Jenny Vachon is trying her hand at milking one of Mary Hart's goats, and Jasmine isn't too happy about it.

The Saanen doe is the only temperamental one on the farm, Hart assures her. That, and she's pregnant.

Todd R. McQueen / Special (ENLARGE)

Creamy white Saanen goats follow the action Mary Hart's 18-acre farm in Conley.

Todd R. McQueen / Special (ENLARGE)

Goat farmer Mary Hart, who hosted the class on goats, agreed that the animals do tie her down. But 'If you're living your dream, it doesn't matter. This is my vacation.'

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Staring at Jasmine's swollen udder, Vachon is sympathetic.

"Oh my goodness. That seems like it would be so upsetting," she said.

Despite Jasmine's unpredictable hind leg, Vachon continues. After a few novice squeezes, out comes a stream of frothy milk.

Victory.

Vachon, of East Lake, doesn't own a goat herself but, along with about a dozen others, recently attended an Oakhurst Community Garden "Goats 101" course at Hart's farm.

There, just inside Clayton County, Hart keeps more than 30 Saanen milking goats — kids, does and one buck — all creamy white with milk to match. Tucked away in a subdivision, Hart's goat farm spreads across 18 acres — just enough land to make you forget you're in a major metro suburb. That is, until Delta planes fly overhead.

Like the others, Vachon says she dreams of one day raising a four-legged kid. Unlike Fido, this backyard pet could feed a family of four.

Most of Georgia's goats, about 100,000, are raised for meat production; the remaining 3,000 are dairy goats, according to a 2008 report from the National Agricultural Statistics Service.

After holding a baby Nigerian Dwarf goat at the class, Vachon kidded, "Who needs poodles when you can have a miniature goat?"

Raising goats in an urban area may not be as improbable as one might think, according to some experts.

Glen Blair, a 4-H Extension agent in Walton County, said goats generally require little maintenance, little room and have advantages over man's typical best friend.

"They are cleaner and make much less noise than a dog," he said. "And they are excellent at cleaning up land."

All this, plus meat or goat milk, depending on the variety one chooses.

The first step, Blair advised, is making sure your backyard pet is legal. Regulations regarding raising livestock, even as pets, vary within individual cities and counties. The best advice, experts say, is to check with your city or county planning and development commission, as well as homeowners associations.

Julie Hix, an advertising executive who lives in Decatur, said she came to the course thinking she'd be overwhelmed with a goat's care requirements. But two hours in, friend Emily Mather turned to Hix and said, "Oh, we can do it."

Mather, a communications consultant in Virginia-Highland, said the women hope to share goat-raising responsibilities.

"We were thinking if we couldn't be there all the time, we could take turns" taking care of them, Mather explained.

From Hart and Kay James, who raises about 25 Nigerian Dwarf goats on her one-acre farm in Spalding County, the women learned about the day-to-day demands of goat raising, such as milking, feeding, immunizations and hoof shaving.

Meat goats, like the Boer variety, can be raised as pets if not for dinner, Blair said. Dairy goats must be milked once or twice a day — a task that can prevent goat owners such as Hart from last-minute vacations.

"If you're living your dream, it doesn't matter. This is my vacation," Hart said.

All experts stress that while goats need little space, secure fencing is key.

"Oh, you have to watch your goats. I'm telling you they are smart," warned James, a retired schoolteacher.

And most importantly, James said, keepers must keep an eye out for a goat's worst nightmare — wandering dogs and coyotes.

James said it's relatively cheap to get into the goat game. She sells her little ones for $100 to $500, depending on the quality and purpose.

While some of her customers have small farms, most of them are seeking a cute companion that can also provide an alternative to cow's milk, she said. (But keep in mind, only those with a license from the Georgia Department of Agriculture can sell dairy products.)

James, who began raising goats in 1999 as a hobby, said she likes their sweet temperament and manageable size.

The owner of Yellow Rose Farm said people hoping to get their goat should talk to neighbors beforehand, as goats — affectionate creatures who follow their owners like puppies — sometimes "cry" when the owner leaves.

Lori Durand, also a "Goats 101" participant, learned that the hard way.

A few years ago, the Emory resident tried raising a couple dairy goats behind her home, but neighbors' complaints about the noise forced her to move them to a farm in Gainesville.

Strange, she thought, because no one complained about her llamas.