Howdy everyone;
We are a pair of hopeful Nigerian Dwarf Dairy Goat owners who live in a small upstate NY village with three Angora bunny boys and five Buckeye chickens.
We submitted an "up to three pet goat in the village" proposal to the village planning office and received a note back saying our R-3 zone does not allow livestock. The note also mentioned we can appeal this decision.
We are looking for a way to get a variance on the zoning restrictions on our property. Are there any goat owners that have worked through this process who can help us with examples of both communities that allow for goats and any wording we can use in our variance request?
Unfortunately we can't sneak them on to our mini-farm 'cause our property abuts a village parking lot.
Thanks in advance for your help,
Susan & Ken
Replies
Thank you for the good wishes, Judy. That was nearly two years ago. I lost him at two days old. Even worse, the first born died at two weeks. She had a liver infection apparently caused by bacteria that entered her cord at birth. I had one survivor from the litter and it was a boy who I had to wether.
She was the first born here under my herd name and was also the doe that I bred for. Her dad was Crazy (Poppy Patch Crazy She Calls Me) from outstanding milking lines. Unfortunately, I bred my junior doe to the other buck, Legend. I say unfortunately, because Crazy died a few months later. I have kicked myself for not breeding both my does to Crazy; the only reason I didn't was, get this, I didn't want to hurt Legend's feelings! This is especially true since my junior doe has developed into such an outstanding milker. If my yearling doe had her for mom (which she does) and Crazy for dad - she would promise to be even better than she will, hopefully, be. A doe from that breeding surely would have produced more champion milkers (already in Crazy's line). Opportunities lost . . . hopefully opening doors for others.
(I posted about Summer's milk production this time under "Milk Brag" that I had done before about the cream, only this time it is about quantity and Summer rather than her mom. http://nigeriandwarfgoats.ning.com/forum/topics/milk-brag - but you need to go all the way to the end of the thread, last page)
I just had reason to re-read this post when someone asked a similar question and see a *major* error.
I said: Because my property is 3/10 acre (most of it back yard), we kept writing 1/4 acre into our drafts with the city attorney sending it back changed to 1/2 acre.
Should be: Because my property is 3/10 acre (most of it back yard), we kept writing 1/2 acre into our drafts with the city attorney sending it back changed to 1/4 acre.
Just backward.
Deborah, if you could fix that and then delete this post, I would be so very appreciative. Surely, my mind was on my little buckling not on typing.
Will do, Glenna, and thanks for sharing this information with all of us. :)
When our city updated its urban livestock code a few years ago, I served on the committee. While my only interest at the time was in ensuring our chicken number was not limited to three as in Portland, that is where my goat tale began. One of our committee members mentioned that with a garden, a half dozen hens and a pair of Nigerian Dwarf milking goats a family could produce most of their own food. We also discussed that these little goats are smaller than most breeds of large dogs and far less offensive. From there, we went to defining miniature livestock as being less than 100 lbs. at maturity. The next step was property size and number since our covered properties ranged from 50x100 foot lots to several acres that had been annexed as Vancouver expanded. Because my property is 3/10 acre (most of it back yard), we kept writing 1/4 acre into our drafts with the city attorney sending it back changed to 1/2 acre. I started researching and found that Portland (Oregon) had a three-animal limit on miniature livestock which includes dogs in the count unless the property supported more based on a formula. This allowed the average city dweller to have three but did not limit those on large properties as they were covered by the codes involving livestock in general. We re-submitted our draft with that included. We are allowed three miniature livestock, all males (and pot-pellied pigs) must be neutered. It took several weeks but put in place a long-term solution.
I would suggest you try this route - changing the code rather than applying for a variance. You can use Portland, Oregon, and Vancouver, Washington, as examples of cities that allow miniature livestock within city limits with all types of housing. This leaves the responsibility squarely on the shoulders of the goat owners to ensure that all codes, including the nuisance code, are observed. We have restrictions that require fencing that will not allow the animals to intrude on adjacent property. While this means a solid fence in most cases, it also does not require a second fence 5-10 feet inside the exterior property fence which was one of the considerations during planning.
So far, it is my experience that everyone loves these little neighbors and is thrilled to have them. I must point out, however, there is no odor and my girls are relatively quiet. Because there are now kids that will soon be out, their popularity will undoubtedly expand to more folks.
Later, when I am not in crisis with my youngest buckling who may not make it, I will try to remember to provide links to the code. Everyone please pray for Capri's youngest buckling.
I would go in, and explain that you are talking about pets, and these are dwarf goats, not full sized. I'd really try to talk up the "mini" part, and the pet part.