Have chicken ~ do you agree with this ```

[valley ranch]

Backyard chickens need more regulation

Historically, keeping backyard chickens was a response to economic hardship -- whether it was in the Depression or during wartime food rationing.

But a growing number of chickens today are roaming or are caged on small family farms and in backyards, as suburban and urban poultry gains more popularity among consumers. Many people prefer to raise their own food because they think it will be safer, fresher and more nutritious than that which was commercially raised. Yet, a new University of California, Davis, study suggests that local ordinances are not adequately addressing human and animal health when it comes to backyard poultry, and laws that do exist do not keep pace with those for commercial growers.

"Ironically, as people seek to take control over the way their food is grown, most ordinances fail to ensure basic health and welfare for birds and humans," said Catherine Brinkley, assistant professor of community and regional development, in the College of Agricultural and Environmental Sciences. She is the primary author of the study.

The paper, "A Method for Guarding Animal Welfare and Public Health: Tracking the Rise of Backyard Poultry Ordinances," was recently published in the Journal of Community Health.
What needs to happen, the author recommends, is that there be more laws that mandate vaccinations, manure management and general animal welfare in urban and suburban settings similar to policies and regulations imposed on commercial chicken ranches.

"Provisions governing animal slaughter and routine veterinary care are rare, presenting a concern for monitoring and intervening in public health crises," the study says. "In addition, shelters anticipate higher poultry intakes, particularly as unwanted birds are turned loose to become strays."



read https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2018/03/180302124837.htm

 

[Beekissed]

I'm not for any increased regulations from our government over our personal food supply. Over in the UK they are so highly regulated their chickens can't let a fart without a law against it. Those folks can't even give their chickens kitchen scraps, when the government wants to throw a scare into the populace about avian flu all the flock owners have to cover their runs so that wild birds can't get in contact with the chickens, etc.

Nine out of ten flocks I've observed, both in rural settings and urban, didn't have enough space in their housing nor runs, neither were kept in healthy conditions, and none of the owners seem to know a single thing about how to keep chickens healthy...or keep them at all....but neither does our government, so anything they do about it all will just make things worse. Always does.

 

[valley ranch]

I think ~ enough regulations ```

 

[canesisters]

The problem, I think, is that once the government starts.. they don't know how to stop.
Here in VA we just (narrowly) defeated a new law that would have had anyone selling or BUYING raw milk to be on a state register.
They (the big "THEY") have taught us (the big "US") to follow and not to think and be responsible for ourselves. People who take on stewardship of livestock need to be responsible to do it right. They should not have to be regulated into it.
... should not have to be...

 

[flowerbug]

local towns all have regulations about keeping chickens and people are trying to change them because they can't have chickens and want to have some.

note the phrase above "routine veterinary care" there? for most people that alone turns any chicken keeping from a common sense way to keep food costs down into more expensive and out of any decent budget.

these are chickens, they deserve good care and a healthy home, but beyond that you have to use common sense and of course not everyone has that. as of yet i see no way they are ever going to legislate that... if they could at least half of the people driving on the road should be spanked and sent home.

MI has regulations about if you are using an uninspected kitchen to make and sell foods, if you label foods as such and i think you also have to say where, but other than that it is at consumers own risk. i think that is sensible and fair. once you get above a certain $ amount of sales then you have to deal with the regulators.

 

[Ridgerunner]

A depressing article isn't it? But I think it is a sign of the times. At one point in our history most Americans had a tie to the land. If they did not grow up on a farm they had grandparents that farmed. But I think WWII was the catalyst that changed that. I won't go into all the reasons I think caused that but we soon became an urban/suburban society with no ties to the land. The only experiences kids had with animals was a pet cat or dog and what they saw on Disney. @flowerbug mentioned common sense. How you apply common sense is based on your experiences. If your common sense is based on a few house pets and Disney, your conclusions will be different from mine when it comes to other animals. There is a poll over on the chicken forum about why people keep chickens. You may need to vote to see the results and multiple votes are allowed. As you would expect, over 90% have chickens for eggs. Over 70% have them as pets. About a quarter have them for meat, I think most of that is spent hens, not meat birds. People spend a lot of money on pets.

http://www.backyardchickens.com/t/2...o-you-have-chickens-select-all-that-apply/390

@canesisters emphasized a very good point. People should not have to be regulated into doing what is right. But should is a very important word. How many people do you know that do what they should without something forcing them to. That might be a good mother, peer pressure, or a fear of God. For a lot of people it's rules and regulations though I believe we all know people that may not always follow regulations to the letter of the law.

I apologize but I'm going to get a bit political. I think how we balance individual rights with community rights defines to a large extent the type of society we have. Rural folks tend to favor individual rights, urban folks go more for community rights. You can keep chickens in urban/suburban settings without infringing on your neighbors if you do it right, though if someone is working the night shift I can see why they might not want a crowing rooster next door. A barking dog either. Just because you can keep them that way doesn't mean everyone will. If you don't keep them contained they can go into the street and cause accidents or poop where other's kids are playing or people are walking. If you don't manage the coop and run properly it can stink to high heaven. The feed can cause a rodent explosion if you don't handle it right. I can see a need for regulations which can also be considered guidelines.

Why that article is so depressing to me is that a lot of it is not based on an understanding of chickens. it's based on their perceptions of chickens. Mandating certain vaccinations or vet care is ridiculous in my opinion. I can understand requiring a rabies vaccination for a dog but what chicken vaccinations will affect people's health? I think a fairly large portion of our population has lost touch with what I consider reality and base their thoughts and actions on a mythology that never really existed or based on how they think of animals which is often quite a bit different to my thoughts.

 

[Beekissed]

I really don't agree with having livestock in town or suburbs, especially if the land is smaller than an acre. It would be nice if they could regulate that without going whole hog and trying to regulate rural areas as well. But, they can't seem to use common sense when it comes to regulations.

3-5 chickens is not going to augment anyone's food supply to such a degree that it's going to save them money or be a staple of their diet, so I see no need for anyone attempting it.

Rabbits....rabbits can be raised in a small area, are quiet, you can keep a few of them and can produce enough to supply a family with their protein needs. Only problem is that no one is truly wanting to produce food for their family...not enough to kill a chicken or a bunny~they just want the newest fad pet. And the towns won't allow them to butcher, so all this animal keeping is a moot point. It's just a bunch of city/suburb dwellers wanting to have their cake and eat it too.

Just because you CAN do something doesn't always mean you SHOULD.

 

[ducks4you]

I have an opinion since I am a Trustee of our small town's city council and we have been reexamining our ordinances over the past few months, inCLUDING our current ordinance on Animal Control. Once you begin to go beyond the ability to control abuse and neglect that is reported, you start behaving like many Home Owner's Associations who police their neighborhoods over petty things like people cannot put up a type of swingset for their children in their own back yard bc the HOA doesn't condone it.
Yes, it is possible for people new to chickens to not take care of them correctly and neglect them. Yes, I have witnessed people whose idea of "free range" is to let them roam a town, as I have seen in the small town that my DD's have moved to, where we go to get ice cream and watch a chicken cross the street.
Fortunately, EVERYBODY loves chicken, including domestic dogs and cats. It isn't like a free roaming pet jaguar, so let's get real. Free ranging chickens is a problem that solves itself.
I believe that we SHOULD be examining the commercial poultry industry and the commercial dairy industry. NOT ALL, but too many bad stewards of commercial chickens and commercial dairy cattle keep them in deplorable conditions, chickens who live their lives out in small cages and are then butchered and in your grocery store after 1 year of abuse. Dairy cattle whose bull calves are separated in their first day of life to become tender, young veal. Even the Amish (according to a Vet who I did a closing for) keep THEIR dairy cattle in small lots and let the manure bed the cement barns, although they are better kept than may others.
Perhaps if we bring these bad practices into the light the hobby chicken owner might get on the Internet and learn more about good animal husbandry.

 

[valley ranch]

I think most people know how to ~ and do ~ take care for chickens ~ there is no need ~ for another layer of regulation, rules, fees or fines.
As was said ~ dog and cats ~ regulate those not properly housed ```

Thanks for saying your say ```

 

[so lucky]

The smallish city in my area recently passed a chicken keeping ordinance, with, in my opinion, some good rules for town life: no roosters, limit on the number of chickens, the coops have to be a certain distance from neighboring property, and no butchering or processing on the property. I don't know if free ranging was addressed, but, like ducks4you stated, that is a problem that takes care of itself.
I don't agree that keeping 3 to 5 chickens is a waste of time. Being able to have fresh eggs has a lot of value to some of us. And we can always use the poo.