Fight to reclaim goats takes aim at Detroit law

[Vic01]

For... or Against...?

Sky Brown and her husband, David Brown, moved into Detroit from the suburbs in May to rehab a long-abandoned home with hopes of helping rebuild the city.
The neighborhood near Six Mile and Telegraph consists of a scattering of abandoned and foreclosed homes and a lot of fallen trees. It's an area well on its way to being reclaimed by nature.
Inspired by the rural feel, the couple got a half-dozen chickens and three goats, hoping to keep the goats as pets in an enclosed area in the backyard. They planned to eat any eggs produced by the chickens.
"I've always wanted animals. I always wanted to be a farmer when I was younger, and I just love goats," said Sky Brown, 34.
But in October, the couple say animal control came in, confiscated the animals without warning and slapped Sky with nine criminal charges of harboring wild animals. The chickens have been given away. The goats are in a sanctuary.
Supporters say the crackdown represents the wrong direction for a city hoping to attract professionals to its blighted neighborhoods. Sky Brown has a law degree; David Brown, 33, works for the Detroit Bus Co. They have started a website to draw support and funding for their legal fight. Sky Brown is fighting the nine misdemeanor counts — each punishable by up to three months in jail — and has a court hearing in February.


http://www.detroitnews.com/story/new...-law/21215901/

another article -

The seizure ended Sky Brown’s dream of urban farming on a property in a rundown Detroit neighborhood she and her husband purchased for $2,000 last year. The couple wanted to turn the property into a self-sustaining urban homestead.
“I’ve always wanted goats since I was a little kid,” Brown said. “And they were attainable here where there are no people.”
She noted that the neighborhood she lives in is largely deserted but very affordable. The Detroit Muckraker blog described Riverdale as plagued by crime, arson and abandoned houses. Dead pit bulls presumably left over from dog fighting are regularly dumped on the neighborhood’s streets.
“There are gun shots every night,” Brown wrote of her neighborhood. “There are meth addicts blowing up houses within blocks of us, and the city of Detroit finds it more relevant to rip screaming pets out of the hands of their devastated owners.”
Brown was particularly upset with Animal Control because they would not simply let her move the animals outside the city limits.
She admits the seizure is partially her fault because she did not check on the legality of owning farm animals in Detroit. Many cities and towns have laws against farm animals on the books, and a lot of those laws define chickens as farm animals.
Brown has created a GoFundMe site to raise money to help get the goats back. Funds raised will be used to help overturn what Brown described as Detroit’s “archaic law against urban farming.” Brown is also receiving pro bono or free legal representation to help her cause.


http://www.offthegridnews.com/2014/1...stated-family/

[Willi]

No animal raising inside a large city
---- far too many hygiene issues.

Michigan Law is firm on this.

https://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sour...UbfrWHCCYjF_xA

[Vic01]

Laws are subject to change...

I doubt if half a dozen chickens generate anywhere near the crap that a couple of large dogs do... yet we don't ban dogs due to potential "hygiene issues" do we?

I think that the article talks about studying the issues and looking for a reasonable middle ground. No large scale, or "factory", farming permitted of course. A small number of "farm" animals per family for their own use, why not?

Time will tell...

[Honky Tonk]

I'm not concerned about the "health issues". What's the difference if someone has 5 dirty dogs or 5 dirty goats? You either take care of your animals or you don't. However, I don't want to live next door to barking dogs, or bleating goats.

[downtownguy]

I just can't get behind them. It might be their sense of arrogance that I have a problem with. The article makes them out as saints because they're coming in to "save" the city. Well, lot's of people have moved back without flaunting existing laws.

She admits the seizure is partially her fault because she did not check on the legality of owning farm animals in Detroit.

And she has a law degree? I wonder, would she have moved into any suburb and tried this trick expecting any sympathy? I have nothing against the goats. Just spoiled, arrogant humans.

[SyGolden48236]

If these folks want to live on a farm then they should move to an area that is zoned agricultural. Just another example of the "me first", "I don't like the law so I am not going to obey it" and "I can do whatever I want" attitudes that are so prevalent among many of their generation.

And have they thought about what they are going to do when the local pack of free-range pit bulls gets hungry for some "city chicken" or some goat?

[preserve]

I was sorry to see the goats in North Corktown go, and the goats at Catherine Ferguson get attacked, but I'm not so sure I would want them next door to me either. It sounds like they had plenty of property for the animals, and I agree large, barking dogs don't make for good neighbors either, especially when the owners don't bother to scoop the poop.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

I'd say they should have figured out what is and isn't permitted before moving in. That being said, I think there can and should be a reasonable revision of the regulations given that huge amounts of the city are reverting to wilderness. Such as a small number of these animals, and in certain designated areas on a trial basis. Detroit can and should think a bit more outside of the box. Just like other forms of urban farming, there is plenty of room for this.

And I'd rather have animal control concentrating on feral dogs and cats rather than well tended chickens and goats.

I have a close friend who has three chickens in her yard in Three Rivers. They seem to allow if there with no problems.

And face the facts: One more abandoned house is the other option here.

[Willi]

Duggan needs to squash this fast
-- inspect neighborhoods, eliminate animals .

People in cities with animals is a hygiene
medical nightmare waiting to explode.

There were extremely solid reasons for putting
the rules/laws in place to begin with.

[DetroiterOnTheWestCoast]

Duggan needs to squash this fast
-- inspect neighborhoods, eliminate animals .

People in cities with animals is a hygiene
medical nightmare waiting to explode.

There were extremely solid reasons for putting
the rules/laws in place to begin with.

I guess you'd need to eliminate all those cats and dogs first. Then move onto the birds, squirrels, and so forth.

[Willi]

No problem shooting feral animals by the thousands and burning in massive fire pits.
Eliminate the nuisance efficiently, humanely.
Take the problem , fix it, move on.

People will then seriously take care of their pets

[Ray1936]

Be careful. Seems there was a fight over a goat in 1945 over in Chicago with the Cubs. The goat cursed the franchise and they haven't done shit since.

[ABetterDetroit]

Be careful. Seems there was a fight over a goat in 1945 over in Chicago with the Cubs. The goat cursed the franchise and they haven't done shit since.

LOL, good one!

[Jimaz]

Be careful. Seems there was a fight over a goat in 1945 over in Chicago with the Cubs. The goat cursed the franchise and they haven't done shit since.

I have no idea why I would understand what you're talking about but I did.

Curse of the Billy Goat

[canuck]

Duggan needs to squash this fast
-- inspect neighborhoods, eliminate animals .

People in cities with animals is a hygiene
medical nightmare waiting to explode.

There were extremely solid reasons for putting
the rules/laws in place to begin with.

Yeah quick before Detroit turns into a goats town.

[Gistok]

Duggan needs to squash this fast
-- inspect neighborhoods, eliminate animals .

People in cities with animals is a hygiene
medical nightmare waiting to explode.

There were extremely solid reasons for putting
the rules/laws in place to begin with.

You really have no idea what benefits goats could do for Detroit, do you??

If there were a way they could be kept off roadways... goats would be cure all for weed choked empty lots in Detroit. They prefer eating weeds and dead leaves to grass and hay... they could clear weed choked lots in a very short time. From a strictly brush control standpoint they would be able to clear out any part of the city... it's just they have the drawback of wandering about.

This article says it all.... using goats for vegetation management...
http://www.noble.org/ag/livestock/goatvegetation/

In fact I would bet that the couple knew full well that goats and other barnyard animals were forbidden in Detroit. I bet they were looking for an easy solution to clearing out the overgrown vegetation areas near where they moved to, and were gambling that they weren't going to get caught... I give them credit for trying... no easier way for growth clearance than a goat!

[Willi]

The Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development administers the Right to Farm Act, and the state law trumps local zoning.

No animal farming in Detroit city limits.
There are still 600,000 people living in Detroit.
It is not a small little rural farming community

[Gistok]

The Michigan Department of Agriculture & Rural Development administers the Right to Farm Act, and the state law trumps local zoning.

No animal farming in Detroit city limits.
There are still 600,000 people living in Detroit.
It is not a small little rural farming community

Now you're just preaching to the choir.... you're not telling anyone here anything that we don't already know.

But maybe these pheasants in Detroit don't yet know that they're not legally here....
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0BKWl9Hl-d0

[Willi]

But the stupidity ensues, even with that so called knowledge of the laws on the books

People were hunting deer in Warren,
and just because an asshole did it,
does not change the law,
or make it a good idea.

[Lowell]

Yeah quick before Detroit turns into a goats town.

Ha ha Great pun.

[canuck]

Ha ha Great pun.

CouldnT help it Lowell. Cheers!

[mwilbert]

Goats and chickens are two very different issues.

I can't think of any reason not to allow a few chickens on a city lot [[not roosters, which are pretty noisy). Less annoying and messy and potentially dangerous than many dogs; less damaging to the environment than an outdoor cat, and they don't do anything bad if they get out.

Goats probably need more room that a single lot tends to have, and they can be smelly, and they are very good at escaping from confinement and eating things that they should not. Certainly if you have a big lot or a second adjacent lot or something, it could be reasonable, but I can see the downside. As was mentioned, they are great for dealing with brush, but a single lot is going to run out of brush pretty quickly with a goat eating it.

But just because I think the rule against chickens is pointless doesn't mean I think people should be surprised if it gets enforced.

[Dexlin]

First, I'd just like to say that I would like Detroit to move much faster on crafting urban farming ordinances and new zoning classifications to support small-scale agriculture. There are areas of the city with population density so low, that I would like to see urban gardening/farming as an option if someone is so inclined to do it. Regardless of what I think of it, it's kind of a freedom issue with me. As long as there is agreement amongst city government as to the scale and intensiveness of such endeavors and they vote on it, I'm fine with that. And, BTW, since this issue is largely a state issue [[Right to Farm), the state must coordinate with the city on this to get this moving instead of both not really knowing what the other is doing. The problem is the legislature is too busy with tax cuts and restricting abortion much to care unless Detroit was doing something they didn't like, and only then would they take notice.

Anyway, all that said, until legal issues are clarified by the city, they are under no obligation to bend over backwards for this free-for-all. And, the comparison of arm animals to dogs and cats is ridiculous for a whole host of reasons that should be obvious. I'm also surprised by all of this arm-chair quarterbacking concerning what kind of effect farming has in urban areas, as if everyone just got some agricultural degree. You can't just assume that there is no more problems with pets as their is with things like run-off, smell, noise, etc...from chicken coops and goat and pig pens. I also people tend to forget that just because Detroit has some areas of amazing depopulation, that even with its declining population the city still has a considerable higher population density than a lot of ther cities of similar size. Even in some of the most cleared neighborhoods, you still have uneven density numbers. People always talk about the expanse of the city and how you could fit such-and-such city such-and-such times into the borders of Detroit forgetting that while Detroit is bigger than the cities on the East Coast, it pales in comparison or is at least equal in size to other cities with similar populations. Contrary to popular belief, Detroit isn't "empty." I only bring this up, because the idea that you can just drop a farm into the city an no one would notice isn't an accurate portrayal.

[sumas]

I have adored goats ever since the goat at the petting zoo on Belle Isle ate the fake chiffon flower off my sisters dress. My Mom would dress us like twins although there was a four year difference in age. My matching ugly dress was lilac, hers pink. Yes, back in the day, girls wore dresses everywhere even to recreational events.

People can take classes now in urban chicken farming. I don't wish to raise chickens, own a goat nor pigs [[pigs really stink) nor bees either for that matter. If neighbors what to do such enteprises doesn't bother me a bit. Except for maybe pigs. They really do stink. Relatives own farms so I have a bit of a clue. The EMU farm was perhaps the most amusing.

[Ray1936]

Once in Iowa we camped next to a pig farm. For half an hour. Sumas speaks wisely.