Hi, what a great forum! I live on a culdesac surrounded by a lake and our neighborhood has a pair of swans that have been successfully rearing 3-5 cignets per year for a number of years. This year the swans made their nest on a neighbor's shore around the other side of the culdesac. We all feed the swan family every year (some of us cracked corn, others cat or dog food) and they go house-to-house to get food from certain people at certain times of day. That being said, they are still protective of their babies and nest. Every time the swans visit us, I feed them from a few feet away.

They generally stay in the water, but for the past week the mom and dad will get out of the water and stand on our beach. For the past 3 days I've watched the mom grab sticks and pine straw and pile them on the sand next to the shore. There is only about 1 cubic foot of pine straw haphazardly scattered over a 4 square foot region. Is she potentially making a new nest? If so, should I absolutely NOT interfere?

I am concerned that our 2 large dogs (who are familiar with the swans and just want to "play" with them) will cause a problem for them, not to mention we spend a lot of time in this area every day and we don't want the swans to drive us away while they are protecting what could be their new nest! Also, we cannot put a fence up around this area because the dogs will swim around the fence, and fences are not allowed in our community.

I should mention there is a ton of clean water beach 50-100 feet across the water because we sit across the water from an entire golf fairway. Should I let the swans and dogs have their tug-of-war and let the swans decide if they want to move what I think is their new nest elsewhere? I want to help preserve the swans safety and quality of life. It would be a bonus if we could use our outdoor space without being hissed and snipped at as well. Thanks!