Dallas officials plan to tackle an invasive shrub at White Rock Lake with an interesting strategy: goats.
Trucks will bring 260 goats from Fort Worth to Dallas’ Bath House Cultural Center from 10 a.m. to noon on February 5, according to a press release.
The goats will help control an “invasive privet” shrub around White Rock Lake, in a prairie area near the cultural center.
When the goats arrive, Dallas Parks and Recreation Conservation Manager Brett Johnson will plan to speak about “ecological benefits of using goats as mowers,” according to the release.
Beginning Thursday, the goats will graze roughly 11.5 acres over the course of one week.
Each day, workers will reposition an electric fence to new sections of one to one-and-a-half acres for “effective vegetation management.”
“A shepherd will be on site 24 hours a day to safely manage and monitor the goats throughout the project,” the release reads.
This strategy for vegetation management in the metroplex has been used in the past.
For example, in April 2025, Dallas officials called in 250 goats to manage vegetation on the Bachman Greenbelt, as The Dallas Express reported at the time. They grazed 16 acres over the course of 11 days, curtailing the Chinese Privet shrub.
Earlier that same year, Arlington officials used 400 goats to clear the Chinese Privet from city parks without chemicals or machinery. If not properly managed, the plant can harm the local ecosystem, waterways, and even fire safety. In 2024, a landscaper in Weatherford rented a herd of 1,200 goats to help prevent wildfires in North Texas.