Homeless Goats in the City

Written by Margret Aldrich

As urban homesteading continues its rise, city backyards are booming with agrarian dreams: chickens peck near privacy fences, milk-producing goats bleat greetings to overflying airplanes, and tomato and pea plants stretch toward the smoggy sun. But coupled with these well-intentioned back-to-the-earth efforts is a dark side, says E Magazine’s Jodi Helmer, as the farm animals we bring to the city get short shrift.

“For many urban agrarians, chickens and goats are the perfect addition to a backyard farm,” Helmer writes, “but when the novelty of having a chirping chick wears off or adorable kids turn into grownup goats that eat the landscaping, the animals are often surrendered to rescue groups or abandoned.”

Animal rescue centers like Lighthouse Farm Sanctuary near Salem, Oregon; the Woodstock Farm Animal Sanctuary in upstate New York; and Chicken Run Rescue in Minneapolis, Minnesota—who has experienced a 780 percent increase in rescue requests over the last five years—do their best to care for animals turned out by their owners, but resources are scarce. “Most urban shelters were not designed to house livestock,” Stephen Zawistowski, executive vice president of the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals tells Helmer, leaving them vulnerable to euthanasia.

Urban goat ownership will likely increase as cities like Minneapolis aim to overturn ordinances banning goats within city limits, joining towns including Portland, San Francisco, Seattle, and Charlottesville, Virginia.

Think it would be fun to have a goat in your very own backyard? Before buying, check out rent-a-goat services like City Grazing, profiled in the video below. Even better, call a local shelter to find out if a rescue goat could make your metropolitan farmstead its home.

This post was originally published by the Utne Reader.

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Read more: animal rescue, farms, goats, pets, urban farms, utne reader

Photo from HeyThereSpaceman. via flickr

Disclaimer: The views expressed above are solely those of the author and may not reflect those of
Care2, Inc., its employees or advertisers.

Maria D.

10:13AM PDT on May 8, 2012

Animals are living creatures, humans need to learn we are not the "owners" of life.

send a green star

Patty B.

7:06PM PDT on May 6, 2012

Goats are adorable...I could have them in my yard BUT I travel a lot...cannot trust people to care for them as well as I would.

Debbie C.

10:36AM PDT on Mar 27, 2012

People do need to take responsibility for their animals. It's not their fault they grew up and aren't so 'cute' anymore. We all go through that.

The animal depends on us to care for them - food, shelter, love, vet care, etc...etc...

Terri B.

12:53PM PST on Feb 28, 2012

why do animals always have to be the ones to suffer over the ignorance of stupid selfish people?

Marieanne P.

11:36PM PST on Feb 27, 2012

Yes people don't have a problem discarding animals when they choose not to have them any more. Total irresponsibility.

Mel M.

8:43AM PST on Feb 27, 2012

Thanks for sharing

Antony M.

4:46PM PST on Feb 26, 2012

It doesn't matter what animal it is people have no problem discarding an animal that they no longer want. Animals aren't disposable and they're not novelty items.

and its so wrong if people have animals and they discard them they shouldnt have the animals in the first place

Isabelle J.

10:38AM PST on Feb 26, 2012

Thanks!

Judy K.

7:23AM PST on Feb 26, 2012

The Video about the Goats is not there. Just black spaces, for this one and the one about Bicyclest resquing mountain coats.
Thank you

Sheri D.

4:56AM PST on Feb 26, 2012

As with adopting any animal, people need to know exactly what responsibilities come with adopting a pet. They are not objects that can be discarded when they do not meet the owner's expectations!!!