advice please! In a sticky situation

[Lindsaym]

I have wanted to raise chickens for a very long time. Well, I was talking about it with my next door neighbor who raises chickens, ducks, horses and goats all visible in her yard. She convinced months ago how great chicken raising is. Turns out she is right! Well, I just discovered our neighborhood covenant states " no undomesticated" animals are allowed on the property. Uh oh. I'm not sure sure what to do at this point. My girls are not free roaming and my closest neighbor is an acre away. Do I play dumb until someone notices I have a coop? Do I contact the hoa office? I feel like since my one neighbor literally had two horses in her front yard for all to see, I shouldn't really be too worried. I just really love them hens and I don't want to rehome them! I realize I brought this upon myself for not contacting the hoa in the first place, but I thought I could trust the word of a long time resident!

 

[ChickenCanoe]

Sounds to me like the covenants aren't being closely enforced. I'd do what you want and let sleeping dogs lie.

 

[Peeps61]

What do they mean by "Undomesticated" animals? Lions and Tigers? It seems to me that the words would be "Livestock and Poulty" if they did not want horses, cows and chickends/ducks in the neighborhood. I'd just be quiet about it and have a plan B in place in case code enforcement comes by and tells you they have to go. If you are keeping them on your property in a coop/run and they aren't creating a problem for anyone else, then it should be OK.

 

[howfunkyisurchicken]

Chickens are domesticated animals, just enjoy them

 

[DeannaMari]

Here, I did a little bit of research for you, here is a list of animals that are listed as "Domestic" in the state of CO. You should be good!

• Alpaca (Lama pacos)

• Bison (Bison spp.) including hybrids with domestic cattle
• Camels (Camelus bactrianus and Camelus dromedarius)
• Domestic dog (Canis familiaris) including hybrids with wild canids
• Domestic cat (Felis catus) including hybrids with wild felines
• Domestic horse (Equus caballus) including hybrids with Equus assinus
• Domestic ***, burro, and donkey (Equus assinus)
• Domestic cattle (Bos taurus and Bos indicus)
• Domestic sheep (Ovis aries)
• Domestic goat (Capra hircus)
• Domestic swine (Sus scrofa domestica)
• Domesticated races of hamsters (Mesocricetus spp.)
• Domesticated races of mink (Mustela vison)
• Domesticated races of guinea pigs (Cavia porcellus)
• Domesticated races of gerbils (Meriones unguiculatus)
• Domesticated races of chinchillas (Chinchilla laniger)
• Domesticated races of rats (Rattus spp.)
• Domesticated races of mice (Mus musculus)
• Domesticated races of European rabbit (Oryctolagus cuniculus)
• Domesticated races of chickens (Gallus spp.)
• Domesticated races of turkey (Meleagria gallopavo) distinguished morphologically from wild birds
• Domesticated races of ducks and geese (Anatidae spp.) distinguishable morphologically from wild birds
• Domesticated races of European ferret (Mustela putorius)
• Domesticated races of pigeons (Columba domestica and Columba livia) and feral pigeons
• Domesticated races of guinea fowl (Numida meleagris)
• Domesticated races of peafowl (Pavo cristatus)
• Emu (Dromiceius spp.)
• Llama (Lama glama)
• Ostrich (Struthio spp.)
• Rhea (Rhea spp.)
• Reindeer (Rangifer tarandus)
• Yak (Bos grunniens)

edit:
here is the link to the source, in case you want to look it up yourself!
http://www.colorado.gov/cs/Satellite?c=Page&cid=1178305753359&pagename=Agriculture-Main/CDAGLayout

 

[bobbi-j]

I think I'd let it be until someone says something.

 

[6of6chicks]

I may be brand new to chickens, but I look at it this way:

Websters defines "domesticated" as "to breed or train (an animal) to need and accept the care of human beings." (emphasis added)

As far as "need" goes: my chickens depend on me to provide food, water, shelter/safety, and medical care when necessary. Granted they can forage for their own food, but I'm pretty sure they'd get eaten before their first day of freedom was even over. They get confused if I move the waterer from one side of the run to the other, so I'm not convinced they could find a water source on their own. And, judging by what I've seen so far, some of my chickens would be dumb enough to try to roost in the same trees as the owls and hawks (I say that with love, of course!). Without my care their odds of surviving aren't too great.

As far as "accept" goes: my chickens know my voice and get excited when I talk to them. They come running when I call them. They love to be picked up, petted, and 'loved on.' They happily accept food and treats. They are content to live in the shelter I constructed for them. They comply with routine health inspections.

Now compare that to a raccoon, hawk, snake, or any other "wild" animal that ALSO lives on my property (AGAINST my wishes). Those animals don't need me to provide food or water. They dig their own burrows and build their own nests. They certainly don't get excited to see me, and I can't imagine any of them being happy to be picked up and snuggled with.

Even if someone in your neighborhood kicked up a fuss, it would be pretty easy to make an argument that your chickens clearly fall on the domesticated side of the fence. If the annoying neighbor disagrees, ask them to hold one of your chickens and then hold a possum. They'll figure out the difference between domesticated and undomesticated pretty quick.