New Tulsa County Jail Inmates Provide Lawn-Care Service

The newest inmates at the Tulsa jail are pulling double duty; eliminating an eyesore and putting fellow inmates at ease, just by doing what comes naturally.

Goats are doing time in the Tulsa County Jail for doing grass.

“They never stop, they are constant eating machines,” said Major Shannon Clark with the Tulsa County Jail.

Their keen and green lawn mowing skills are part of the reason Scooby and Scrappy are in Tulsa County lock up.

“They just get to have a heyday out here. We've got tables they can jump and play on,” Clark said. “The vegetation just become overwhelming and some of the vegetation was just, like you can see, was six-foot tall.”

The atrium is where Tulsa County jail workers once went for a smoke break, before David L Moss went tobacco-free.

Clark said the area was kind of forgotten, which explains the tall grass.

“It was kind of jokingly, I come in and said, 'Ya know, I'm from the country.' I said, ‘I'll tell what'll take care of that is a couple goats, they'll make quick work of that,'” Clark said.

What was said in jest became a genuine idea.

The atrium is right outside the mental health unit, and Health Administrator Kathy Loehr said research shows animals have a calming effect on the mentally ill and could even mean cutting back on some medications.

“It gives them a chance to look for more hopeful opportunities, that there is life outside the jail and the four walls they see every day,” Loehr said.

So Broken Arrow's Future Farmers of America donated two retired show goats to the cause.

Jail staff will take care of Scooby and Scrappy along with a local veterinarian, who's donating her time.

No inmates will be allowed to go into the atrium with the goats, they'll just be able to look at them through the window.