Fighting Crime in West Seattle

Here in Plainfield we have ShotSpotter as a high-tech aid in crime fighting. In West Seattle, the low-tech weapon is goats.

In this article from West Seattle Blog, you can see the steep slope alongside one of the hilly city's many long stairways. The neighborhood has recently suffered thefts from students as they walk to and from school. The dense shrubbery affords cover to lurkers, so the Seattle Department of Transportation is hiring a herd of goats to clear it. As the flier for residents states, it is more efficient and safer to use goats rather than humans to do this task.

As readers know, my daughter lives in West Seattle and I actually have my own room there for whenever I can escape to the great Pacific Northwest. I love the culture out there, especially the interest in and care for the environment. I heard about the goats a while back - there is a company called Rent-A-Ruminant that specializes in brush removal, including the thorny blackberry bushes that sprout up all over.

Just thought you might like a glimpse of a different world out there!

--Bernice