DANVERS, MASS. (WHDH) - Members of the Danvers community are coming together to rally around two goats that are facing eviction from their home due to a town zoning rule.
Brittney Dupont-Raesly and her husband Timothy have been the proud owners of Dean and Deluca for almost eight years.
“When we got them, I assumed that it was fine because I know there’s other families that have goats in Danvers,” Dupont-Raesly said.
Dupont-Raesly said she has always been an animal lover and for her, adopting Dean and Deluca was a dream come true.
Last year, she and her husband received a letter from a building inspector that said the two goats were not allowed to stay because the family lives in a section of town that does not allow farm animals.
“I can’t give up my pets,” Dupont-Raesly said. “It would be like someone giving up their dog.”
The couple has been fighting to keep Dean and Deluca since the letter arrived.
At a town hall meeting on Tuesday, they presented selectmen with a petition signed by more than 900 people asking the town to change the zoning rules.
Dozens attended the meeting to show their support for the couple and their beloved pets.
“It’s so nice,” Dupont-Raesly said. “There were people walking in — people I didn’t even know — coming to support Dean and Deluca and my family. It was just awesome.”
Selectmen and the town manager say they are sympathetic to the plight of the goats and say their fate will be the subject of an upcoming special town meeting.
The couple say they plan to keep fighting to keep Dean and Deluca at home — no matter what it takes.
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