Billy goat: stench unacceptable?
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Photo: Federico Gambarini / dpa
How much can a billy goat stink and annoy the neighbors with its smell?
A dispute in an Upper Franconian municipality in the district of Kulmbach in Bavaria has been revolving around this question for almost three years.
A court should clarify who is right and what happens to the animal.
But after the verdict has been announced, the conflict has still not been finally resolved.
The goat farmers must ensure that the neighbors are not significantly affected by the smell, the Bayreuth Regional Court ruled on Thursday.
But what that means in concrete terms for the billy goat remains unclear.
For years the owners kept three to six goats.
Her dream: A real herd of goats with around 40 dams and a buck.
"We wanted to expand the dairy," say the goat farmers.
So almost three years ago they converted a barn that borders the neighboring property into a goat barn.
"Drying laundry was no longer possible"
To the annoyance of the neighbor.
She absolutely cannot smell the billy goat.
"In this situation it was no longer possible to dry laundry, and you could no longer sit in the garden in front of the house," reports her lawyer.
As the owner of a company, she even had to break off conversations with customers.
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The goat keepers defend themselves against the allegations.
The buck only stink in the mating season in midsummer to attract goats.
In the meantime he is housed in a separate enclosure.
"We walk through the herd twice a day with the buck on a rope."
That takes no longer than ten minutes and is acceptable, they find - especially since the neighbor keeps four goats in her garden.
Even the judge could not find a strong odor at an on-site visit.
However, witnesses and an expert had convincingly demonstrated that "there is indeed a borderline situation here".
Should the billy goat stink unbearably again, its keepers face a fine of up to 250,000 euros or a prison sentence.
In fact, the stench has meanwhile subsided, says the neighbor's lawyer.
He still finds the trial before the regional court important: "If there was such a significant impairment, there is a risk of repetition, so to speak."
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Fok / dpa