Relax, it’s not a hallucination (though we might know what you’ve been up to after work these days). The herd of farm animals you just saw grazing through some of the most expensive real estate in North Texas? They’re supposed to be right there, doing just that. It’s all part of a plan. Sort of.
“What started out with the idea to hire 15-20 animals has now blossomed into a herd of 400,” says Will Dawson, a Board Member with the Friends of Northaven Trail.
Backing up, for those unfamiliar: the Northaven Trail, completed in 2023, is a nine-mile paved path running through North Dallas between Central Expressway and Denton Drive. The Trail is part of the city’s Parks and Recreation system, and much of its loving care and beautification is the work of a whole village of helicopter parents — er, volunteers — in the form of the aforementioned Friends. On any given day, the trail is filled with joggers, cyclists and toddlers on trikes. It’s dotted with Austin stone pavilions, a cute, hand-painted Little Library and memorials for beloved family pets…