Cows Okay But Chickens Banned!?

[applelover]

I'm looking at buying a house outside of Knoxville TN. I'm from MA so not really sure what local culture is like there. But I'm looking at Google Maps street views and see numerous houses on this road have cows. It's a small country road 20 minutes outside of the city. But, the deed restriction (there is no HOA) says no fowl and no pigs allowed. But cows are allowed.

What on earth is going on here. How can cows be allowed but chickens aren't? Have you seen a place before where people have cows but yet chickens and roosters are frowned upon? I'm guessing, despite whatever this deed says come up by the developer some years ago, people on this road have chickens including roosters. What do you guys think?

 

[Jory]

I wouldn't. The deed clause is right there up front. You and everyone else around you signed the same agreement. I think that promising not to have chickens and then getting them anyway would just cause more issues in a state where you are already going to be newcomers for about the next 2 generations.

 

[applelover]

I wouldn't. The deed clause is right there up front. You and everyone else around you signed the same agreement. I think that promising not to have chickens and then getting them anyway would just cause more issues in a state where you are already going to be newcomers for about the next 2 generations.

So people have cows but then hate chickens? Is this actually a thing?

Plus this is not a HOA. In which case I'd agree with you. It was a restriction placed on the property by the developer. I have no ideas how many properties this includes or who "everyone else" is. It is just so hard for me to believe that someone who lives on a rural road with cows would hate chickens.

 

[Jory]

I doubt that hating chickens has much to do with anything. Have you actually been to the neighborhood to see the lay of the land? Have you researched if there might be a reason why?
Could it have something to do with drawing in wild hogs?
Which reminds me, what are your plans for keeping a 400 lb wild hog and all of his girlfriends and offspring from munching on your very loud and tasty chickens?

 

[Jory]

Here's a run down on deed restrictions https://gokcecapital.com/unrestricted-land/
I looked up Tennessee chicken regulations back when we were going to move over there. All of the regulations say that they don't override deed restrictions right up front.

 

[saysfaa]

It might be something as simple as the developers thought people might want to keep chickens or pigs because they can be kept in small spaces fairly easily. And it didn't cross their minds that someone would consider keeping a cow in their garage. I don't know how big these lots are but it isn't uncommon to put small lots on a street in the country.

 

[Ascholten]

Cows won't flop on top of your car and crap all over it. Chickens on the other hand.....
Ask them about it, there is a possibility you can get an 'exception' our HOA does this on occasion when you explain it. Worth a shot. HOA's are a difficult subject, some are willing, others are a bunch of clipboard nazi's, so hard to say exactly how you might be able to proceed w/o knowing your specifics first.

aaron

Edit: We used to make fun of that old CMT commercial with the flying cows, saying those things better not fly over MY house!