Neighborhood "Open Coop" before Public Hearing: Seeing Info Flier

[6chickens in St. Charles]

I have a flier called FAQ's. DH calls it my "6 page manifesto". The first page is that 1918 flier "Uncle Sam Wants YOU to Raise Hens..." and the last page is "Mother Earth News FreeRange vs Confined Egg Nutrition Chart". Occasionally I push it into the hands of visitors, but the thing they most squawk about is the Joan Miro' rooster print in our coop. People just hoot about that.

Our fat red hen, "Roaster", really likes art, architecture, mirrors. So we indulge her fancies. She's totally our pet. She obviously loves her framed artwork, she picks dust off it and looks it over. There's a framed copy of Martha Stewart in there, too, holding another fat red hen, in a silvery antique frame by our rooster Mr. Peep's perch. Its his pinup.

There's a few quirky pewter hooks holding up the aphis.org calendar, their clipboard for vet records, etc. and my pooper scooper is an antique silverplated thing, maybe in its former life it was a fireplace dustpan? Our Silkie hen sometimes runs at visitors for a "pick me up please" and some funny vocals. That's the stuff our visitors go away talking about. I don't think anybody but me's ever read my FAQ's.

But creating it has helped me enormously with anxiety over responding to the rude folks who jab with false accusations and generally stupid questions. So I put it in writing, and never again will I feel it necessary to verbally defend my (entirely legal) right to enjoy this life of mine on my property with my little chicken pets. Its nice to have a brochure to hand out, quietly, with a smile.

I wish I could copy it here, but I don't know how. Maybe tomorrow one of my sons can help me do it?

 

[MI-CHick]

Spend a dollar and get a dozen cheap eggs from the store then do a cooking demo where you compare some of your eggs to the store eggs and let people see/taste the difference. Also, suggest that you would be happy to host an annual coop tour with the admission fees going towards a local charity

 

[JessicainOhio]

6Chickens: That would be AWESOME if you can figure out how to attach it. You could just cut/paste it into a message, too, though that would be LONG! I might end up shortening your 6-pages. Right now I've posted some Myths/Facts on our webpage: www.bexleychickens.blogspot.com -- I found the myths/facts somewhere on the web and edited them minimally. I had to do some math to figure out that it would take about 18 chickens to do the "business" of one dog. People are impressed/soothed by that fact. I also love that Uncle Sam poster and plan to use that one! Do you remember where you found the Mother Earth one-pager?

I love the idea of some framed art in the coop are, though our coop is teeny and the art would have to be on the outdoor fence. Maybe I can laminate it and it'll last for a month or so (which is really all it would need to last).

City council here is fairly libertarian-leaning, which is an advantage because I think they're loath to create overly restrictive ordinances, but our community is also upper-middle-class and kind of "hoity-toity" and there's been a lot of buzz about the chickens. I think once people come and see the Martha-Stewart-type situation we have, complete with art and door mats, they will warm to the idea. Our immediate neighbors have been nothing but supportive. One of them tosses the chickens treats over the fence

Mostly I hope to shake hands and put some faces to the "chicken issue." I want people to see we're not crazy weirdos. In fact, we're boring professors with a tidy yard and quiet chickens.

Thanks everyone for the awesome suggestions!! They've got me really excited to dress up the coop and show it off!

 

[JessicainOhio]

Also, our chickens are only about 2 months old so we don't yet have eggs. But...next year...

 

[6chickens in St. Charles]

Quote:
This article, copied, might help visitors understand: (says its USUALLY educated, upper middle class people with at least one college degree getting chickens)
http://www.dailynews.com/news/ci_16112569

We're boring people too! DH is a neurologist and I was a neuroscience RN til I gave up and got chickens with the kids!

I guess all us "college degreed educated people" must be standing around, tapping our smart foreheads and figurin' that, well, now we need to put chickens in our yards...........

 

[6chickens in St. Charles]

I'm sorry this is so long, I copied it so the "Bold", "Underline" etc doesn't show. You're free to use as ideas, the information is personalized to my situation, but make your own with your own answers, have fun!
Backyard Chicken FAQ's (Frequently Asked Questions)

Why do you have chickens?
It just worked out that way. We didn't mean to keep chickens, but here they are, and we're fine.
Googling, we discovered a lot of people are keeping backyard chickens, so we kept them:
Watch http://www.marthastewart.com/show/the-martha-stewart-show/the-chicken-show
Backyard chickens are historically American as apple pie and baseball (see attachment).

Isnt it against the law to have farm animals in residential St. Charles?
Yes, except for birds and fish. See City Code Regulations #6.12.080 Animals prohibited in the city. available from the St. Charles Code Book: Title 6, Chapter 6.12. (available online too)
The St. Charles City Code Enforcement officer approved our backyard chicken plan in 2008.
NOTE: chickens are legal, but building a shed or coop MAY REQUIRE a building permit, and must be anchored in concrete for safety around pets and children, to weather the storms. The city of St. Charles has actually been very helpful in this regard, and our property is safely up to code standards. Also, this house always needed a picket fence, porch swing, garden shed, even a new bathroom, it just never got these things 'til the chickens moved in! Y'just never know...............so there,.............you're warned..................be careful with that code book......it can lead to big ideas.....

If you want to keep chickens, why don't you live on a farm?
We are not farmers.
The chickens we keep are widely known as pet “show” poultry.
Of course, they ARE chicken, and could be eaten, but these are not bred for agriculture.
Well maybe these Silkies were bred for laughs. But I don't think we could profit from laughs.
Also, what farm?
The chicken, beef, milk and eggs that most Americans consume today come from Confined Animal Feeding Operations (CAFO's), not farms. In fact, farms in America have become rare.

Do your chickens lay eggs?
Yes. Each hen (female chicken) lays about 2 eggs every three days.
YES we eat the eggs, see attached sheet on nutrition of free-range eggs vs. confined birds' eggs.
At first we were afraid to eat our chickens' eggs.
Then, we discovered they're safer, more nutritious and taste better than store-bought eggs.

What's so fun about having pet chickens?
Chickens are a little more sociable than a cat. If you want a lap pet, a Silkie is a good one.
The cost of around 10 pet chickens is far less than the cost of a dog or a cat.
Chickens fulfill our desire for good, fun, sociable pets, without requiring the time a dog needs.
Chicken poop makes great compost for the garden, and our chicken's eggs are great.
Check the website BackYardChickens.com for more fun information and coop photos.
Check the University of Illinois Extension 4H and Youth Unit 630-584-6166 for 4-H clubs

Why do you have a Rooster?
He was a mistake. We told a young friend, “sure honey, you can keep your chick at our house”
That chick became a rooster.





So, you have to keep a Rooster to get eggs?
No.
Hens lay eggs whether you want them or not.
Hens don't need a rooster to start laying eggs.
Most backyard chicken keepers only keep hens.

Isn't it rude to keep a noisy rooster so close to your neighbors?
When we first discovered our chick could crow, I notified my neighbors of my plan to re-home him, because I am not rude. I didn't want my yard to cause anybody lack of sleep.
My closest neighbors told me:
“..but we like it. Its charming.”
“ Its musical. Don't get rid of him”
“ Its old fashioned. I look forward to it”
“ It's cool! Keep him!”
“ Oh but its so sweet! Quit worrying, its fine!”...this neighbor gave me a gift of rooster mugs.

Another visitor walked here, following the crowing song, then happily reported, “Lovely! Reminds me of French country gardens!”

Neighbors come by with coffee, to visit our rooster, trying to get him to crow.
Some are disappointed that nearby, yelling/screaming children make far more noise than our birds. Barking dogs, lawnmowers & leafblowers make more noise, too; he really can't compete.

One kind lady said, “its just another neighborhood noise we will (again) become familiar with, like whining automobile brakes, snowblowers and ambulances that pass by all day in traffic, except the rooster noise is joyful!” -she recalled living in St. Charles in the 1930's, when many had backyard chickens. There are still old coops in many of St. Charles' older yards.

What do you feed the chickens?
Purina Layena Pellets is our favorite feed, we buy a 50 pound bag from “Blackberry Station Store” in Elburn 630-365-1424.
The feed costs about $12, we only buy it once or twice a year.
During the warm months our chickens decline proper chicken feed; they fill up on grasses, weeds, bugs and worms.
They get their share of table scraps, cheese is their favorite treat!

Are chickens smelly, dirty, lice infested, disease-carrying filthy farm animals?
Yes, in some places they are. Any animal shelter can attest to the fact that sometimes animals are kept in filthy conditions (but not at our home).
Our chickens are kept healthy, clean, beautiful and pleasant, not filthy.
Our routine veterinary care confirms that our chickens are clean and healthy.
(Like any pet dog, cat, hamster, parakeet, turtle, lizard, goldfish, etc; if their poop piles up it will smell bad. ) (Duh!)
Chickens preen/clean themselves and each other frequently. Chickens prefer cleanliness.
They smell like mint, because their coop&run has mint growing in it. But that's just lucky.




Have there been any problems related to keeping chickens in St. Charles?

Besides that they don't eat enough grass so we still have to mow there:

Problem Number One:
We accidentally hatched 2 new chicks, one of those was another rooster.
Nobody wants another rooster.
We can foresee our society's “unwanted roosters” becoming as much a problem as “unwanted litters of kittens and puppies”
The Lesson = Thou Shalt Collect Eggs Daily, So The Hens Don't Hatch New Roosters

Problem Number Two:
Unsupervised children have roamed into our yard and chased the chickens.
We put up a fence, more to keep feral children and dogs OUT than to keep our chickens IN.
After the fence was up, some kids stood on the driveway throwing rocks at the chickens.
So, we invested even more $$ and time in a secluded chicken run.
The old adage, “good fences make good neighbors” probably rings true, but can be costly.

Problem Number Three:
I have become a Total Egg Snob.
While the chickens are taking a break from egglaying (during a moult), I have to buy eggs
from the store. I even bought expensive “organic” eggs at $4.69 a dozen, but they're not
as good as our chicken's eggs, so I sometimes go through bouts of “eggless worry”

Lastly, the problem of society's soapbox heroes:
One person has made a good deal of gossip about our backyard chickens, ranting publicly at our children's school, especially telling people that we're keeping our chickens illegally.
Of course he is wrong. But his soapbox rant is annoying, misinformed and RUDE to the kids.

Can we catch diseases from your chickens?
No, but people can accidentally transmit diseases to our birds.
How do we know? We take care of them, including routine lab tests to document what diseases our chickens DON'T HAVE! Don't we wish the poultry producers who sold salmonella did the same basic, routine care?
So, we have NO TRESPASSING signs on our fenced property, to help protect our birds.
No, our chickens (or their poop) will not cause anybody “respiratory illness”.
No, our small flock of backyard chickens cannot transmit Avian Flu. See BirdFluBook.com or http://healthybirds.aphis.usda.gov for more information on Avian Flu.
We utilize Backyard Biosecurity Practices to Keep your Birds Healthy by the USDA.
We schedule routine lab tests to ensure our chickens are not infected with anything.

FYI: Be careful with any “diseases” conversation around sensitive children. Once you discover that humans can catch fleas, rabies, roundworms, tapeworms, coccidiosis, psittacosis, MRSA, H.Pylori ,toxoplasmosis and more than we want to know about FROM OUR DOGS,PARAKEETS AND CATS (and even from each other!) the “health risk” and “eewww” factor regarding pet-borne disease can become a hassle when trying to raise children and pets in the same household.....

....On the other hand, no matter what pets we keep, its wise to care for them appropriately, practice good handwashing and sanitary yard hygiene anyways.

 

[JessicainOhio]

The open coop was a great success! We had about 50 people at each location -- and cookies & hot apple cider. Kids were running all over and having one heck of a time. Many City Council members showed up. It felt like a real neighborhood happening!

And our "open forum" meeting at City Hall also went very well. We had about 50 people in attendance (the largest crowd they've seen in years) and EVERY LAST PERSON was pro-chicken. One of the council members even changed his political views on Facebook to read "pro-chicken". I'm just so pleased at how well this has been going.

Next step: The first reading of the draft ordinance next month. The only contentious issue is property-line set-backs. I'm hoping they'll only make rules for set-backs from the FRONT of the property (i.e. no chickens in the front yard).

THANK YOU to everyone for your excellent suggestions that made our "Open Coop" a success!! And thanks to everyone who's been fighting this fight for years, making it so much easier for those of us riding on your coat-tails.

 

[6chickens in St. Charles]

Quote:
No chickens in the front yard, awww nuts. Well maybe it depends on the yard. Mine is kind of elevated, so maybe thats different, and the picket fence makes a difference too. But it would be sad here if our chickens couldn't run up into the front yard to greet us when we get home, or pick clean my front fender after I'm off the highway (bug-splatt).

I checked your website, very nice! Your chickens look so sweet! I am glad to see your fest went SO WELL, Congrats!

 

[gryeyes]

That's WONDERFUL!!! I'm so glad you had such a successful "neighborhood coop crawl." I've got my fingers crossed for the final council decision to go pro-chicken keeping!!!

 

[PineappleMama]

I had a thought... all the people talking about how nasty chickens are... I just want to ask them what they like to order at KFC... or IHOP... just to see the look on their face.

All these ideas sound awesome... there's the Austin topic you might want to check?
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=104453

Good Luck!!