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Chickens in Mystic

13 years ago

Tonight is our Zoning Commission meeting for a vote on whether to allow chickens at all residential & restaurant properties. They must be fenced. I think it will pass.

I've been reading about similar zoning changes across the country. Anything happening in your town?

/tricia

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Comments (8)

dcarch7 d c f l a s h 7 @ y a h o o . c o m
13 years ago
When I was in Vancouver the last time, they just passed a law allowing chickens.

A very sexually discriminatory law!

No roosters. :-)

dcarch
triciae
Original Author
13 years ago
lol Same here. No roosters.

/t
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Teresa_MN
13 years ago
The city of Minneapolis allows them as do many surrounding suburbs. There was a story in the news two weeks ago about a woman that started a shelter for unwanted chickens. She took in more than 500 last fall (2012). Some with frostbite/missing feet.

Based upon the excess of unwanted birds here, I don't think they should allow it. Unless of course people can prove they have the facilities to care for them in the winter months.
mabeldingeldine_gw
13 years ago
Maine is mostly rural, but the largest cities have all recently voted to allow hens, but most require an inspection to ensure adequate facilities.

I have hens and think it is a great option for some people, but feel there are a lot of ill prepared people jumping on the bandwagon who should not be allowed to own a gerbil, let alone a hen. My pampered girls live a life of luxury compared to some I've seen.
triciae
Original Author
13 years ago
Based on the numbers of irresponsible dog owners I'm a bit concerned about the health of the chickens and also a potential aroma issue around town. My DIL, also in Maine, raises chickens (the ones that lay blue eggs) and they are certainly not care free. DS built and painted a really cute mobile hen house for DIL to house them after one was lost to a bird of prey right under her nose as she was puttering in the gardens. DS hauls it around their property (26 acres) for her with his mini-tractor. They and our g-kids were just here for a few days and our 7 y.o. GS was pestering us to get chickens. Ah, that's not going to happen. :)

/t
dedtired
13 years ago
It seems that chickens are the new trendy pet. Lots of people have them around here and keep them in fancy henhouses. No roosters allowed, although the guinea hens make enough noise on their own. We have plenty of foxes, raccoons, hawks and dogs around here so the pens have to have tops and bottoms.
annie1992
13 years ago
Roosters are loud and annoy non-chicken owning neighbors, so are mostly not allowed in towns here.

Here a neighbor has chickens and sells eggs and I walked past some bee hives a few days ago. In larger local cities ordinances allowing up to 6 chickens are common, no roosters. They don't cause any more smell or mess than the cats that run all over because Michigan requires dogs to be licensed and "under control", but cats can run about everywhere.

The Grand Rapids Children's Museum even has a working beehive with glass walls so the kids can see the bees busily at work. There's a small tube that allows the bees to go out and gather nectar and then return to the hive.

dedtired, my chicken pens also have tops and bottoms, the girls are only allowed to run about when I'm there to protect them. The biggest predators are the dogs that run around the neighborhood, but raccoons, coyotes and skunks love to get into the chicken pens, as well as an occasional weasel and fox.

Annie
Jasdip
13 years ago
We're allowed to have hens in the backyard as well. A lady has set up a rescue operation to take care of hens that haven't been taken care of, or the novelty has worn off. There's a lot of responsibility in owning a chicken......or any other animal for that matter.

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