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Jail goats: How one jail mows the lawn

A jail in Tulsa, Okla. is using two donated goats – named Scooby and Scrappy – to clear grass and weeds in the jail's atrium. Inmates are not allowed contact with the jail goats. 

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Sara Caldwell/The Augusta Chronicle/AP/File
Animal control officer Willie Barnes carries a goat to the property where it will be living to help control brush and grass growth in Augusta, Ga. A similar use of goats for landscaping is being employed at a Tulsa jail.
  • By Associated Press

| TULSA, Okla.

An Oklahoma jail has unveiled its latest landscaping method — goats.

The Tulsa jail on Thursday presented its two newest residents, named Scooby and Scrappy. The 18-month-old retired show animals were donated about two weeks ago by a Broken Arrow High School farming club.

Tulsa County Sheriff's Maj. Shannon Clark came up with the idea for the jail goats to clear about 4,500 square feet of grass and weeds in the jail's atrium. She says grass had reached 6 feet tall in the former smoking area after the jail became tobacco-free.

Clark says the medical unit's window overlooks the goat enclosure, and watching the jail goats has been therapeutic for inmates with mental health disorders. She says the jail staff likes them too.

The inmates are not allowed contact with the goats.

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