Coalition of Animal Sanctuaries Urges Ban on Backyard Chickens

[WisconsinGardenChick]

mom'sfolly :

It would be interesting to see how they propose to stop chickens from laying eggs, something that at least one of the groups called unnatural. One group also mentioned "chickens in the wild", which to my knowledge do not exist, anymore than wild cows or silk moths. The ancestors of modern chickens are out there, but there aren't "chickens in the wild"

They really are in la-la land. This is the irony of these types of groups: They believe they are great nature lovers, but are in actuality distant from the realities of nature. Consider the criticism that chickens will attract mice. Good grief - chickens will EAT mice.

Katherine​

 

[wohneli]

Quote:
agreed

 

[Scale Master]

These kind of clowns need to watch their step, you come after my chickens and I'm going into the "backyard hog farm" hobby.
I will be guarding my pets with automatic weapons

 

[WisconsinGardenChick]

Quote:
Oh, don't get me started on people trying to make animals that are carnivores or omnivores into vegetarians!! How incredibly ignorant of the realities of nature to succumb to "vegetarian diet for chickens" as a selling point. (Clearly, I don't mean you.) But some of the smartest and best educated people I know succumb to this idiocy. I had a friend in grad school who tried to keep her dogs from chasing rabbits and fed them a vegan diet... Words fail me...

Katherine

 

[michickenwrangler]

I remember years ago **** was on a quest to shut down dairy farms, which are often much more humane than feedlots, because it was cruel.

What exactly are we to do with the millions of chickens, cattle, hogs and meat goats and sheep? Look what the ban of horse slaughter has done to the horse industry! Technically, we shouldn't have any tame animal. Actually, technically these organic vegan animal rights people eating their organic lentils tend to forget that animal manures fertilize those very lentils! Is it really vegan then?

 

[speckledhen]

Folks, after some discussion among the staff, we are reopening this thread. Just remember, no PETA discussion is allowed; stick close to the topic. Thank you for your patience.

 

[WisconsinGardenChick]

Quote:
Thanks, Cynthia.

Perhaps we can focus the discussion on the best responses we could give to these arguments for banning backyard chicken keeping. I do think it's important to understand where some of these groups are coming from; e.g., the one promoting vegetarianism a poster mentioned above. But in doing that, it's easy to cross the line and break the rules of this website. So, a little caution there.

Somebody who is trying to get the ordinance changed to allow chickens in her city emailed me. She said all the city commissioners received the statement from the coalition that I linked to in my initial post. What does everyone think the best responses to that statement would be, bearing in mind that the audience is city commissioners?

I wrote this to her:

To a city official, I would not go into the problem of slaughtering chicken for meat as I did on my blog.

I would instead focus on the desire of consumers to produce healthy eggs in a humane environment and how banning this would force us to consume products from commercial producers who often do not treat their poultry as well as homeowners. I would also refute that argument about rats - I have seen that come up again and again in different cities where people are trying to get ordinances changed to allow chickens. I would also emphasize food production in hard times, the bad economy, more people wanting and needing to provide more for themselves, the consequent increasing popularity of gardening - and chicken keeping.

Finally, I would try to work with others in my community who want to keep chickens to assure city officials that you will help to educate new chicken keepers. Here in Madison, Wisconsin, when they won they right to keep chickens, the group organized a Chickens 101 workshop for beginners and hold coop tours every summer.

What do you think? How would you approach your city commissioners?

Katherine​

 

[Amyable]

Katherine, those are good points for city commissioners. I'd also point out the factual errors in the statements made by the coalition, which would weaken their arguments.

1. Claim:The basic physiological needs of a day-old chick are no different than that of an 8-week-old puppy (direct quote from Animal Place website)
Fact: a newly hatched chick has absorbed nutrients from the yolk sac and can live for up to 3 days without additional food/water

2. Claim: Chickens attract rodents.
Fact: Poorly-kept feed can draw rodents, but chicken feed isn't the only thing rodents are attracted to. Garbage cans, other kinds of pet food, dumpsters, etc, are all attractive to rats/mice. These things are all plentiful in urban areas.

3. Claim: Slaughtering for consumption is cruel and must be illegal in backyard chicken keeping.
Fact: Humanely raising and slaughtering birds is not cruel, but allows people to have more control over their own food supply. Better to consume backyard birds than continue to fund industrially-produced poultry.

Punch holes in their statements and it will greatly weaken their influence.

~Amy

 

[I have WHAT in my yard?]

I saw this too and was speechless.

A vegetarian chicken?? What will they do to it if it eats the nearest insect that crawls through the coop? Put it in therapy?!

My chickens have eaten mice, and I don't even want to know what else kind of bugs they eat, but they do love a good game of catch the cricket. I suspect this infringes on the right os the cricket, but the chickens don't seem interested in my discussion on the issue - they hunted it down and ate it.

I have a neighbor who refuses to kill her roosters, and she won't rehome them because she is afraid that others would. The result? Ten hens and 12 roosters. After pleading with her she finally separated the hens when some finally died from the attentions of that many roosters. So of course the roosters are now living an "alternative lifestyle" which shocked and dismayed her.

My chickens are incredibly spoiled, but they're chickens! I have no delusions that if I fell down dead in their run they would not hesitate to eat me. People insist on anthropomorphizing animals as if we truly were the pinnacle of all that nature can produce. Personally, I can think of several species that seem more humane than humans.

 

[AHappychick]

Quote:
very true statement I am afraid