Anyone have city goats?

GoddessKristie · #1 04/22/08, 12:55 AM

When DH and I moved to our property last fall I immediately inquired about goats in our VERY small town. Of course, they are illegal. After toying with the idea of convincing the city to legalize them I finally gave up and moved on. Over the winter we learned that DS is allergic to cow milk, soy milk and every other milk we've tried except goat milk. Unfortunately there is no one offering goat shares in the area and goat milk in the store is $16/gallon (not even joking!!).
So, here I am again thinking about how we could realistically keep goats. We have a full acre so there's plenty of room for a couple pygmy does. I LOVE goats and would really enjoy having some again.
So, I'm wondering if anyone else here is in the city with goats. I know it's done in other places (Pasadena, Seattle), but I'm between a rock and a hard place. I'm afraid if I try to convince the city to allow them it will raise a red flag and they'll be watching our property. On the other hand I don't want to break any laws by keeping them illegally. However, my DS NEEDS that milk and $16 a gallon is just not realistic.

Anyone keeping goats in the city?
Anyone keeping them illegally?

cjb · #2 04/22/08, 01:55 AM

Sorry, we have goats but in the country where it is legal. I would encourage you to inquire about the feasability of changing the regulation or getting an exception.

I did want to say, however, that if you do decide to get small goats, I would either go with a Nigerian Dwarf or a mini (standard breed X Nigerian Dwarf). Of course, you would need two to get them happy and a bit more quiet. Pygmies are technically meat goats and, while they can give some milk, they won't give nearly as much as a milky ND or an ND crossed with a standard dairy breed like LaMancha, Nube, Ober etc. Actually, a Mini Mancha would probably be perfect as it would be more likely to be quiet than an ND and definitely more quiet than a mini nube!

Wags · #3 04/22/08, 10:45 AM

I would second the recommendation for Nigerian Dwarf, Kinder or other mini dairy goat since you are after milk production, and you can keep 2-3 in a 1/2 acre quite easily.

I think the first thing would be to talk to your neighbors and explain the situation with your son. Also show them some pictures of how cute those little goats are. If they realize that you are talking small they might be more accepting. My neighbors love my Nigerian Dwarfs and I have requests from both neighbors to let them know as soon as mine kid.

If you can get the neighbors on board (maybe sign a petition for you), then getting a zoning change or site specific variance should be a whole lot easier.

michael h · #4 04/22/08, 10:58 AM

We have a dairy goat that runs around the yard, penned up at night with the chickens. We live in town luckily my neigbors all like watching my varmits. I think you can have animals in our town because there are alot of horses and other livestock in town. If the neighbors don't care your probably OK .

Otter · #5 04/22/08, 11:42 AM

I've known (and been

) people who kept them in suburban lots. It won't work if 1) you have nosy, nasty neighbors, 2) the goat is loud, 3) it smells.

If you have reasonable neighbors, a quiet goat and keep it clean, there shouldn't be a problem. My neighbors loved Rosabell. I would walk her on a leash with my dog and I had so many people ask what kind of dog she was I just started saying, "She's a golden retriever mix, but she's ugly." To which the response invariably was "Ooooohhh, she's NOT ugly!!!"
It always made me laugh, because she has horns. She slept in a dog house outside the door and got lots of attention. She was a bottle baby and didn't cry for other goats because she thought she was a dog. I'm not saying that it will work out that way everytime, but that's how we kept her for a long time. Right now she's being boarded with other goats, one of whom will need to come home with us when we move as she has figured out she's a goat.

I had a friend who kept a mini goat mix the same way. Her name was Aaaaamy (think of a Maaaaa noise) They lived deep in the heart of suburbia, but kept her clean and had a privacy type fence and their neighbors never even realized she was there.

GoddessKristie · #6 04/22/08, 11:46 AM

I'm happy to read positive responses to this situation we are in. We're feeling stressed and frustrated by it, so it's nice to hear encouragement. I also thank everyone for the suggestions. I have never had dairy goats before and because of our situation we automatically went to the smallest breed. I'll look into Mini LaManchas and Nigerian Dwarfs. If you have any reference pages you think would be helpful specific to those breeds, please share!
Thanks so much and I'd love to hear from more people!

Goatguy · #7 04/22/08, 12:13 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Otter

... as she has figured out she's a goat.
.

hahaha, something about that just comes off as really funny

GoddessKristie · #8 04/22/08, 12:18 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Goatguy

hahaha, something about that just comes off as really funn

This made me laugh too! We were posting at the same time, Otter. Thanks for sharing your story!

What breed is Rosabell?

mommyjen · #9 04/22/08, 12:19 PM

We currently buy 4 gallons of raw goats milks a week from friends who have kinders. Their milk is awesome...I have had Nubian milkers in the recent past and their milk was good but this stuff is so sweet and creamy and stays fresh for so long in our fridge. I kid you not! They are a smaller goat for sure but give great milk and good amounts to for their size.

Jenny in Oregon

mommyjen · #10 04/22/08, 12:21 PM

p.s. I love this website bout kinders.

http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/sanderson95.html

GoddessKristie · #11 04/22/08, 12:22 PM

Thanks, Jenny that milk sounds delicious! I wonder how much milk is average daily production for a kinder.

I enjoyed that article about kinder goats, and it covered a lot of info (though not production quantity), but didn't say much about noise.

mommyjen · #12 04/22/08, 12:35 PM

Quote:

I only have one milker right now, and she peaked at two quarts a day and was holding steady months later at a little over a quart a day,

Quote:

My little doe gives enough milk for us for kefir and a little cheese, but many Kinder does give three or four quarts of milk a day right through their lactation. There are a few Kinder does who average over a gallon of milk a day.

Hi there! Those are from the website I linked ya to. I am not sure what my friends kinders produce but I'll have to ask. I will ask them bout noise too!

Jenny

IdahoCo · #13 04/22/08, 12:46 PM

This might be of help, these guys keep chickens, goats and ducks on a city lot. Thanks for the kinder link, I am going to see how I can get a goat or two on my property.

http://urbanhomestead.org/journal/category/animals/

prairiedog · #14 04/22/08, 12:52 PM

We have goats,chickens and rabbits in town on 1/3 of an acre

Otter · #15 04/22/08, 01:09 PM

Rosabell is a Saanan/Alpine cross. The mother was 3/4 Alpine, 1/4 Saanan and the father was the reverse. She is very pretty, yellow and smaller then you would expect. I got her very cheaply from an Amish farmer who bred for production and only kept kids when he wanted to increase his herd. Everything else was sold inside a week. She is a good milker and I can't wait to have her home again. Maybe I can manage to keep DD from bringing her in the house to watch TV this time!!

GoddessKristie · #16 04/22/08, 01:46 PM

Jen, I'm not sure how I missed that ha ha. I had better give that article a more thorough read.

IdahoCo, I did know about the Dervaes, and have talked with them some about their goats, but because goats are legal in Pasadena my situation is a little different.

PrairieDog, What breed of goats do you have? How's the noise? Do you raise for milk or meat? Are they legal where you are?

Otter, Rosabell sounds like quite a character! You must really miss her. She sounds really beautiful, too. Did you ever milk her?

Laura Workman · #17 04/22/08, 03:02 PM

We had goats for several years in downtown Everett on a double city lot. I went to some trouble to get goats that were quiet. I started with Nigerian Dwarf goats, but after two years was disappointed with their milking abilities and decided to purchase a standard goat. My first goats about 15 years earlier had been Nubians and I loved them, but they were LOUD, so I looked at other breeds. After speaking with a number of breeders and reading a lot, I determined that Oberhasli and Lamancha were the quietest breeds. I bought an Ober. Wonderful milker, extremely quiet. I like richer milk than she produced and less milk per goat, so I now have Mini Manchas - quiet, good producers of very tasty milk.

There are some very beautiful Kinders out there, but I would be cautious about putting a Kinder, related to Nubians, in a neighborhood for fear of disturbing the neighbors.

I helped with legalizing miniature goats in Seattle. We got them included in the rules pertaining to small animals such as cats and dogs. If you want to try that route, I may be able to provide you with a copy of the proposal.

GoddessKristie · #18 04/22/08, 03:07 PM

Laura, That's fantastic advice! Thanks so much! That's awesome that you were a part of the Seattle legalization! I've been trying to contact Jennie Grant, but haven't gotten a response yet. I would LOVE to have a copy of your proposal!

ms judy L · #19 04/22/08, 06:27 PM

this gal may be able to help. she keeps goats in the burbs of st louis.

www.localharvest.org/farms/M10788

Sasha · #20 04/22/08, 08:19 PM

What area of Indiana are you in? I mean, you don't have to say publicly, but I'm in Indiana as well and if we are near one another I'd be happy to give you some goat milk for your little one.

Some people we know had goats within town limits. They didn't attempt to hide their goats or anything and had several--a handful of Nubians (read: noisy), a Sanaan, and a Nigerian Dwarf. A neighbor *did* complain and nothing really came of it until the Nigerian began escaping regularly. About the time the neighbor called the police because the goat was in his yard the police pushed the issue and made her get rid of the goats.

I really think it depends. I wouldn't assume that just because it's not allowed that the Powers That Be would push the issue, but of course that's a lot of time and expense to go to just to have to get rid of your goat.