Lottery to determine who can purchase Lakeland's famous swans

LAKELAND, Fla. - The city of Lakeland is giving residents a unique opportunity to own a living part of its history. Following the annual swan roundup this year, Lakeland is setting aside part of the population for people to purchase them.

The city has been actively monitoring the breeding and offspring of the swans, and in order to maintain a reasonable swan population, they believe selling the swans will thin the flock. 

All of the swans have gone through a full health checkup by area veterinarians. 

"Every year we catch them up one day and the next day we examine them," shared Dr. Price Dickson from My Pet's Animal Hospital. "We're making sure that they're all at an appropriate weight, that they're not carrying parasites, and there aren't any having to live with painful injuries."

If you are interested in purchasing one of the swans from the city of Lakeland, you must register for the lottery at www.lakelandgov.net/swansale where you will be entered into the lottery of interested buyers. The deadline to register is October 15.

Names will be chosen on October 16, and those parties will be notified to complete the registry for purchase of the swans. 

Each swan is $400 and must be paid for in full by October 23. The swans are then made available for pickup on October 29.