Welcome to the Swamp

Aug. 2, 2005 — -- Dunwoody, Ga., is a neighborhood of luxurious, discreet, elegantly landscaped, million-dollar homes.

And then there's Daryl Cook's house where Spottie, Dottie and Sausage Patty -- the pigs --- roam the front lawn along with a trio of goats and a rooster named Spurrier. They stand out against Cook's bright orange-and-blue house, the colors of his alma mater, the University of Florida.

Cook wanted to subdivide his property and build a second house, but some neighbors protested and officials denied his request on the grounds his land was zoned for agriculture, not residence.

So Cook gave them agriculture with a vengeance.

"Sore loser," Cook said. "If you wish, you can call me that, but I'm fighting for what I think is my right."

Cook has cleared his trees to make room for next year's crop of corn and beans and he says he still has more work to do.

"I've been given lemons and I've made lemonade," Cook said. "This is my way to make the best use of the property."

He calls his homestead "The Swamp of Georgia." Neighbors have other names.

"When he got the hogs and got the rooster, I understand there's quite a stench that surrounds the property," said Ken Wright III, the Dunwoody Homeowners' Association president.

But Cook said he has received nothing but positive feedback from his unusual protest, adding his goal is not to drive away his neighbors.

"I've got some wonderful neighbors and I certainly want to keep my neighbors and be neighborly," he said. "I intend to live here; I want to live here."