction sites is a big no-no.

“The primary issue that we have had is delays. So whenever we do have a nesting bird, we buffer off the area, people aren’t allowed to work in the area until the birds have fledged from the nest and we can remove it,” Justin Kelly with Bridging North America said.

Given the proximity of the site to the Black Oaks Woods, nesting birds is a high probability.

Demon is one of five dogs working on the site to keep birds away. She and the others have the ground covered, while falcons scare off birds nesting up high.

While it isn’t common to see a dog or falcon on a construction site, it does serve an environmental purpose.

“It’s the most economical and environmentally friendly thing to do, so there are lots of opportunities for these dogs,” Soucie said.

Dogs like Demon can also be used to scare off nesting birds on golf courses, vineyards and airports.

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