Not Chickens but Zoning Question

[train2110]

I posted this on BackYardHerds, but thought I would try here as well.

Not sure if this is the right place to ask this question, but looking for some opinions.

We bought our new place this spring, five acres in a Right-to-Farm community, eastern New York. After two months we got our first four chickens. Within another month, that has grown into nine, funny how that goes.

My wife would really like to get a couple of goats next spring, really sooner but I am not up to building a goat barn in the winter

. The problem is we are not sure if we can legally have them. I have not contacted our town yet. This is how the zoning code reads:

N. AGRICULTURE.
1. The growing of field and garden crops, vineyards, orchards and nurseries; the keeping of livestock on a lot of ten (10) acres or more; and the keeping of fowl on a lot of five (5) acres or more shall be permitted as allowed by the Schedule of Use Regulations provided:

I guess our question is, does this mean commercial farming or just plain old no livestock, goats, period unless you have five acres? The part that makes up question is the growing of field and garden crops. Are they saying I can not have a garden if I don't live on ten acres?

Just does not seem right to us that we could not have two or three goats on five acres.

Thank you for any input!!

 

[Judy]

My read is, you need ten acres to have goats. You might look into the "Schedule of Use regulations."

 

[schmije]

I read it to say that you need 10 acres to have goats - unless the Schedule of Use Regulations goes into more detail.

With regard to the garden, there's a semicolon between the garden section and the 10 acre requirement, so I believe they are separate. I think that the 10 acre rule only applies to livestock, and you can have a garden on any size lot you wish.

I read it to say that you can do any of the following:
- have a garden, vineyard, orchard or nursery (lot size is not specified, so any size is allowed)
- have livestock on 10 acres or more
- have fowl on 5 acres or more

 

[train2110]

Thanks for the replys. The garden thing I believe I did miss read. The 10 acres for livestock and five acres for fowl just seem alittle odd. If you want to have two hens, you would need aleast five acres of land. Wow!

On a side note, with my five acres I can legally have three horses in the yard, but not one goat.

 

[schmije]

If horses are allowed, maybe you could get a speciail permit for the goats?

 

[jaj121159]

Do you live in a development with any community open space? If so that open space may give you the amount of land needed for horses. Typically 10 goats = 1/2 horse. So if you can have 3 horses that would equal 60 goats. That is from EPA and USDA animal regulations.