There are strict laws covering the keeping, identification and transport of farm animal species such as goats, including those kept as pets. To start with, there's the Animal Welfare Act (2006), which says that anyone responsible for an animal has a legal responsibility to meet the five basic welfare needs of their animals. These are:
- a proper diet
- somewhere suitable to live
- a need to be housed with or apart from other animals
- being allowed to express normal behaviour
protection from and treatment of, illness and injury.
Because goats are farm animals, you'll need to comply with extra laws if you want to keep them. These rules apply whether you keep two goats as pets or a large commercial herd. For example, there are laws on:
- registering the goats with Defra
- marking goats for identification purposes
- registering the land you keep them on
- transporting goats
- keeping medical records for them
- dealing with deceased goats
notifying the government about certain diseases, such as Foot-and-Mouth Disease and the fatal brain disease, scrapie.
Take a look at the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) for more on laws and guidelines about keeping goats.
