by Brenda Nelson

Created on: May 18, 2009

Many people might have the idea of being noble and rescuing a farm animal and keeping it as a pet, thus saving it from being slaughtered. Before undertaking such a rescue there are many factors that must be considered.

-Laws and Zoning

If you are considering keeping any form of livestock as a pet, you must first check to see if there are local laws against it. You cannot simply keep a cow, goat, or even a pig, as a pet in your backyard. In a very few places you can keep hens. Even if you live rurally there may be laws restricting the numbers of animals you may have.

-Space, Housing, and Funding

Make sure you can provide the proper housing, fencing, the necessary amount of space the animal needs, as well as meeting its mental needs for companionship if it is a herd animal. Buying the animal is costly, but you also need to budget for feeding and veterinary care.

-Where to Find Livestock

Typically, slaughter yards will not sell animals directly to the public. You have to beat them to it. This can be by approaching a producer, or by attending an auction at which the slaughter yards purchase animals, and out bidding them. Because farming is no different than any other job, meaning it is about making money, a producer generally will not sell an animal to you for a lower cost than they could get from their regular buyer. They may however, be willing to part with young orphaned animals cheaply. Most livestock auction facilities hold weekly auctions, and these are the best places to look.

-Types of Livestock

Laying Hens These poor birds are often kept confined in tiny cages pumping out eggs, their lifespans are cut short as they are killed when egg production declines. White birds lay white eggs, brown ones lay brown eggs, and you will still get eggs from them for several years.

Broiler Chickens These are the ones destined for our kitchen tables. They are generally white.

Roosters Roosters are generally not needed except to get more chickens, (you don't need roosters to get eggs, just to get fertile eggs). As such millions are killed at one day of age. You can keep roosters together if you have space, and no hens. Some areas have special bird auctions where you can buy roosters, otherwise you can purchase them from producers. Be aware that a rooster may not be a friendly pet, select your breed carefully.

Sheep If you truly want to rescue an animal you are best to buy an orphaned lamb. These require round-the-clock care and bottle feeding. The formula

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