Springfield Public Schools Acquires Goat Herd for District Vegetation Maintenance

Springfield Public Schools (SPS) is excited to introduce the newest members of their facilities landscaping team - a herd of five goats.

The goats will be used for weed mitigation in bioswale, easement and other areas not used for student play. Environmental guidelines for the removal of weeds in bioswales make goats an efficient, cost-effective and sustainable method of maintaining these areas.

“Hand-pulling the weeds is costly and time consuming,” says Terry Rutledge, Assistant Director of Facilities and Operations. “By thinking outside the box, we found a solution that is environmentally friendly, alleviates some of the manual workload of the grounds crew and provides an opportunity to educate our students on sustainable practices.”

Goats, known for their enthusiastic consumption of blackberry bushes in particular, are highly effective at clearing an area in a short amount of time.

“They’re little machines,” says Rutledge.

The herd lives in a rural portion of the school district and enjoys a shelter on the property that was constructed by a Thurston High School career and technical education (CTE) class. The goats represent a mix of breeds that were selected for temperament and their suitability to the environment. A community member donated the goats to the District.