Goats return to Red Deer to take a bite out of weeds

Published 1:47 pm Wednesday, June 17, 2026

Hungry goats recently ate their way through some weedy locales in Red Deer.

During the last four weeks, 300 goats with BAAH’D Plant Management & Reclamation visited natural habitat areas near Kerry Wood Nature Centre, Piper Creek Community Gardens, and Heritage Ranch to help manage invasive weeds. It was also their first time tasting some of the weeds near J.J. Gaetz historical house.

“What was interesting was uncovering some of the original fencing that J.J. Gaetz would have used for his livestock,” said BAAH’D owner Jeannette Hall.

Herds of wild elk would also have grazed the area long before settlers, so bringing the goats to where animals have played a role on the landscape was a special, full-circle moment, she added.

Piper Creek Community Gardens, south of the city’s Waste Management Facility, was the first location the goats ever visited in Red Deer years ago for a pilot project, and were welcomed back by local wildlife.

“It’s in beaver habitat. We had moose come through. Deer have been grazing with the goats. Four Canadian Geese lived with us for about a week.”

People have also grown accustomed to the goats.

Hall said she had to chuckle when a boy was more surprised that her truck was parked by a walking trail near Lindsay Thurber Comprehensive School than by the nearby goats.

“It was funny to me that the goats everywhere didn’t faze him. The goats are normal now, but the truck being there was not normal.”

At Heritage Ranch, goats are used in conjunction with flea beetles to reduce the weed leafy spurge. The theory is that the weed comes off the highway and into contact with horses at the ranch who spread the weed throughout the equestrian area.

“Goats eat the top part of the plant and stop the seeds from spreading. They have such a thorough digestive track that they destroy the seeds. They aren’t just redistributing it like other livestock.”

Beneath the ground, beetle larva eat the roots on dense patches of leafy spurge.

“In the lower pasture where we know this weed exists, we’ve been able to contain it. It’s not spreading. It’s diminishing every year.”

Hall said there’s no blanket treatment for weeds.

“In each weed, we’re looking at the different mechanics of how that particular plant works. We look particularly at what’s causing the weeds on the site. Is it the soil instability? Is it water? Is it compaction? Is it a disturbance?”

She said BAAH’D also wants to work with the new operators at Heritage Ranch to use the horses’ grazing pattern to reduce Canada thistle.

“We may be doing a meet and greet at Heritage Ranch, either this year or next year, where we can showcase how we’re going to be teaming up with other livestock.”

Goats with BAAH’D Plant Management & Reclamation will return to Red Deer near the end of August to continue taking a bite out of local weeds.