Goats put to work as natural weed eaters at Pocatello’s Century Heights Preserve

POCATELLO — Seventy goats are earning their keep in Pocatello this week as part of an innovative project using the grazing animals to control weeds and improve wildlife habitat — no chemicals required.

In a collaboration between Idaho Goat Grazers and the Sagebrush Steppe Land Trust, the herd is spending two days at the Century Heights Preserve, munching down invasive species like cheatgrass that threaten native plant communities and increase wildfire risk.

The goats act as “real-life weed whackers,” consuming up the cheatgrass and up to 95% of its seeds — a task that mowing or spraying can’t accomplish as effectively, according to Zakary Copeland of Aberdeen, who owns Idaho Goat Grazers.

“This is a great alternative to mowing and using chemicals to get rid of weeds,” Copeland said. “Th