Hello Delaware!

Delaware, Ohio, our sort-of neighbor, is considering the chicken issue.  It seems there are many Delaware residents who are interested in owning a few pet hens, and a few Delaware residents who are concerned about the unknowns.  I'm so pleased that, for the most part, Delaware seems to be fully exploring the issue with patience and amicability.  Way to go Delaware!  If I can be a resource, or if City Council wants to take a field trip to our house, please let me know!

When others come to our website, I always feel compelled to (1) invite them over to check out the chix in person, and (2) explain/apologize for how our back yard must look in photos.  Please understand that the pictures of the chicken run are shots of a small area on the side of our house.  The area is probably 5x24 ft (I'm terrible at estimating).  We've packed too much into that area, but it's all behind privacy fencing.  If we had this run out in our yard, in view of the patio, we wouldn't have loaded in nearly so much.  For example, we would've thought twice about that second (unnecessary) chicken coop.  In fact, we're moving in 2 weeks to another house in Bexley, and I'm already thinking twice about that second chicken coop.  How on Earth are we going to move all this chicken stuff?  I suggested making a Conestoga wagon out of a kids' red wagon and dragging them to the new house, but I've been vetoed :)

Come meet the chickens!

Have you noticed the media coverage in the last few weeks about Bexley residents raising chickens in their backyards? Doubtless, many of you have questions: How noisy are a few chickens? What does a small coop smell like? What is the point of people having chickens in their backyards? And mostly: Will it be a nuisance to me if one of my neighbors has some “backyard chickens”?

We are three Bexley families who keep chickens in our backyards, and we would be happy to have our friends and neighbors come over and have a look at our hens and their living arrangements.

We are hosting two Open Houses (or “Open Coops”, if you prefer!) before the Bexley Zoning Commission takes up the issue at its meeting on October 26^th at 5:30pm at Bexley City Hall. Regardless of where you stand on the topic, we hope you will agree that it makes sense to learn more about this issue, see the chickens and their housing in person, and talk to your neighbors who have backyard chickens!

Please drop by, talk to us, meet our hens, and see their coops. Bring your kids for a mini-lesson on where eggs come from!

-The Adlers, Cooks, Mills/Garretts, and the chickens

Meet the South Bexley Chickens at the Garrett/Mills Coop

Friday, October 22nd 4:30pm-7:00pm

2400 N Havenwood Dr.

+ Havenwood Dr. is a one block street spanning between Cassingham & Euclaire

+ The coop is in the backyard; enter the backyard through the gate at the left of the house

+ Call Jessica at 325-4279 or Andrew at 327-6295 for information

Meet the Central Bexley Chickens at the Adler/Cook Coop

Monday, October 25 3:30pm-7:00pm

375 & 365 S. Parkview Ave.

+ Park on Parkview and walk down either driveway into the backyard, towards Westland

+ Or park on Westland Ave and enter the driveway next to the Red Barn

+ The coop is just off the barn's driveway, across from 363 Westland Ave.

+ Call Dana at 425-1189 or Allison at 580-0571 for information

IN CASE OF RAIN, EVENTS WILL BE CANCELLED.

Common myths & facts about backyard chickens

“Chickens suffer from a PR problem. People think they are dirty, noisy and smelly. The truth, a few cared for hens are cleaner and quieter than one big dog or the three neighborhood cats that poop in the flower bed. Plus you get eggs...” The Wall Street Journal

Myth: Chickens are noisy.

Facts: The main rule for keeping urban chickens is “no roosters allowed.” Hens do not make a ruckus in the morning like their male counterparts and they are fast asleep in their coop by the time the sun goes down. (Hens do lay eggs without the aid of a rooster. Roosters are only needed if you want to have fertilized eggs for baby chicks.) Hens make a soft clucking noise that is less noisy than a barking dog or even a yowling cat.

Myth: Chickens are messy and smelly.

Facts: Chickens themselves do not smell. This is a fact. It is only their feces that has the potential to smell which is also true of feces from dogs, cats, rabbits or any other animal that is outside. According to the US Poultry & Egg Association, a hen produces .04 lbs of litter per day (manure + wood shavings). According to FDA, an average dog generates 3/4 of a pound of manure a day. That's about 18 hens to do the "business" of one dog. And dog manure should not be composted, whereas chicken manure becomes excellent compost!

The reason people fear an odor problem is because their only experience with chickens, if they have any at all, is on a farm or commercial poultry operation. Under these circumstances, hundreds if not thousands of chickens are sometimes kept in crowded conditions with poor ventilation and without proper cleaning. As a result, these facilities can stink. There is a huge difference between these environments and the the very popular and rapidly growing hen movement. A backyard chicken coop housing half a dozen chickens does not create the odor issue that may concern some residents.

Myth: Chickens attract rodents/predators.

Facts: The truth is that rodents already exist in Bexley and are attracted to any unprotected food source like bird seed, dog food, cat food, open trash cans, fruit trees, and even koi ponds. There are preventative measures (chicken feed containers and coop designs) to nearly eliminate this concern.

Myth: Backyard chickens will decrease property value.

Facts: There is absolutely no evidence that keeping pet hens within sensible ordinance guidelines would have any affect on property values. If property values decreased with backyard chicken keeping, why would major cities like Atlanta, New York, Chicago, Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Madison, WI, Denver, not to mention Columbus, support backyard chicken keeping?

Urban chicken keepers, like all good pet owners, are concerned about how their chickens might be affecting their neighborhood. They want their chickens to be a positive experience for everyone and they make an effort to keep an open dialog with their immediate neighbors to ensure any concerns or issues are addressed. Chickens can be kept in a yard so inconspicuously, that it may not be apparent that chickens are even around. There are eggs to share, and a chicken coop in the neighborhood can actually be a conversation starter, and thus it can enhance a neighborhood community.

Come see our coops, meet our chickens, and ask questions!

Urban Chickens now OK in Springfield, Mo.

City council in Springfield, MO., just passed some legislation that covers the same points that Bexley is considering!

"The new rules have a limited range. The new ordinance still prohibits roosters, and no more than six hens are allowed in each brood. The birds' housing also have specific guidelines."

Welcome, New Readers!

Last night the Bexley News arrived at our doorstep and the chicken "issue" is on the front page. Somehow, it seems, we've become the face of chickendom in Bexley (okay, so it's not "somehow." It's because I opened my big mouth at the Zoning Commission meeting where they discussed the topic last week).

It's kind of weird. Here we just thought we were getting a couple of pets and now we seem to be a part of something bigger. Though, I hope, not that much bigger. The article reinforced our impression that the Zoning Commission seems predisposed to have a light hand in drafting a new chicken ordinance.

• No roosters, probably (which I think everyone can agree on! Roosters are noisy, so existing noise ordinances would cover this, but I don't see any problem with making it explicit. And no, you don't need a rooster to get eggs. You only need a roster to get fertilized eggs.).
• Possibly a fee to register chickens (also fine by us - maybe the city makes some chicken scratch (har har) to help cover the photocopies for the public forum on chickens).
• Limiting the number of chickens allowed (a-okay, though we're already explicitly limited to 5 pets, so this seems to be covered by existing ordinances).
• Requiring a coop (good for the chickens, important for keeping critters out - I don't think the chickens would last long with out one).

We're hoping (as I'm sure the Zoning Commission is, too) that this can be dealt with quickly & without too much drama, and that whatever new rules are ratified are simple to follow and don't place an undue burden on the city or its residents.

For those of you just visiting this blog, you'll find it's mostly just pictures of our three ladies doing chicken-y things. We're no experts. It's only slightly more interesting than a blog about someone's new puppy. But I've read just about every "urban chicken" book available at Barnes & Nobel -- surprisingly, there are quite a few -- and we're happy to answer any questions you have. Go ahead and post 'em in the comments.

Evanston passes chicken ordinance - chicagotribune.com

It seems while we were at the Bexley meeting, the city council in Evanston, IL approved backyard chickens. I haven't seen their ordinance in particular, but the description of what they are requiring--a small fee, neighbor notification (not approval), and guidelines on coop maintenance, etc.--seems reasonable. Maybe a model for Bexley?

Evanston passes chicken ordinance - chicagotribune.com

We're in the News!

The Columbus Dispatch was at the zoning commission hearing last night, and here's the story. The girls make it in by name, though I don't. (At least not directly. Indirectly, I'm 'Mr Garrett'.) And Jack and Ben (il cane e il gatto) are described as "unusual". What did Jessica tell the reporter, we wonder, that led her to that conclusion?

Click on the "Share me" link below to read the story.

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Salmonella outbreak is another strike against factory farmed eggs

On Aug 18th Wright County Egg, an Iowa factory farming operation, recalled 380 million eggs after some of its facilities were linked to a massive salmonella outbreak. The FDA is recommending that "if consumers are unsure about the source of their eggs, they [should not] eat them and [should] discard them immediately." This is especially true if you're fragile: young, old, or sick.

Wright County Egg is a bad actor, to be sure. According to the NYTimes, the company has had "run-ins with regulators over poor or unsafe working conditions, environmental violations, the harassment of workers and the hiring of illegal immigrants." They also keep their chickens in the kind of CAFO conditions you're used to hearing about: grossly overcrowded cages, artificial lights, ammonia fumes that could knock you over. A 2008 survey by the UK Soil Association, which certifies food in Britain as organic, found large flocks of caged hens were 19 percent more likely to be contaminated with Salmonella than organically raised hens and 17 percent more likely to be contaminated than free-range or pastured hens. Whether the same would hold true in the US egg industry is unclear, but the Association did find that rates of Salmonella were directly proportional to the size of the flock. The larger the flock, the more likely the hens were to be contaminated.

So, even though Peggy, Joan & Betty will have only the teeny tiniest chance of laying salmonella contaminated eggs, I've started learning about proper sanitation to prevent even that tiny chance of getting ourselves or whomever is lucky enough to eat our eggs sick.

How to prevent salmonella in your backyard flock

• Collect eggs often.
• Keep the coop clean! Salmonella is passed around in chicken poop. So get the poop out as often as possible.
  
• Keep the ladies healthy by feeding them well, keeping the dry, and finding a good vet to help.
• Practice biosecurity.
  
• Wash, wash, wash your hands, for the love of god.
  
• "Don't wash off the bloom from the egg. If the egg is soiled, you can use a dry, stiff nail brush, fine sandpaper or a rough pan scour pad to remove manure that might have caked on. Only wash the eggs before you use them and in warm water. Do this only as a last resort. Dirty eggs might be covered with bacteria, which have trouble getting through the shell so long as it's dry. As soon as the shell is wet with cold water, the pores of the shell opens and germs pass through more easily. And then, as the egg cools even more the contents shrink a little, causing a partial vacuum inside that tends to suck foreign matter into the egg."(from Barnyardsandbackyards.org)

And, now back to the chickens.