Goats are Helping to Restore a Fort Collins Natural Area

Rather than hiring humans to work on a seasonal restoration project at a Fort Collins natural area, the City has enlisted the help of a herd of goats to do so instead.

This top-performing herd is part of a winning collaboration between the Natural Areas Ecological Stewardship team and a local goat herder. Together, they’re piloting small-scale goat and sheep grazing at Kingfisher Point Natural Area in order to help with land restoration.

The goats will help to clear out invasive plants, boost biodiversity, and improve soil health one hoof at a time. Using goats is an efficient and environmentally friendly way for the City of Fort Collins to manage overgrown portions at Kingfisher Point. While grazing in the area, these hungry animals will help to control noxious weeds, undergrowth of invasive species, dead brush, and leaves, allowing the natural grasses to recover. Having them on-site also aids in reducing vegetative fuels for wildfire mitigation.

Goats are eating machines and can mow down about one acre of grass daily. Not only do these animals assist in efficiently eliminating unwanted vegetation, but they take away the need for the use of herbicides. They can also access hard-to-reach places that can be difficult for humans to get to. Furthermore, having goats on-site helps to aerate and fertilize the soil.

While at Kingfisher Point Natural Area, the herder will use two all-star herding dogs and electric net fencing to rotate the grazing goats around the property. Visitors to Kingfisher Point should stay on the designated trails and enjoy the hard-working goats from a distance. For the safety of both animals, dogs should be kept on a leash.

If the season goes well, this unique strategy could expand to other natural areas in Fort Collins.

Fort Collins’ natural areas and pilot projects like this are made possible due to community-initiated sales taxes that support trails, educational activities, restoration and stewardship.

Related: Here's How Hundreds of Goats are Helping at a Colorado Open Space

Other places in Colorado have chosen to incorporate goats into maintenance projects around town. For example, Castle Rock has contracted with Goat Green LLC several times for restoration purposes at various parks and open spaces in the area.