Board of Health against quarantine (oh, the irony)

[DickMidnight]

This was a surprise inspection, which, by applying for the permit, we agreed to.

that part i understand. what i don't get is how they can hope to get inside someone's garage if they aren't home. letting you in my yard is bad enough, but i'm not leaving my garage open so you can snoop around.

and i agree on the compost bin. if i had to build a big cement bin in the middle of my yard, i'd scrap the whole project.

i use a deep litter method in my run. is that an option for you? then you wouldn't need a compost bin at all.

 

[SmiYa0126]

The thing is nothing in life is black and white in reality. Rules and laws do not always take this into account and make necessary adjustments. When compliance has been achieved with one small exception of a situation that is not permanent and will not continue to exist after another week or two, that rule is flawed and adjustments need to be made to accommodate such temporary and helpful exceptions.

Not everyone is able to consider nuances to things that the rules don't take into consideration. An employee sent out to enforce the rules is afraid of losing their job if they stray out of the strict boundaries established by the rules. Taking the matter to the department heads and negotiating a reasonable compromise is always permitted in our "free country". It's worth a shot. There's maybe a one percent chance you'll be able to talk to someone who isn't afraid to think outside the guidelines and make a judgement as to what constitutes reason. If you have the time and energy, it's the only way you are going to see things improve. Improving on the way we govern ourselves is a worthy endeavor in my opinion.

Agreed, especially since this is the better way to prevent disease. It's not frivolous.

 

[SmiYa0126]

Well, yeah, if you have nothing better to do with your life. It's a democracy so you can sometimes expect the majority opinion to prevail.

It's worth the effort. I've seen a shift in local government, we're not talking about federal changes, a local county or suburb ordinance can be changed.

 

[McChooky]

Hopefully they'll allow you to use a portable coop or chicken tractor under certain circumstances.

 

[Egghead_Jr]

Unfortunately any ignorant person with a bachelor's degree in basket weaving is a prime candidate for government employment. The BA get's them hired yet they are entirely unqualified.

A detached garage is not a dwelling. And birds in cages for quarantine is not housing. You should not pay any fines for that. The compost distance is on you though. Move it ASAP and fudge a little saying you complied that day. No fines! Appeal to the town board about temporary quarantine issue if necessary.

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

I don't really have any useful advice to spare, but just came here to say that's so crazy that people's hard earned money (tax dollars) is going toward this. Shame on them because it doesn't seem to me that you're doing anything wrong, and I really don't think they should be able to just show up and inspect the place like that. Assuming they didn't tell you beforehand they were coming?

 

[DickMidnight]

I don't really have any useful advice to spare, but just came here to say that's so crazy that people's hard earned money (tax dollars) is going toward this. Shame on them because it doesn't seem to me that you're doing anything wrong, and I really don't think they should be able to just show up and inspect the place like that. Assuming they didn't tell you beforehand they were coming?

i don’t agree with the surprise inspections either but it’s written very plainly in the bylaws for OPs town.

as for the rest of your post, we (for the most part) get to choose where we live. if you don’t like how tax money is spent in a certain town, you can vote with your hard earned dollars and take them to another town that aligns better with the way you want to live.

this isn’t a hard concept at all. emotional responses to black and white issues rarely help.

 

[HenriettaPizzaNolan]

i don’t agree with the surprise inspections either but it’s written very plainly in the bylaws for OPs town.

as for the rest of your post, we (for the most part) get to choose where we live. if you don’t like how tax money is spent in a certain town, you can vote with your hard earned dollars and take them to another town that aligns better with the way you want to live.

this isn’t a hard concept at all. emotional responses to black and white issues rarely help.

Hey I get where you're coming from (and that's why I made sure to check chicken keeping laws before I moved to my new house), but it doesn't make the laws in OP's town any less silly. Taxpayers may not have even gotten to vote on whether their money went towards this specific thing or not.

100% agree with you that it's important to know the laws before keeping chickens, but my comment was strictly about how silly these laws are to begin with.

Edit: I also want to add that some parts of the law may not be as black and white as you describe. I don't think most people would expect that quarantining a sick hen in a garage would cause problems with the law saying the hens must be confined. Most people also might not expect a garage to count as part of the house. There are some grey areas here.

 

[fox623]

this is what i’d do as well. the inspector did her job, but ultimately your fight isn’t with her. id be looking to have a few aspects of their bylaws and process changed, personally.

none of my comments have been intended to admonish the way you’ve handled the situation. i hope that’s been clear, and if it hasn’t, then i apologize. i think your outlook on the whole situation is great, and you handled it as well as you could have. it seems like you’re gonna make lemonade from lemons in your new home. i’m sure his son is gonna love growing up with chickens and fresh eggs

all too often in this area of the forum, when people are on the wrong side of the rules where they live, the responses are way too emotional.

fair or unfair, you have to follow the rules or you have to work to change them. breaking them and then being upset about the consequences doesn’t do anyone any good.

I did not receive it as an admonition.

You are right. Rules are rules; it's just a matter of what we are willing to risk. Living in Boston, I would break the rules of my HOA by keeping plants (and a compost container) on my roof deck. The worst-case scenario was throwing away $50 in plants and some compost. In this case, living beings and my soon-to-be stepson’s emotional attachment to them are at stake.

My suggestion is keep a chicken tractor at a friends house for emergencies only.

Ha! I was the first in my friend group to move to the suburbs, but they're doing ok in our bathroom. The dogs are super interested in whatever’s in there (lots and lots of chicken poop).

 

[Vickischics]

That's CRAZY stuff right there.
Unbelievable.