Why Should City Ordinance Allow Hens?
Cities all over America allow and even
encourage backyard hens. They are fun, educational, and make good neighbors.
Here are answers to the biggest concerns regarding backyard chickens.
Q: Aren’t chickens loud and obnoxious?
A: Hens are quieter than dogs or parrots. They do give out a baak-baak-baak noise when they lay an egg or see a predator, but it’s not early in the morning or at night and is, again, quieter than a barking dog. Roosters will not be allowed in city limits.
Q: Don’t they stink?
A: When well-cared-for as suburban pets (not as farm animals) they don't smell. This is as simple as weekly coop cleanings and daily attending to food and water, just like with any other pet.
Q: I don’t want chickens wandering around my neighbor’s yard, getting into my yard, or getting into the street. How are they contained? Is that cruel?
A: Backyard chickens lead happy, healthy lives. Kept in attractive garden coops they won't roam into neighbors' yards (like some dogs and cats do!) or the street. When we regulate backyard hen-keeping, we can establish rules like not allowing them to free range and making sure pens are secure from predators.
Q: Won’t they attract predators like coyotes and foxes? What about pests like rats?
A: Chickens kept in secure coops and runs do not attract pests or predators any more than do house cats or garden areas. Just like with dog food, their food is kept safely in secure containers and does not attract pests.
Q: I’ve heard that chickens carry avian flu. Is this true?
A: Any bird can get infected with avian influenza, but the strains that affect humans are very rare and have never been found in small, backyard flocks in the US. Most avian influenza found is in very large flocks of birds (and in the US are not the strains that can infect humans). This is true of other diseases as well, which is why store-bought eggs often contain antibiotics. Backyard hens’ eggs do not contain antibiotics, which makes them much safer to eat. Keeping hens in a secure run and coop reduces their risk of being exposed to wild birds (particularly wild waterfowl) which may be infected. The risk of salmonella is also much lower in a well-kept, small flock of suburban hens. As with caring for any pets, simply washing your hands well before and after handling or caring for chickens will vastly reduce risk of contracting any illness from them. The risk with diseases in hens is no higher than with other pets (such as after cleaning out a cat box). It is much lower than with factory farmed birds, because backyard chickens live happy healthy lives in healthy conditions.
Q: Won’t allowing hens cost the city lots of money?
A: In Longmont, CO, and in Missoula, MT, they were concerned about the same thing, and found allowing hens did not make more work or cost for the city and animal care. There are more complaints about dogs than chickens, even in cities where they are allowed.
Q: What are the benefits of chickens?
A: Composted droppings make incredible garden fertilizer: Reduce/Reuse/Recycle!
Fresh organic eggs are healthier for you and the environment: no fuel used trucking them to stores! Since hens eat a combination of weeds/grass, bugs, and grain-based feed, keeping them yourself reduces the cost of free-range, healthful eggs. Gardens and small flocks of hens help keep food secure by reducing food-borne illness and reducing the risk of tampering.
Chickens are funny, entertaining, and educational, and are easy pets to care for, great for people of all abilities.
For more information,
please see www.urbanchickens.net, www.backyardchickens.com, and aurorachickens.blogspot.com.
