Animals by 3 are allowed

Farm Animals in Town?

Old McDonald had a city lot? That doesn’t have quite the same ring, does it? But lots of folks living within the city limits have farm animals for pets. These unconventional pet owners say they are just as much in love with their duck or rabbit as more traditional pet owners are with their dogs and cats.

Take Tawni Pargman for example. She lives in the Comstock neighborhood and keeps company with her pet rabbit, Bunbun.

“When I got him, he was the size of an orange,” she said. “As soon as I held him I knew that he was going to be my bunny. My husband was worried because we already had two cats, a dog and a fish tank.”

Pargman was so in love that she entered Bunbun in the Spokane Interstate Fair.

“I thought he was pure bred for a long time, but when I showed him at the fair the judge disqualified him right away for not being pure bred,” she said. “The judge was cool because he saw my face fall and he said ‘but he’s a beautiful bunny.’”

No ribbon didn’t change Pargman’s love for Bunbun.

“I guess one of the cutest things he does is lie on the floor and push he legs out behind him,” she said. “He looks like he’s flying.”

Kim Wallis, who lives in North Spokane, also had a farm animal for a pet – Ducky.

“We found a baby duckling on our way home from a camping trip that had been separated from his mother,” she said. “He thought my daughter Katie was his mother. Katie would hold him up to the porch light in the evenings and let him eat the bugs that were gathering around it. It was such a sweet time when we had him – almost a year and then he flew away while we were at work one day.”

Wallis and Pargman agree that having not-so-traditional pets requires time and research. “Their care is so much different than that of a cat or a dog,” said Pargman.

She speaks from experience. She once had a pet duck.

“One thing I should mention is that there’s a big raccoon issue in our neighborhood,” she said. “A raccoon came into the yard and got Moby Duck. It was horrible. We were heartbroken. I guess you could say I’m a veteran of having unique pets in the city.”

Gail Mackie, executive director of Spokanimal, said farm animals are sometimes brought into the shelter to be put up for adoption.

“It’s the rare thing rather than the rule,” she said. “But it happens. We had three rabbits adopted out yesterday and we have one that came to us as a stray. We’ve had horses and goats and pigs and chickens. Obviously we can’t keep horses in the city because we aren’t zoned for it. But we have places outside the city where we can keep them.”

Mackie said the rule for keeping non-hoofed farm animals in the city is pretty simple:

“You can keep up to three of each – three ducks, three chickens, three peacocks. That’s what the ordinance says.”

Ken Pelton, Spokane City planner, said that new zoning regulations are in the works and will come before the City Council in the fall.

“Now you are limited to three of any species, but I expect that will be an item up for discussion,” he said. “If you have three of each species, then it could get pretty noisy around your house.”

The fine for violation of the noise ordinance is $500 per incident.

Mackie said one warning is given, then neighbors sign a petition and a citation is issued.

“The new zoning code we are working on will have a zone called residential agriculture,” Pelton said. “It would allow for some keeping of livestock with certain acreage limitations.”

Current regulations list a portion of Latah Valley as the only agricultural land use designation. Some areas of the city where people already had hoofed animals remain grandfathered into the code.

For people who don’t quite have room in the city for the animal they’d love to own, follow Tyler Books’ lead. Tyler, 14, has a pet goat but he keeps it at his aunt’s house in Reardon.

“I go out on weekends and take care of it and feed it,” he said. “I help her do stuff with her goats, like milk them and trim their hooves. I’ve even helped my goat have babies.”