Anyone know how to subvert a rooster ban/ordinance for a single bird?

[Veg87]

Anyone know how to subvert a rooster ban/ordinance? i'm not having a ton of luck finding our cockerel a new home where he won't be eaten and we'd kind of like to keep him if possible, but we live in a city that doesn't allowing crowing animals.

I've considered a handful of things. The first is to attempt to certify him as a personal therapy animal (to alleviate the anxiety i'd get from not having him lol), but this can sometimes be expensive. I did it successfully with my husky when I lived in an apartment to get around breed/size restrictions and paying a pet deposit and extra rent, not sure how easy it would be to license a rooster though... My second though was form an LLC and try to use Michigan's Right To Farm Act, however i believe you're required to have a stainless steal egg wash station outside of your home and/or garage in it's own structure which i can't afford to do. I'm not sure if I could say i occassionally rent the use of a licensed kitchen in a church basement or something, or he could be "breeding stock" for future chick sales, or if selling produce from our garden would make us a farm and encompass our chickens.

If anyone has any experience with this, or thoughts, ideas, and/or suggestions (or wants to give a handsome Speckled Sussex cockerel a good new home around Mid-Michigan) please chime in.

 

[bobbi-j]

So, if I'm understanding this right, you're asking for ideas to help you break the law?

 

[donrae]

Never mind.....

 

[Veg87]

I'm not trying to break the law, its not even a law, just a pesky city ordinance, and i'm not trying to break it, I'm trying to find a way around it to keep him legally using a state or federal law the supercedes an local ordinance. I'd really like to find him a new home in the country, but it's proving difficult to find somone who doesn't just want to eat him, so I'm trying to weigh all my options in case he doesn't get a new home, killing him is out of the question to me, he is our unintentionally acquire pet (I paid almost double for sexed birds). If i said anything in a joking fashion, it was merely my attempt at making light of what i have felt is a difficult and upsetting situation.

I've read of many people on here attempting to use the 'michigan right to farm act' to keeps chickens, or larger animals for that matter, where they aren't allowed by an ordinance period. I'm allowed to keep chickens, in fact the ordinance doesn't forbid roosters specifically, just loud/crowing animals. i've spoke with the neighbors all around our home, front, back, and sides, and none of them seems to mind. Our back yard is fairly walled off with large bushes, trees, and fencing. i know he's going to get louder and crow more often so it may only be a matter of time until someone farther away than my immediate neighbors complain. I've attempted to be as considerate to the others surrounding me as possible by bringing him inside at night and taking him out after he gets his morning crowing out of his system under indoor lighting. He doesnt mind, he gets lots of treats and individual attention.

I'm asking for suggestions and experiences on ways to keep him in a LEGAL fashion so that he cannot be taken from us as we dearly love all of our animals. I've been a vegetarian for 15 years (i got the chickens so i could eat what i feel is an ethical, humane, organic protein source as I'm quite under weight) and animal rights advocate for longer than that. My birds will die of old age if i have anything to say about it.

As far as the therapy animal angle is concerned, i already have had one as i have horrible anxiety that they helped mitigate. licensing her was just a way to allow me to keep her in my apartment where her breed was not allowed. i also took her (my husky) to see alzheimer's patients (and my wheelchair bound sickly neighbor) regularly so as to not feel as if i had taken advantage of the of the program just to suit my own ends.

The right to farm act may directly apply to me, as i do sell and donate a larger portion of my garden produce, and i do intend to sell (if i can do so legally, as i said i can't curretly afford to put in a seperate stainless wash station as i think the law requires here... theres always chicken-shares or free eggs with minimum donation) enough eggs to offset the high cost of corn-free, soy-free, organic feed, as well as donate a portion to the local food bank to continue t help feed my community.

I'm not looking to be put down with negative comments, i had previously thought this was a mostly positive community here. i may vary well not be abl to keep him, but if i can find a way to do so legally, i'm going to try my best to find it for my own peace of mind. that is why i signed up here, to ask for positive, productive advice to provide the best home and care possible for our new flock. If anyone can actually help me out here with advice or personal experience, please do...

 

[jimbob86]

This?

 

[MeepBeep]

It's generally very hard to get 'farm animals' legally accepted as service animals to get around a local ordinance ban...

The ADA only covers dogs as service animals, with a regulation that allows miniature horses some coverage but not full coverage, state laws may vary but it appears Michigan also limits to dogs...

As for the right to farm act in Michigan, it was revised in 2014 to not cover residential areas where there are 13 neighbors within a 1/8 mile radius or if you have a single neighbor within 250 feet... So if you live in a neighborhood your local ordinance is the law and is not overridden by the right to farm act...

Beyond that you could push to change the laws...

 

[junebuggena]

This is a very positive forum, but most of the members here will not actively encourage someone to keep a bird that isn't legal. Most of us here try to advocate responsible animal ownership and husbandry. Following the laws (an ordinance is a law), is a part of that.

 

[Veg87]

This?

We have been looking at and considering different 'no-crow collars' but we unsure how safe it was and had read mixed revews. Have you tried one with any success before? I'd be curious to know if any of the different kinds work better than others, or if you might as well make your own.

 

[Veg87]

It's generally very hard to get 'farm animals' legally accepted as service animals to get around a local ordinance ban...

The ADA only covers dogs as service animals, with a regulation that allows miniature horses some coverage but not full coverage, state laws may vary but it appears Michigan also limits to dogs...

As for the right to farm act in Michigan, it was revised in 2014 to not cover residential areas where there are 13 neighbors within a 1/8 mile radius or if you have a single neighbor within 250 feet... So if you live in a neighborhood your local ordinance is the law and is not overridden by the right to farm act...

Beyond that you could push to change the laws...

That is pretty much what i wanted to know about the right to farm act, that shoots that one in the foot. thanks. i had also been looking into the national service animal registry, they certify emotional support animals of any type ( https://www.nsarco.com/emotional-support-info.html#b7 ) but i wasn't sure if that would allow me to keep him or not. i'm not sure how effective or safe a no-crow collar is since i've seen very split/mixed reviews

 

[Mutt Farm]

Anyone know how to subvert a rooster ban/ordinance? i'm not having a ton of luck finding our cockerel a new home where he won't be eaten and we'd kind of like to keep him if possible, but we live in a city that doesn't allowing crowing animals.

I've considered a handful of things. The first is to attempt to certify him as a personal therapy animal (to alleviate the anxiety i'd get from not having him lol), but this can sometimes be expensive. I did it successfully with my husky when I lived in an apartment to get around breed/size restrictions and paying a pet deposit and extra rent, not sure how easy it would be to license a rooster though... My second though was form an LLC and try to use Michigan's Right To Farm Act, however i believe you're required to have a stainless steal egg wash station outside of your home and/or garage in it's own structure which i can't afford to do. I'm not sure if I could say i occassionally rent the use of a licensed kitchen in a church basement or something, or he could be "breeding stock" for future chick sales, or if selling produce from our garden would make us a farm and encompass our chickens.

If anyone has any experience with this, or thoughts, ideas, and/or suggestions (or wants to give a handsome Speckled Sussex cockerel a good new home around Mid-Michigan) please chime in.

I do have experience with this. I understand your personal desire to keep an illegal roo, but laws and ordinances are enacted to protect the peaceful enjoyment of life. As a trainer of service dogs for disabled persons that REQUIRE the assistance of a highly trained service dog to allow quality of life, mobility and independence, I hope you understand the additional scrutiny, suspicion and public mistrust caused by folks that make a mockery of the law "I did it successfully with my husky when I lived in an apartment to get around breed/size restrictions and paying a pet deposit and extra rent" has devastating effects on those folks. I'm sure you know that ADA defines a service animal as only a dog or in some cases a pony. I can only hope your post is as satirical as it seemed. If so, a very clever treatise on the lengths you might need take to keep one Roo on your own property. My cuz in Cohoctah would be happy to take him if he's still young and tender. He could be a great service chicken for anger management issues.