Holy sheep: Grazers escape Petaluma park, munch neighborhood lawn

Residents of Petaluma’s Westridge neighborhood were shocked Friday morning to see a herd of sheep scurrying down their streets and grazing on neighborhood lawns.

“What are all these sheep doing here?” asks Westridge resident David Hoff in a video he took around 7 a.m. Friday, as dozens of sheep head up the street in his direction.

“This is not good,” he adds as they gather on a lawn to graze.

The sheep were brought to nearby Westridge Park as part of the city’s grazing program to control vegetation and reduce the risk of wildfire – but a neighbor’s attempt to feed them led to an unplanned “outing,” said Petaluma Parks and Recreation Director Drew Halter.

“The outing began after a well-intended member of the community began offering a tasty-looking bouquet of grasses to one of the sheep from over the grazing fence,” Halter said.

Several members of the herd rushed to join, he said, which resulted in them trampling a section of the fence.

The herd then “took this opportunity to explore if the grass was indeed greener on the other side,” Halter joked.

After a “short tour of a couple neighborhood streets,” the sheep were successfully rounded up by their shepherd and returned to the park’s fenced-in area within about 20 minutes, he said.

The sheep are scheduled to continue their grazing at Westridge Park until Oct. 3, before moving on to Country Club Park.

Halter encouraged neighbors to visit the herd and learn about their role to create “more resilient and regenerative landscapes” – but also to refrain from feeding the animals through the fence.

“The hardworking herd is well fed and hydrated, being provided a variety of local vegetation options during their shift,” he said. A shepherd lives on site to care for the herd.

Launched last month, the city’s new grazing program is also intended to support the growth of native plant species and reduce carbon output, according to the city’s website on the program.

The city partnered with Chasin Goat Grazing, a Santa Rosa-based land management company, to graze local parks. The woolly grazers already have visited Oak Hill Park and Mannion Knoll Park.

Residents wishing to report escaped sheep, or to ask questions about herd movement, may contact Chase Cianfichi, owner of Chasin Goat Grazing, at 707-326-4467.

For general inquiries, contact the Parks & Recreation Department at 707-778-4412 or see the city’s grazing program’s website at cityofpetaluma.org/grazing.

You can reach Staff Writer Jennifer Sawhney at 707-521-5346 or jennifer.sawhney@pressdemocrat.com. On Twitter @sawhney_media.