Speak up- The Goverment is trying to regulate chicken owners

[Pandang81]

Advance warning government wants to control your bird keeping ! This proposed rule may be viewed in today’s Federal Register. Beginning tomorrow, members of the public may submit comments. All comments must be received by April 25, 2022. If you care about this please go to the federal register to comment and voice your opinion before April 25th.

Today we are inviting public comments on a proposal to amend the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) regulations to establish new regulations and standards governing the humane handling, care, treatment, and transportation of birds. The proposed regulations would apply to captive birds not bred for use in research.

This proposed rule will be available on the Federal Register. The public comment period opens February 22, 2022 and closes April 25, 2022.

USDA Seeks Public Comment on Proposal to Establish Animal Welfare Regulations for Birds

WASHINGTON, February 18, 2022 – The United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is inviting public comments on a proposal to amend the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) regulations to establish new regulations and standards governing the humane handling, care, treatment, and transportation of birds. The proposed regulations would apply to captive birds not bred for use in research.

The proposal would ensure each individual bird that is subject to the AWA is raised and maintained in conditions that ensure its good health and well-being and that its physical and behavioral needs are met. The proposed rule outlines how entities with birds can obtain a license and the standards they would have to follow.

APHIS is asking the public to provide comments on how this proposed rule would impact the regulated community, as well as ways that APHIS might assist regulated entities with implementation of these standards, whether through documents, guides, training, or other means. APHIS also invites comments on the proposed operating standards for facilities, the proposed animal health and husbandry standards, and the proposed transportation standards.

These proposed standards would allow APHIS to ensure the welfare of birds while affording flexibility in implementing the standards to bird breeders, dealers, exhibitors, and transporters.

In addition to the proposed rule, APHIS has completed an Environmental Assessment and a Regulatory Impact Analysis for these regulations and is sharing both documents for review and comment.

APHIS is committed to ensuring the welfare of regulated animals and continues to carry out the critical day-to-day work of ensuring the humane treatment of vulnerable animals through unannounced inspections, pre-compliance visits, horse protection inspections, and other activities.

This proposed rule may be viewed in today’s Federal Register. Beginning tomorrow, members of the public may submit comments. All comments must be received by April 25, 2022.

 

[Chookchicken]

I don’t see anything bad with this. If I’m understanding this right it seems like they’re trying to stop battery farms. If your taking proper care of your chickens this shouldn’t be a worry. Many other places in the world have regulations like this and still keep chickens. I don’t think this is “the government controlling your bird keeping” as much as its them trying to lean towards a more humane way of keeping livestock.

 

[Pandang81]

I don’t see anything bad with this. If I’m understanding this right it seems like they’re trying to stop battery farms. If your taking proper care of your chickens this shouldn’t be a worry. Many other places in the world have regulations like this and still keep chickens. I don’t think this is “the government controlling your bird keeping” as much as its them trying to lean towards a more humane way of keeping livestock.

There are already regulations in place for that. This is further reaching their hand in and requiring permits etc. Several breeders groups on Facebook are posting about this & upset so I copied and pasted it here so that backyard chicken owners should know as well. I don’t know about you but I don’t like the government increasing their say in anything that I do period.

 

[McChooky]

I don’t see anything bad with this. If I’m understanding this right it seems like they’re trying to stop battery farms. If your taking proper care of your chickens this shouldn’t be a worry. Many other places in the world have regulations like this and still keep chickens. I don’t think this is “the government controlling your bird keeping” as much as its them trying to lean towards a more humane way of keeping livestock.

Theres another bill they were trying to pass that would prevent taking birds across state lines.It affects any birds that aren't native which includes parrots,etc.Suppose you move from one state to another does this mean you couldn't take your pets with you?Government overreach is out of control.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

LINK

Proposed RULE

 

[The Moonshiner]

This is what happens when all the nutters want to change poultry from "livestock" to "pets."

 

[U_Stormcrow]

This is what happens when all the nutters want to change poultry from "livestock" to "pets."

with the assistance of the courts. They had already included horses in their revised definitions. Its a hallmark of slippery slope style legislation. Don't change "the law", change the definitions...

 

[MysteryChicken]

Not quite sure what to say about this.
That was a lot of reading.

 

[U_Stormcrow]

Not quite sure what to say about this.
That was a lot of reading.

I'm not posting an opinion for myself, either. Still mulling it over.

With the Court's order, together with the perfectly normal and predictable desire of an Agency to increase its relevancy by increasing the things it has say over, it is virtually certain there will be *some* new regulations applying to all of us. I've been there, many times, on behalf of past employer(s) when contemplating proposed legislation.

Maybe in a few days, I'll have organized my thoughts into the lightest touch that might have a hope of passage - which *may* be a choice not to regulate very small flocks as unmanagable, ineffective, and costly, entrusting those decisions of space, etc to local zoning - many of whom already look to USDA "best practice documents" as guidance, per their code. I'm not sure this Administration is fond of Federalism, but mostly, neither was the last, or the one before that, or...

anyhows, that's my current mullings. I may have more of potential value to add later, but I sort of doubt it. I don't yet have a sense of the position of the other players, and I no longer have a way to find out.

 

[allenw]

I haven't study on all of this enough to form an opinion. Any new government regulation usually has consequences beyond those that appear at first glance.