Hundreds of goats munch on invasive weeds at Kerry Wood Nature Centre in Red Deer
Published 1:34 pm Friday, October 2, 2026
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Hundreds of goats were brought to Kerry Wood Nature Centre to eat invasive weeds.
Red Deerians had the chance to see the goats up close for a “Meet and Bleat” on Friday, Oct. 2. At the event, people were able pet some of the goats, learn about how they help manage support with weed management and chat with City of Red Deer staff about the goat program.
The 400-plus goats were mostly targeting cicer milkvetch, a spreading legume that produces dark or black mature seed pods which rattle when shaken, in a field just south of the Kerry Wood Nature Centre on Oct. 2.
“We always try to be cost competitive with other avenues of (weed management). Those other avenues would be hand-picking, mowing or weed spraying,” said Jeannette Hall, owner of Baah’d Plant Management and Reclamation.
“The city tries to make sure we’re in areas where you can’t use those alternatives. We’re so close to the water here and we’re right into the bird sanctuary. Hand-picking is the other big option they could do, but it can be very costly. This is a cheaper alternative to that.”
Baah’d Plant Management and Reclamation operates throughout the city, but the “Meet and Bleat” at the Kerry Wood Nature Centre is the best opportunity for Red Deerians to see the goats in action, Hall said.
“We understand that people are very curious and it’s tempting to come see the goats when we’re elsewhere. But we have to work. We have a lot to do and when the public is engaging with us, it can push the goats off our work area,” said Hall.
“We do ask that next summer, people hold off until the meet and greet to see the goats.”
Ken Lehman, City of Red Deer parks community and program facilitator, said the Meet and Bleat is a fun opportunity for Red Deerians, adding that the city will continue bringing in goats “for years to come.”
“We bring the goats in a few times a year to chew down various weed species,” explained Lehman.
“Goats are a great weed-management tool because they’re very (effective) in terms of how they walk across the landscape. We can put them on slopes and we can put them alongs creeks where we wouldn’t want to do other types of weed control.”
Visit www.reddeer.ca/goats for more information.