Chickens for 10-20 years or more? Pull up a rockin' chair and lay some wisdom on us!

[Beekissed]

Hey everyone help a chicken lover save her hens! I copied this from her thread. they have 10 signatures and need fifty.

So I guess we didn't read the ordinances thoroughly enough, or we didn't consider 3 hens "farm animals," but apparently, the City of Joliet does .... and they've informed us that we have to get rid of our girls or be fined.

I'd rather fight than roll over and give up, so I started a signon.org petition, and was hoping some of you (especially those of you in Illinois) would sign your name to it.

You can find the petition here: Allow Backyard Chickens in Joliet, IL.

Thanks for your help and let's keep up the good fight!

I know that folks in the city really want to keep chickens and very few people like to be told they simply cannot have what they want to have...but I really don't think they should try to have livestock in town either. They ARE farm animals and, as such, are loud, dirty and need room and space to have a healthy existence. Three hens is never going to supplement a family's food supply enough to justify keeping them, so three hens would be a pet thing.

If I wanted to have a giraffe in the city as a pet, should I just go ahead and do it...just because me wants to? It's MY yard, after all, and none of the neighbor's business.

Use some common sense people...just because you want chickens, doesn't mean that it automatically should follow that you GET to have chickens. You live in the city. If you want to have farm animals as pets you really need to move to the country or just put it out of your mind. There are all sorts of pets you CAN have in the city...why isn't that enough for you?

I live in the country...deep country. I don't get cell service and I can't get cable TV....should I go ahead and buy me a cell phone and sign up for cable just because I really, really, really want to have them? (I don't..but it's a great example

) Should I fight and fight to get someone to erect a cell tower near my home and run cable all the way up this holler just to satisfy my whims? Should I enlist the help of others so that I can get everything little thing that my little heart desires? Probably not.

Why? Because it's totally, extremely, sincerely and incredibly just NOT necessary that I have my every little want and wish. You really can't have your cake for later and consume it now in many instances and this seems to be one of them.

My advice is to rehome your chickens to a very nice country home in which they can actually be a chicken as all chickens deserve to be....fresh air, quiet country days, wide open pastures, and freedom to crow, squawk, fuss, sing or poop as a natural animal. The city is no fit place for man or beast anyway...even the suburbs.

 

[Christie Rhae]

Quote: Hahaha!! Sexy to a chicken anyway! lol

I have a few hens that squat as soon as I walk in their pen. Others will squat if I am trying to catch them and they figure "caught...gotta squat" lol!! But I have other hens that keep as far from me as they can unless I am carrying the goodie bucket.

 

[thedragonlady]

If the vets at UC Davis Avian Dept can't fix birds, the average dog and cat vet sure as heck can't......but they will take your money. I realize it was probably a hard decision, but I think you did the right thing. One of the things I do most days is look at the eyes of my birds. I don't pick them up, I just look at them from a distance. The eye is one of the places that poultry health problems manifests itself......that and the posture of the chicken. Whatever the problem, an early start on dealing with it makes a huge difference.

Walt

The above goes for ANY critter! The posture and eyes of an animal speak volumes.

 

[stonykill]

I know that folks in the city really want to keep chickens and very few people like to be told they simply cannot have what they want to have...but I really don't think they should try to have livestock in town either. They ARE farm animals and, as such, are loud, dirty and need room and space to have a healthy existence. Three hens is never going to supplement a family's food supply enough to justify keeping them, so three hens would be a pet thing.

If I wanted to have a giraffe in the city as a pet, should I just go ahead and do it...just because me wants to? It's MY yard, after all, and none of the neighbor's business.

Use some common sense people...just because you want chickens, doesn't mean that it automatically should follow that you GET to have chickens. You live in the city. If you want to have farm animals as pets you really need to move to the country or just put it out of your mind. There are all sorts of pets you CAN have in the city...why isn't that enough for you?

I live in the country...deep country. I don't get cell service and I can't get cable TV....should I go ahead and buy me a cell phone and sign up for cable just because I really, really, really want to have them? (I don't..but it's a great example

) Should I fight and fight to get someone to erect a cell tower near my home and run cable all the way up this holler just to satisfy my whims? Should I enlist the help of others so that I can get everything little thing that my little heart desires? Probably not.

Why? Because it's totally, extremely, sincerely and incredibly just NOT necessary that I have my every little want and wish. You really can't have your cake for later and consume it now in many instances and this seems to be one of them.

My advice is to rehome your chickens to a very nice country home in which they can actually be a chicken as all chickens deserve to be....fresh air, quiet country days, wide open pastures, and freedom to crow, squawk, fuss, sing or poop as a natural animal. The city is no fit place for man or beast anyway...even the suburbs.

thank you for that response. The same thing is on another thread, and I so wanted to respond like you did

 

[Beekissed]

Well...this is the thread where we try to give practical, truthful advice.

Fighting to keep three chickens in the city~ chickens that will most likely soon die of mismanagement, pet predation, or natural causes~ is a fight that has no merit. It's not noble or heart touching in any way...it's just shows people to be spoiled and selfish children that are metaphorically stamping their feet and taking a fit because they want a new toy and someone says they can't have it.

At least, that's how I see it....

 

[stonykill]

Well...this is the thread where we try to give practical, truthful advice.

Fighting to keep three chickens in the city~ chickens that will most likely soon die of mismanagement, pet predation, or natural causes~ is a fight that has no merit. It's not noble or heart touching in any way...it's just shows people to be spoiled and selfish children that are metaphorically stamping their feet and taking a fit because they want a new toy and someone says they can't have it.

At least, that's how I see it....

yup, you just described 75% of the population

 

[huckleberry acres]

I know that folks in the city really want to keep chickens and very few people like to be told they simply cannot have what they want to have...but I really don't think they should try to have livestock in town either.  They ARE farm animals and, as such, are loud, dirty and need room and space to have a healthy existence.  Three hens is never going to supplement a family's food supply enough to justify keeping them, so three hens would be a pet thing. 

If I wanted to have a giraffe in the city as a pet, should I just go ahead and do it...just because me wants to?  It's MY yard, after all, and none of the neighbor's business. 

Use some common sense people...just because you want chickens, doesn't mean that it automatically should follow that you GET to have chickens.  You live in the city.  If you want to have farm animals as pets you really need to move to the country or just put it out of your mind.  There are all sorts of pets you CAN have in the city...why isn't that enough for you? 

I live in the country...deep country.  I don't get cell service and I can't get cable TV....should I go ahead and buy me a cell phone and sign up for cable just because I really, really, really want to have them?  (I don't..but it's a great example )  Should I fight and fight to get someone to erect a cell tower near my home and run cable all the way up this holler just to satisfy my whims?  Should I enlist the help of others so that I can get everything little thing that my little heart desires?  Probably not. 

Why?  Because it's totally, extremely, sincerely and incredibly just NOT necessary that I have my every little want and wish.  You really can't have your cake for later and consume it now in many instances and this seems to be one of them. 

My advice is to rehome your chickens to a very nice country home in which they can actually be a chicken as all chickens deserve to be....fresh air, quiet country days, wide open pastures, and freedom to crow, squawk, fuss, sing or poop as a natural animal.  The city is no fit place for man or beast anyway...even the suburbs. 

Amen, Beekissed. Amen!

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

I believe they are solicitating responses generically throughout the forum...irks me. :/

 

[stonykill]

I believe they are solicitating responses generically throughout the forum...irks me. :/

makes them spammers doesn't it?

 

[Achickenwrangler#1]

For real. They only want what they want when they want it...as granddad used to say., kinda exactly what bee said