Australia - Six states..and that funny little island.

[K Spot]

Wow, those are some not so easy to follow local laws .. log onto the Brisbane City Council site and you get plain and simple:

Number of birds
Household premises with a total area of more than 800 square metres can keep up to 20 fowl, including ducks, geese and peacocks without a permit.
If your residential premises has a total area less than 800 square metres you can keep up to six fowl.
Poultry sheds must be set back at least one metre from a dividing fence.

Conditions for keeping poultry
If you are keeping poultry on your property you need to:
make sure your poultry shed will not cause a nuisance to your neighbours
keep conditions clean to prevent odour and fly breeding
store bulk food in pest-proof containers
consider using lime to combat odour problems and reduce the soil pH
avoid putting out excess amounts of food so you don’t encourage rats or mice
gather up all manure and place it in weather-proof and fly-proof containers at least once every seven days
replace water daily

Roosters
Roosters are not allowed on any premises in a residential zone. They are permitted on acreage provided they don't create a noise nuisance. When buying chickens, it may be best to purchase point of lay birds to ensure they are hens.

Moreton Bay Council has some of the stupidest local laws. I live on 2 acres - had to apply for an additional animal permit for 3 dogs @ $155 an application. Sheesh!!! If it's not approved, well that's tough titties for you, no refund.

We can have up to 20 chickens and ducks on 2 acres. No roosters unless you apply for an additional animal permit like for dogs. I have a rooster and have told my lovely neighbours to let me know if he bothers them. So far no complaints at all.

On residential blocks, I believe there's no keeping of fowl unless your land size is 800m2 or more.

Seriously, it's like MBRC is anti animal keeping. It's ridiculous. I got into an argument with them a few months ago about the fees and charges for keeping dogs; I gave them a piece of my mind, I tell you.

BCC sounds like it's much more lenient and animal friendly, which to me is a bit of a surprise as it's much more densely populated than MBRC. Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox now

 

[Gold Coaster]

Fingers crossed they listen. Have you shared on Facebook too?

I hope so too Appps. I'm not on Facebook unfortunately, but hopefully the message will work its way there via other supporters.

Cheers,
Gold Coaster

 

[appps]

 I hope so too Appps. I'm not on Facebook unfortunately, but hopefully the message will work its way there via other supporters.

Cheers,
Gold Coaster

I've shared it on the Aussie backyard poultry group for you. They have 9,000 members so hopefully it gets a few more sent!

 

[Anniebee]

Ah, OK Fancy so the discussions I see are more related to the larger flock situation?

I don’t think it is broke and it does appear to work for me

but I am always learning and wondering if I could do something better.

Teila .... always good to read your writings.

Found a good site about deep litter method if you are interested in pursuing it .... has much going for it apparently - with microbes doing their job to keep chooks healthy etc. ... http://naturalchickenkeeping.blogspot.com.au/p/deep-litter-method.html - - - - DE is not recommended on this site, as it contains chemicals which kill off natural good bacteria. Kind of makes sense, actually.

............

I only have 3 girls - 2 in one coop and 1 in another. I use the deep litter method in the larger coop for the 2 ( which is only about 10ft x 5ft in size with a comfortable roost and everything else ), but every 3 months or so I scrape 90% off the brick flooring, and lay a thick new layer of clean wood shavings. Other than that, when the wood shavings turn the same colour as the breaking down woopsies, I shuffle it up a bit and add another layer of wood shavings. That stuff I gather from the floor I think I could sell at a high price ( but don't ) - it is perfect compost compacted chickie-do. The only time there is a smell, is when one of them have dropped a cecal deposit before being let out. I remove that. Mostly they hang on to that delight, until outside in their run.

As my two big girls do not roost in the winter ( it is so darned cold here at the moment in Victoria ) they have resumed snuggling up for warmth in their 'favourite' previously-known-as nesting box. Oddly enough, they don't pass a lot of faeces during the night - apparently getting out to go to the toilet ( very clever of them !! ) .... as I find fresh stuff in the morning, mainly in the straw just in front of the nesting boxes. They use straw exclusively to lay in ( when laying - which none are at present ). I throw the wettish yuck straw out into the run to mix with a zillion elm leaves, and put in nice dry clean stuff every few days. It is only a very small nest type of area - and if I put straw in the nesting box, they instantly chuck the whole lot out onto that straw pile. No straw in the nesting boxes thanks Mum. But they don't mind handfuls of wood shavings in the nest box to sleep on. ??

.

I rake and turn over the leaves and old straw, on wet or dry days - and dig over patches of dirt for them to rummage around in. I draw the line at digging over mud !!!

One small coop is a former bird aviary - very high with good ventilation - and I have left all the loads of feathers in there that Mindy has dropped, to keep her a bit warmer. At least that's my off-beat weirdo theory.

She has shed feathers galore down the side of the nesting box too, upon which there is a half side on brick covered in soft old towel upon which she always roosts. The brick roosting happened quite by accident - found she liked sitting on bricks - anywhere ??


Problem is, if we have days and days of cold and rain, I leave them mostly 'caged' which they don't mind on the coldest of days, but be there a bit of sun and they begin reminding me to "open the ruddy door". Certainly little Mindy gets more caging in Winter, as she loves rain and gets saturated which sees her inside in the cat box, drying off and enjoying the warmth and having chats to Miss Ruby dog. ( Mindy truly loves that cat carrier and does not want to get out back into her coop - so I leave her in there for the night - and there she is - in the morning - having abandoned her roosting ).
The two biggies have the good sense to retire to the open coop when it rains.

As far as I can see - whatever way you care for your chickens, is good ... cos it comes from love of them - and the superb care you take of them.

Cheers
Anniebee.

p.s. - apologies for such a long post ?

 

[appps]

Apparently we don't breed em tough down here. My chickens have barely poked their noses out of the coop all day, the three smaller ones didn't even make an effort when I opened the gate for them to wander the yard. I mean yeah it's pretty darn cold today but really?? Seems they decided to spend the day in bed sigh

Gawd help em when winter really hits !

 

[Anniebee]

On the equestrian front , champion and champion reserve. They performed very well considering the gale forced winds. It's snowing here Now.

Many congratulations - well done.

 

[satay]

Apparently we don't breed em tough down here. My chickens have barely poked their noses out of the coop all day, the three smaller ones didn't even make an effort when I opened the gate for them to wander the yard. I mean yeah it's pretty darn cold today but really?? Seems they decided to spend the day in bed sigh

Gawd help em when winter really hits !

Oh Poor girls. I know how they feel. Mine are the other way busting a gut to get outside in the cooler months. Think they like trying to find some sun .

 

[appps]

Oh Poor girls. I know how they feel. Mine are the other way busting a gut to get outside in the cooler months. Think they like trying to find some sun .

Think that was the problem, there wasn't any sunny spots in sight . I was actually looking at that today and they are really shaded all day. Think we need to inconspicuously trim the trees behind our back fence

 

[Fancychooklady]

Tassie chickens are tough as. Touch wood, never lost one to the cold but unfortunately I have lost a few in the heat. I've been painting all day , getting the second bathroom up and running . Got the fire going full ball.

 

[chooks01]

Hatch day for me marans sigh... Too stressful my humidity in the Bator was too low majority got stuck in their shells have to help most of them to hatch. One almost bled out seems ok but very weak, have 2 more stuck chicks 1 that just pip 2 doing nothing they might still pip

crickeys I need sleep