Urban Goats
Meet Gus and Daisy.
They are very adorable goats. They also happen to be hardworking members of the In Harmony Sustainable Landscapes team. In Harmony hired a herd of goats to come and eat their way through the Himalayan blackberry, thistle, bamboo, and bindweed that smothered the lot behind their offices a couple years ago. This was an awesome plan, because the weeds quickly disappeared, no RoundUp required. The only problem? The staff fell in love with Gus and Daisy. They couldn’t bear the thought of parting. So when the rest of the herd from Healing Hooves (a natural vegetation removal service) went home, this pair of cuties stayed behind.
It is, I suppose, a risk you undertake when hiring a herd of goats.
Gus and Daisy now live happily at the In Harmony office. Every morning, their caretaker, Karrie, leads them out of their pen and over to a movable corral where they happily munch to their hearts content on grass and weeds in the back lot. It’s a good life for Gus and Daisy and the folks at In Harmony don’t have to worry about mowing anymore!
If you’d like to get rid of a nasty weed problem, goats just might be the answer. Rent-A-Goat services are popping up all over the country. Here in Washington, you can get in touch with Healing Hooves, Rent-A-Ruminant, and The Goat Lady. Karrie highly recommends using goats to control weeds, but cautions that it is true: they will eat anything. Including plants like rhododendrons, laurel, and pieris, which are bad for them.
Gus and Daisy are so cute, I almost wish I had a huge weed problem in my yard so I could hire some goats! But I think I’ll just stick to visiting them on their home turf from time to time.
Oooo! I want a goat! Apparently goats are the new chicken. (In terms of urban livestock, I mean, not dinner!)
April 12th, 2010 at 9:50 am.-= Heavy Petal´s last blog ..Garden Tour: Syd’s powerful plant palette =-.
When I was a kid, my pet goat on the farm ranks among the best “dogs” I ever had. He followed me everywhere and was my best buddy. If I ever live somewhere goat-appropriate again, I’ll definitely consider another one.
April 12th, 2010 at 9:56 am.-= gardenmentor´s last blog ..April Gardening Check List =-.
Adorable! Yea for no mowing at In Harmony.
April 12th, 2010 at 11:58 am.-= Gardener on Sherlock Street´s last blog ..Picnic Table Part 2 =-.
CUTE!!! I would love to get a pygmy goat or two and have been dying to take the Tilth class. I think I’m going to see how the neighbors fare with the chickens (especially after rooster starts crowing) before I head down that road though!
April 12th, 2010 at 12:57 pmWe had goats for pets and to control weeds and brush when I was growing up. They were great pets, and they would eat anything! The weeds and brush didn’t have a chance when they were around. I remember them trying to nibble on my clothes and follow us around. Yes, rhody leaves are poisonous to them. One time we were cleaning up our yard and threw some leaves over the fence (not knowing that they were poisonous) and they got very ill. Fortunately, they didn’t eat very many and were ok. They were fun to have around!
April 12th, 2010 at 5:35 pm.-= Connie´s last blog ..Finished! =-.
Tried to convince Lorene she needed these guys to come on over and work over the vacant lot next door to her house. Blackberries and all!
April 12th, 2010 at 9:02 pmHeavy Petal–I know! My friend Lacia has them in her Seattle backyard. So fun!
GardenMentor–I didn’t know you had a goat! They were (and still are) my favorite farm animal when I was a kid.
Gardener on Sherlock Street–Totally! I was shocked when I learned how much air pollution gas powered mowers give off.
Jamie–Chickens are good starter livestock because they are pretty easy to take care of…and you get eggs
Connie–It’s funny they tried to eat your clothes. I think they have very curious minds (and big stomachs!)
MA–I do think Lorene could use some goats that lot is a jungle!
April 13th, 2010 at 8:14 amoh i saw a whole bunch of goats munching the hill side at the Seattle Sealth high school yesterday. I am guessing it is part of the massive remodel going on there. There must have been about 20 goats munching their way across the hillside. It’s awesome.
April 13th, 2010 at 12:00 pm.-= wren´s last blog ..the fence part 2 =-.
I just listened to the Greendays podcast from Weekday yesterday. I love listening on Tuesdays and especially appreciated the urban livestock show. I hope you guys do another one soon on a non-pledge week so there’s more time for calls and questions! I wish I had been listening yesterday because I would have emailed in with an awesome chicken resource… http://www.backyardchickens.com. The forum is a great resource with tons of knowledgeable people, especially if you’re having any issues with your birds. It’s been a lifesaver for all of my random chicken questions!
April 14th, 2010 at 9:22 amI read someplace there is a show of pet goats this weekend 5/29/30 in Harmony, NJ. Yes?
May 27th, 2010 at 4:42 amI would like to visit and need information. thanks, Ingrid