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COLORADO SPRINGS, COLO. -- Goats at the Bear Creek Regional Park aren't an uncommon sight this time of year.

For more than a decade, the Bear Creek Garden Association, a volunteer organization in Colorado Springs, has taken donations and applied for grants to use the animals as a way to maintain noxious weeds and grass.

"We had to either spray or cut them down," Char Nymann, the president of the association, said. "It's very difficult to remove them by cutting in the large area. We have 22 acres around the perimeter of our gardens. We're responsible for the weeds."

Rather than use harmful chemicals or pesticides, or lawn mowers that use fossil fuels, Nymann said using the goats helps keep the land organic.

"Their droppings fertilize the land, hooves till the land and they eat the weeds as well," she said. "They eat the weeds and all the native plants come back."

Donny Benz, who owns and herds the goats from Wyoming, said using goats isn't a new idea.

"It's ancient history," Benz said. "In Europe, they used to use goats to manage yards all the time."

To use the goats for 10 days, the association has to pay between $5,000 and $7,000, according to Nymann.

"Any donations are tax-deductible and we are very happy to take donations for the goats," Nymann said. "They really do a fantastic job."

To donate, call the Bear Creek Garden Association at 719-473-5827.