Goats fight fires well!

Most of us would find it easy to understand if someone told us that monkeys make good firefighters or even elephants for that matter. In many south Asian countries both monkeys and elephants have been found to be helpful in many different and diverse situations. Monkeys have nimble hands and fingers and elephants have giant trunks which come in handy to lift and move heavy cargo or may be to squirt out water by the drum loads, if necessary. However, in Auburn, Alabama fire authorities have rather interesting ideas to stop bush fires from happening. Goats here seem to be the chosen ones to go and put out a bush fire.

The chosen goats are the ones who are specifically fond of bush trees and shrubs. The criteria that makes a goat a good firefighter is to check out whether they have a voracious appetite for scotch broom, poison oak, star thistle and other wild bush grasses. Goats have been successfully used in Malibu and Laguna beach to ward off potential bush fires.

However, before the goats in Alabama get the official green signal of recognition to go and prevent the bush fires from happening, the Auburn Fire Safe Council, Placer County Fire Safe Alliance and the American River Watershed Group will put their heads together to take a decision.

Meanwhile enterprising goat breeders and goat rearing ranches have already taken the matter to heart and commerce. There are now goat renting services available to pick out the leaves of scrub vegetation and thus prevent the chances of a bush fire happening. Maybe officials in Sydney and other parts of Australia and around the world which have to deal with raging bush fires could do with some goat renting services too!