Clearing a yard of unwanted plants and vegetation involves a ton of backbreaking work — unless you have a herd of goats, that is, in which case the whole thing is done in an afternoon, and you don't even have to break a sweat.
Goat rancher and content creator Cowboymax (@cowboymax) recently shared a video with his 680,000 TikTok followers, showing his herd of goats clearing an area for a customer who wanted to have more room for foster dogs to run around.
@cowboymax BEFORE and AFTER on our current job. The homeowner fosters rescue dogs and she needed more room in her backyard. The herd did a fantastic job. #beforeandafter #goats #goatscaping #goatgrazing #grazinggoats #contractgrazing #targetedgrazing #grazingsystems #systemsgrazing #rentagoat #yardmaintenance #weedremoval #firefuelreduction #brushremoval #thegoatguy #goatguy #cowboymax ♬ Acoustic Folk Instrumental - Yunusta
"We brought the whole herd of approximately 220 goats, with a few sheep sprinkled in there," Max says. "The goats have a really diverse appetite and they love this natural brush."
After a mere few hours, the goats had completely finished off every plant in the yard, except for the few that the homeowner wanted to save, which were simply fenced off to protect them from the hungry herd.
"Goatscaping" is becoming an increasingly popular trend, as it is an easy, efficient way to get rid of plants with no adverse environmental consequences — unlike power tools, goats do not produce polluting gases such as volatile organic compounds, carbon dioxide, and carbon monoxide. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, gas lawnmowers account for 5% of the total air pollution in the United States.
Goats, on the other hand, are not gas-powered and are happy to do the job, since they will eat basically any plant, including old Christmas trees and poison ivy.
Cowboymax's viewers were delighted by the goat herd clearing the yard.
"Such a healthy way to deal with the issue," wrote one commenter. "No sprays, no poisons — perfect."
"You need a video of the goats rating each job like a 5 star restaurant," joked another. "'4 stars, they were out of yucca and trumpet vine.'"
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