You know... when I first moved to this neighborhood that I am in, I brought my chickens with me.
A few weeks later an email thread came up on the neighborhood mail list discussing "poultry ordinances" and city regulations and such. I chimed in in my happy-go-lucky manner that the city allowed chickens, and that chickens were great for compost, free eggs, and even made wonderful insect reducers in summertime - making the neighborhood a better place for everybody.
A neighbor (a pretty well known bully in the 'hood, by the way - a guy who has tried to intimidate several folks around, including my MOTHER) replied back (on the open list) that there was an ordnance against roosters and if I was found to have roosters, he would see to it that they were reported to the city and confiscated.
Here's what I replied back to him (privately):
--> We do not have roosters. We only have hens which are within the "rules" (if that sort of thing is important to you.) I can tell you straight up that if anyone (city oh-fish-all or otherwise) shows up to "confiscate" anything of mine - they'll have to come through a lot more than a fence, a mean dog, and my very bad attitude toward "authority figures"... There is more than one definition of the word "ordinance" and my birds, et al are defended accordingly.
Yes. Free range eggs are fantastic - and free of the pharmaceutical chemistry that "store bought" chickens are pumped full of. (The same crap that makes people stupid and willing to follow asinine rules.)
Thanks for your warm welcome to the neighborhood. Noted.<--
Interestingly, the email discussion stopped almost immediately. All negative comments about my birds ceased immediately. And lots of folks in the neighborhood have come to visit my birds and tell me how great it is to have them - and ME - in the community.
Sometimes you just need to smack people FIRST, before they get encouraged to do real damage by your good manners.
I hate that it's this way - but experience has taught me this is how it is.
FemmeJolie - It may be time to consider not being nice person anymore.
I'm just saying.
