WILLIAMSPORT, Ind. – A father and son in Indiana have started using the hearty appetites of goats and sheep to clear backyards and wooded areas overrun with invasive plants and other growth.

The animals known for clearing mountain sides out west to prevent fires seem to be a hit, so far, on the flat ground in the west central part of the state.

Since opening “Amazin’ Grazers” about three months ago, Josh Edwards said he has heard from people interested in having his goats and sheep come out to their overgrown properties as far as 100 miles away. 

Edwards, who has already served a number of customers with several more on a waiting list, is now looking to grow his modest sized herd in the coming months to keep up with demand.

“It was crazy how quick it took off,” he said.

Edwards, an Indiana State Police trooper, has raised goats for the past 20 years on his 6-acre hobby farm in Williamsport strictly for meat and for his sons when they were in 4-H to show in competitions.

After watching videos of goats and sheep clearing land elsewhere, Edwards decided to give it a try. He also had the encouragement of his 18-year-old son, Ross, who works at a nearby grain farm along with his wife, Trisha.

She may have been the deciding factor by suggesting her husband take a leap of faith. “Just do it,” she told him, Edwards said.

Their other son, Caleb, 21, also helps with the operation when home from college.

“It’s just kind of been a fun little family business to start and we have just had such a great response,” Josh Edwards said.

Edwards said he and his youngest son began purchasing goats from breeds they felt were the best eaters and could be trained not to jump the portable electric fences used to keep them in their designated work zones.

“They just eat,” he said.

The goats chomp away at the largest plants while the sheep nibble on the shorter vegetation so any junk or limbs on the ground can be easily seen and removed before possible mowing.

“The goats will eat everything as high as they can reach. When you get poison ivy vines or poison oak vines growing up the side of a tree, they’ll peel that stuff right off,” he said.

The goats and sheep are placed in one-quarter acre fenced-in sections at a time and are moved until the job is completed several days later.

The animals stay overnights at each job site but are checked on once or twice a day to make sure none of them escaped and they have plenty of food and water.

Edwards said two of his customers sat in chairs in their backyard simply to watch the animals gradually take care of the overgrowth on their property.

“They’re fun to watch,” he said.

Other jobs have included clearing an overgrown ravine. “They cleaned the whole holler up for them,” he said.

Currently, the family has 20 goats and 10 sheep.

By next year, Edwards said he would like to have as many as 100 goats, if possible, so jobs are done faster, which opens room on the calendar for taking on more customers.

One of the new customers could be the Town of Williamsport, which recently decided to consider the business for any future jobs involving overgrowth.

Edwards said he can see making the business a full-time occupation once he retires from law enforcement. Currently, the business operates during weekday evenings and weekends.

“I would say that it’s probably heading in that direction with as many calls and as busy as we’re getting,” he said.

Edwards said the cost of each job starts at $300 but goes up depending on factors like the amount of overgrowth and fencing required and trips needed to check on the animals. “We’re trying to keep it affordable for everybody,” he said.