The historic Congressional Cemetery in Washington D.C. has hired a work gang of 30 goats to clean a wooded area on its land from invading bushes and vines.
The cemetery already used goats for the same purpose two years ago, and now they are back to do some mowing to protect the 207-year-old cemetery from unwanted vegetation.
“The advantage of us having a herd of 30 goats is threefold,” Paul Williams, president of the Historic Congressional Cemetery, told RT. “One, we don’t have to use chemicals to eradicate all of the vines and invasive species that are back there. Two, it educates the public about goats and their usefulness. And three, they can beat the labor rate. For 30 goats for two weeks costs us about a dollar per goat.”
This year’s goat tour was sponsored by an anonymous donor, who provided almost $5,000 to pay for their presence. The animals spend all the time at the premises, about a third of it munching leaves.
Based on previous experience, the cemetery expects an inflow of visitors attracted by the horned employees. It hopes after gazing at the grazing, some will take one of their free self-guided walking tours, which cover a range of topics from Native American chiefs to the capital’s brewers.