Aug 14, 2009: Boeing's Grifftopia

Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey...
but goats eat every damn thing they can reach.

Boeing's Renton, WA, plant had acres of undeveloped land, overgrown with blackberry briars, weeds and saplings.
Clearing that mess would be an expensive, labor intensive job... or take a lot of really nasty chemicals.
The solution was to hire a herd of 120 goats.


(Marian Lockhart photo.)

Look at the look on that goat's face!

"Eeeewwww! This tastes like crap!"

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Originally Posted by SPUCK Look at the look on that goat's face! "Eeeewwww! This tastes like crap!"

But then who had the job of going through the field after the goats and cleaning up the land mines that were left behind? Interns?

Goats are so cute. I want a goat. And a cow. And a horse. And an Irish Wolfhound. And about 10 acres.

What a great business plan! Someone pays you to feed your goats and then you get to sell the goat milk and such. Win, Win.

blackberries, yum!

Goats are cute. They are also noisy, always pushy and sometimes agressive.
They are famously hard to contain, so that when they finish your neighbor's blackberries and weeds, your roses and veggies are next.
That is when the term "chevon" takes over.

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Originally Posted by Diaphone Jim Goats are cute. They are also noisy, always pushy and sometimes agressive. They are famously hard to contain, so that when they finish your neighbor's blackberries and weeds, your roses and veggies are next.That is when the term "chevon" takes over.

Goat=lawnmower

Our local wastewater treatment plant has a fenced area around one of the settling ponds. Within that area, at one time or another, I've seen sheep, goats and even llamas acting as lawncare maintenance staff.

MMM. Roast blackberry goat.

I thought Eeeewwww's were sheep?

I hear they fire frozen chickens at the windows of their planes to test the strength of the glass. Maybe they could just use the old goats instead.

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Originally Posted by MrsBug Our local wastewater treatment plant has a fenced area around one of the settling ponds. Within that area, at one time or another, I've seen sheep, goats and even llamas acting as lawncare maintenance staff.

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Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce Mairzy doats and dozy doats and liddle lamzy divey...

I had that 45 when I was a kid. My grandma and I sang it together. The beauty of it was that when you were young, you thought about how it sounded vs how it was spelled. Actually kind of brilliant. I think it was my induction to listening to the subtleties of the English language, because I could actually hear the difference between "Mairzy doats" and "Mares eat oats" when I parsed it out in my head.

I thought I remembered reading that several communities were trying to use goats to keep the kudzu in check as well.

My goats love to eat everything! Including Kaluha, who decided to eat the shed one day...

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Originally Posted by hulk I thought I remembered reading that several communities were trying to use goats to keep the kudzu in check as well.

I read some communities in CA were hiring goats to clear the flammable brush, especially on steep hillsides, around their homes. Partially because it's cheaper and more efficient, and partially to get around CA's laws.

Our local municipal reservoir can only use goats on the face of the dam because anything else can injure the face causing rapid erosion, followed by a burst dam, surging maelstrom, fleeing victims, etc., etc.

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Originally Posted by xoxoxoBruce I read some communities in CA were hiring goats to clear the flammable brush, especially on steep hillsides, around their homes. Partially because it's cheaper and more efficient, and partially to get around CA's laws.

Looks like a great place to be a goat. Pete just put the big goats in our temporary electric between the house and a permanent enclosure. The little guys were in there all week but were too busy playing on the rock pile to decimate their surroundings.

Guess they weren't hungry enough, probably because to feed them too well.

Yeah, kids today...

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Originally Posted by Griff Yeah, kids today...

There is a goat farm at Ft. Bragg. Goats are good for lots of things.

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Originally Posted by Griff Yeah, kids today...

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Originally Posted by dar512 You've been holding that back waiting for the perfect moment, haven't you.

The police station at Bryon Bay, Australia, has a sheep in the yard as a lawn trimmer.

Its name? Bob.

Well, Ali might get it. For everyone else:

Pre-1966, Australia used non-decimal currency, including a shilling, which (a) had a picture of a merino sheep on one side and (b) was referred to as a "bob". There you go.

One night some rapscallion abducted Bob from his yard. The cheek! He was safely returned.

Then Bob grew old and passed away. His replacement?

Two Bob, of course.

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Originally Posted by TheMercenary Goats are good for lots of things.

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Originally Posted by Gravdigr Yeah, if ya bugger 'em on the edge of a cliff, they push back...

Suggestion!

Acquire a box of Mexican chocolate.(it's very hard and looks like a hockey puck)


Grate two tablespoons of the chocolate into a LARGE tumbler.

Obtain the services of a lactating goat. Milk said goat directly into the tumbler.

You will be gifted with a large foamy chocolate drink.

OHMYGAWD!! You'll think you died and went to heaven. It is soooOOOOOO GOOD!! We'd milk our weed whacker goats into chocolate until we could NOT drink another drop.

Seriously - everyone should have that once before they die.
And any children will be enthralled.

Noted, will get on that... err the mexican choco not the cliff hanging.

My grampa used to have an island he would let a goat or two run loose on to chew up the brush, after you leave them on their own for a year or so they'd turn wild though so he'd "have" to eat them. This story was always followed by a list of various delicious things you could do with goat meat.
I think he would have fit well on this forum. :P

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Originally Posted by Gravdigr Yeah, if ya bugger 'em on the edge of a cliff, they push back...