Calhan goats mow properties to help with fire mitigation in El Paso County

COLORADO SPRINGS, Colo. (KKTV) - There are many ways to mitigate your home from wildfires in southern Colorado, but what about using animals?!

Calhan’s Goat Mowers brings their goats to properties all across El Paso County, from backyards to multiple acreages of land, to cleanup and mow wildfire fuel. Goat Mowers has mitigated about 40 properties since beginning about a year ago in July 2021.

“My kids all left home. We had showing goats for a long time and we had a herd that was just sitting in the backyard. I was like, ‘what am I going to do with all of these goats?’... I had a couple of people tell me, ‘you should do fire mitigation,” said Kimberly Jones of Goat Mowers.

Goats are an effective and quiet source of mitigation because they can go anywhere a lawn mower can’t, like steep hillsides and thick vegetation. Goats can also eat things like poison ivy, weeds, thistle and more

“Because of the terrain here in Colorado, it’s just really difficult to get into those areas and that’s where we feel so blessed to be able to help other people with their fire mitigation in their backyard,” said Jones.

11 News visited a home in the Mountain Shadows neighborhood Friday morning, where the Waldo Canyon Fire tore through a decade ago. Almost three dozen goats from Goat Mowers stopped by to mitigate the property.

“You can’t wait until the fire is coming over the ridge to start your mitigation. You’ve got to keep up with it because even a lightning strike could fuel a fire on your property,” said homeowner Kathleen Frazier.

Frazier hired crews to mitigate her yard just two weeks before the Waldo Canyon Fire hit. Because of the mitigation efforts, her home was saved in the fire.

“We had ten minutes to get out of the house. It was frightful. We had birds to get out and dogs to get out,” said Frazier. “I couldn’t believe it, seeing that. We didn’t loose any of these trees.”

Goat Mowers also does volunteer work with breast cancer survivors and works with the Edison School to help kids stay in agriculture/farming. Goat Mowers hopes to work with city contracts in the future, and even properties like the Air Force Academy, Fort Carson, Peregrine neighborhood and more.

“Don’t delay. Don’t wait. Don’t procrastinate until there’s a fire because you won’t have that second chance,” said Frazier.

For more information about wildfire mitigation in Colorado Springs, click here for the CSPD page.

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