They are taking my chickens away.

[Blooie]

Chick-adee, Code Man is absolutely right. Spending lots of time trying to come up with a catchy name that the city won't remember in 5 minutes is not where I suggested you focus your efforts. Did you go to town hall and get a copy of the ordinance, or try to find it online yet? Do you have copies of ordinances and how they are worded from other neighboring communities or do any of the other stuff yet? As a former Planning and Zoning commissioner, and a town councilwoman, I can tell you that you have to have documentation if you want to even get your foot in the door.

 

[Code man]

It would help to know the city and state you are in to find the local zoning laws/ords. If you don't want you can look them up yourself by clicking the st your city if its listed. then you search window and type in "fowl" https://www.municode.com/library/

 

[chick-adee]

The group that I talked to said that if I call the zoning officer and say that I am proactive (meaning that I am attempting to change the ordinance) I could keep the chickens while I am still proactive.

 

[enola]

You had best get permission from the zoning officer.

 

[Tomahawk]

Here in Fla.  Zoning can issue up to a $250 a day fine to the property owner, per fowl. That would mean 6 fowl x $250 = $1500 a day & the fine could run twenty(20) years or the property abated and forclosed upon( if the owner refuses to comply. Banks are notified if they hold the deed to the property and will get involved too as they dont want to lose the home/property to the city or county and may cite the home owner for breach of contract). if the property owner doesnt find a home for the fowl/livestock with in thirty(30) days or refuses to comply. Thats alot of information to take in I know..   It's probibly best to remove the fowl until you get the ord changed.. Since you didnt mention what your fines would be, and they WILL issue a fine.  The anti govenment folks are quick to claim Big Brother is reaching into the pockets of the honest man.  But in reality a City or County Government just wants compliance and the fine is issued as a last resort.. Remember the zoning ords have been inplace for many years.    Yes many Zoning officers nation wide veiw this and other websites, some of us live in areas that are zoned to keep fowl and do have them legally, while we feel your pain we see & understand the reason behind zoning laws.  Many Cities and Counties do not allow fowl or livestock in residential areas and is why there are Rural Areas in those locations, however some Cities and Counties allow (with a permit) up to 4 hens & no roosters in some juristictions. In some cases a property owner can request a special exception from the board of county commissioners or city board for a single thereputic bird/fowl for a bonafide special needs child.  Always remember those who tell you to just do it, are not going to step up and pay your fines!  Good luck in your endevor.

This is true. Civil disobedience can prove costly.

 

[Blooie]

We are very blessed in our community that we can keep any kind of poultry with no restrictions except those that apply to any accessory building (coop) as far as setbacks go. Folks here have cows, horses, goats and sheep as well, and those require an annual permit. Poultry does not. Cowley is a relatively new town, settled in 1909 (I believe) and livestock in town has always been a given. In 2011 and 12 our council began working on an animal control ordinance and we were not real popular with the townsfolk. But we had to have an ordinance on the books so we could have some way of forcing people who were not careful about sanitation and such to respect the rights of non-animal homeowners. The ordinance gave us that ability to enforce, which we didn't have before. I didn't even think about getting chickens myself until the ordinance had been in effect for 2 years and we knew that it was working well.

When the irate "We don't want the town telling us what we can do in our property; besides, we've always had animals in town" folks attended the public hearings on the proposed ordinances, we turned the tables a bit and invited them to stop yelling and get together to create an ordinance they thought they could accept. They did, and for the next few months we worked together to craft something that worked. Some think we went too far - others that we didn't go far enough. The proposals given the most credence were those that were short, concise, and addressed potential negatives honestly, and presented to us without hostility. Chick-adee, bear that in mind when you get ready to approach your officials.

 

[enola]

I used to live in a small town that allowed poultry. I lived three houses down from a couple that bred peacocks.......

The first question I ask about a neighborhood is if any one has peacocks!!

 

[chick-adee]

Updates:
None

 

[Code man]

In Orlando Fl and Maitland FL they have a set number of hens you can keep with a permit and strict regulations. But you always have some people that want to push the envelope because 4 isn't enough.

The main thing to remember is not everyone wants to have chickens next door. the poo smell, the noise the flies, etc. and they may tolerate them, accept the free eggs etc. TILL the rooster arrives or the hens become loud.. Once you truly affect their quality of life, as an example: roosters crow average 3-4 times an hour, sometimes as early as 4am. now the neighbor has to be at work at 8-9am or they just got home from working the 3rd shift the last thing they want to hear is loud clucking or crowing and their going to get upset and they may come to you first and complain, but normally they just call zoning, their attorney, the HOA etc. and set the ball rolling..

Many residents chose to live in neighborhoods and not next to a farm for a reason. I have seen this occur more than once. I have even seen neighbors, family members, friends that have a falling out report those who have chickens take photos and give the photos to the zoning officer and then say zoning threatened them or cohered them so the neighbor, family member, friend doesn't have the chicken owner retaliate against them because they were forced to help Big Brother. For the neighbor they will still have to live next door to the violator.. Zoning may not have known the chickens were there, but once the complaint is made they start their investigation. If an officer drives by and sees chickens roaming where they shouldn't be they know a violation exists and this sets the ball rolling.

You need to talk to your zoning officer, you cant take what other people tell you about what zoning will do or wont do unless they work in the zoning dept where you live.

Many folks feel if enough people get chickens and tell the cities or counties to shove their laws/ordinances, that they will beable to have chickens. This never works out well. The anti government folks like to use their own comprehension of the constitution as it relates to what ever their cause is & will yell and scream about their Rights, Freedoms & personal liberties. They have a right to feed their families and owning chickens is their rite! Again this doesn't end well.

I have seen headlines on the internet on cases where the fines issued, and the homeowner gets an attorney and it goes to county court for appeal and the argument "since everybody else is doing it why cant I is used". The judge uses the example so if everyone else is jumping from a perfectly good bridge your going to jump too? pay the fines + court costs, Next case..

I have seen people get rid of their chickens till the case was closed and no fines were issued, only to bring them back and the officer Cites the property owner as a repeat offender and files for magistrate. So fines are issued then when the fowl are removed the fines stop. If the property owner repeats the violation with in 5yrs. the fine becomes the maximum amount allowed per day by that juristiction. The fines differ from location to location.

Blooie & I have given you some good advice, and others may chime in positively or negatively.. But in the end your the one holding the bag and you have as of today. If I have read your original post correctly 8 days have passed, since the zoning officers 10 day to remove request was given. I'm not sure what your fine will be? they normally range from $50 to $500 a day. And support groups are not going to step forward and pay your fines, they will however offer moral support, but their going to keep their wallets close to themselves that's just reality.

I wish you the best of luck through this..

 

[Blooie]

But in the end your the one holding the bag and you have as of today if I read your original post correctly 8 days have passed, since the zoning officers 10 day to remove request was given.
I wish you the best of luck through this..

Actually 3 days ago the zoning officer gave them 3 weeks, so they still have time, and I'd sure hate to see them give up!