The Story Behind The Goats
This August marks the 13th Year that the PVPLC brings the goats back to the Peninsula
By Cindy Donnelly | Photography by Erik Jay
Last month, we featured a story about the Black Karakul sheep that grazed on the Peninsula in the late 1930s and 40s. That article made us wonder about the story behind the goats we see today. We reached out to Michael Choi of Fire Grazers Inc. and he explained to us how the fire brush clearance program started. Michael said it all started with his father, Mark Choi. The family was living in the Philippines when the financial crisis of 2008 happened. Mark decided that he wanted to come to the U.S, where he had relatives. He moved his family to the U.S. and began trying to figure out a new business. He quickly realized he wanted to move away from the city and start a self-sustainable farm so that the family could always feed themselves. This would not happen overnight, but with the goats, he began the path to realize his goal.
The Palos Verdes Peninsula Land Conservancy was Fire Grazers Inc.’s first customer. They were hired for brush clearance work in the Portuguese Bend Preserve and at that time they were actually renting the goats to do the job. It was so unusual at the time that Mark found himself being interviewed on TV. Around 2009, the City of Rancho Palos Verdes hired them for fire brush management within the city. The goats have been seen all over the Peninsula. Over time, the PVPUSD, the City of Torrance and others also became clients. They also work in other parts of California. At the time we spoke with Michael, the goats were in Calabasas. The work starts in late March or early April and continues in the summer through August and September. Today, Fire Grazers Inc. owns the herd and the family has gone from renting land to owning their own farm in Mariposa, California.
We asked if the goats go to the Mariposa farm when they are not “working,” and Michael explained that they need to move around all year in order to have enough to eat, get the nutrition they need and not get cold. The farm would not be able to provide enough grazing for the entire off season, so they graze in other areas, but it is not paid work in the winter. The real work for the goats is from March to September. We learned that the drought affects the nutrition the goats receive from grazing; so during dry years, they need to supplement with molasses and alfalfa.
We wondered if there was anything unique about working with the goats on the Peninsula and Michael pointed out that Palos Verdes is a unique pocket of Los Angeles. Although just a short distance from the city, you find yourself among the canyons and crevices with the wind of the ocean and it feels like a step out of time. Maybe that is why everyone is so captivated by the goats, because they somehow connect us to the past while providing a much needed service in the present.
DID YOU KNOW?
• Male goats are called bucks or billies, while female goats are called nannies or does.
• A group of goats is called a ‘herd’ or ‘trip’.
• Goats are some of the oldest domesticated animals in the world!
• Goats’ milk is often referred to as the “universal mammalian milk” because just about any mammal can drink it!
• Goats will eat most invasive species and thick brush including poison oak and poison ivy. The majority of native seasonal and perennial California weeds rank among their favorites.
To find out more about Fire Grazers Inc. and the goats, visit www.goatsrock.com. Be on the lookout, the goats are expected back on the Peninsula in August.
