By: A Visalia Resident

A Visalia Resident — Wed, 29 Jul 2015 03:33:48 +0000

Excerpts from “Living Homegrown” http://www.livinghomegrown.com/the-truth-about-keeping-backyard-goats/
(1) Goats can be loud.
To say the least. If you happen to have a doe (a girl goat) and she’s in heat (like almost every month), “loud” won’t be the word that you use to describe it. At this point I promise that I’ll get several comments or emails telling me all about their quiet-as-a-church-mouse goat. This will not be the case with your goat. If you have an unfriendly neighbor that has zero pet tolerance, you will have a problem. Check out this video so you know what I am talking about…https://youtu.be/PpccpglnNf0
2) Goats are herd animals.
What this means is that in order for them to be truly “happy”, they need a goat friend. In fact, they feel completely insecure as a singleton, so you don’t get “a goat”; you get “goats” — as in two or more. (What are the chances of them both being shy, unvocal wall-flowers? Hmm?)
3) Goats are hard on fences. Plus they’re escape artists.
Especially the shorter guys. For instance say your goaties have grown a lush winter coat and spring rolls around. All of that extra fur needs to come off and the best way they can think of to do that is to press their sides as hard as they can against the fencing as they walk by. Over and over and over.
You’ll need strong fencing material and even stronger supports for that material — like sunken wood posts and wood framing if possible. Many goat owners add a strand of hot wire (electric wire or fence) along the bottom. I’ve been assured that young goats can slip through field fencing square that are no bigger than 4″ X 4″. The general rule of thumb is said to be “if the goat can get his head through it — he can get the rest of the way through it.”
4) They eat every growing thing in sight.
Except your lawn; they won’t do you any truly helpful thing like trim the turf. Goats are browsers like deer, not grazers like sheep. They’ll eat every tree, vegetable, herb, and cutting flower in your yard…your street…your town. Nothing is sacred. The good news is that this includes weeds! Goats love to eat weeds and will nail them down to the ground…right along with your roses. The take away from this? Goats need their own yard to live in so that you can have a yard, too.

By: mark Mendenhall

mark Mendenhall — Mon, 20 Jul 2015 10:09:15 +0000

This whole thing is ridiculous. I live in Silicon Valley and we are allowed to have chickens, no roosters.Visalia is primarily a farming town.People are laughing here at how stupid your City Council is.

By: Audra Griffith Jones

Audra Griffith Jones — Sun, 19 Jul 2015 20:44:08 +0000

This is ridiculous. Visalia City Council needs to do their job and work with the UFFF rather than have tax payers spend over 100,000.00 dollars to put this on a ballot.

By: Jonathan

Jonathan — Sun, 19 Jul 2015 20:20:05 +0000

Pretty sure this article is gonna bring out the inexplicably Anti-Food Freedom trolls who hate seeing a mother fighting for the right to feed her kids. So… Hi Renee!

Comments on: Food Freedom Initiative Filed with City of Visalia

By: A Visalia Resident

By: mark Mendenhall

By: Audra Griffith Jones

By: Jonathan