Goats are back to graze on weeds in Wascana Centre

More than 200 goats have been welcomed to Wascana Centre for a second straight year.

Sarah Romuld, an ecologist with the Provincial Capital Commission, said Wednesday the goats are part of the province’s multi-year targeted goat-grazing project.

“They’re here to target the invasive and noxious weeds that (grow in Wascana Centre),” she said. “They’re going to be … grazing on those weeds and then helping us restore the prairie vegetation that we have here and allow us to kind of jump-start also that restoration for (the) future.”

Romuld said grazing goats are a good alternative to using chemicals or heavy machinery to control weeds.

“They come in at the beginning of the season and they’re mostly focusing on the biomass, so that living matter above,” she explained. “They’re kind of taking that plant down, stunting its growth, so basically any growth that it has now they’re bringing back to the very beginning.”

The ecologist added the goats would then return closer to the end of the summer to help control the spread of the weeds.

“But in doing that, they’re also making room for preferred prairie vegetation and those plants to have room to grow and thrive in (Wascana Centre),” she said.

Goats were chosen instead of other animals that graze, like cows and horses, because they’re good at chomping on the weeds they want to get rid of while leaving everything else alone, the ecologist added.

“They’re going to be moving around depending on how effective they are at that certain paddock. Once they’re done, they’ll go to a new area,” she said.

People don’t have to worry about Wascana Centre becoming a giant petting zoo, Romuld confirmed.

“They are at work and the paddock around is to protect them. We do want to be respectful when we come to visit the goats and be mindful that’s there also the shepherd,” she said.

Florentine Maathuis, a shepherd with No Kidding Weed Management, will stay onsite with her guard sheepdog and two Border Collie herding dogs.

“It is in (the dogs’) genes to do this and they’re really good at it,” she said. “(The dogs) use their body language and their eyes to move them around, to push them along or I send them around the goats to go into a different direction.”

If the goats don’t listen to the dogs, the shepherd said they would then continue to put more pressure on the goats to get them to follow their orders.

“(The dog) might give them a little (bite),” she added. “No blood.”

Maathuis said the fence surrounding the goats will be electrified, so people shouldn’t be touching it.

“(They) will get shocked,” she added. “It’s nasty.”

According to Romuld, if weed management isn’t done in the park, invasive weeds could take over the entire park.