I really want some backyard chickens and I am really envious of those who can have them. I live in a city that will let you have up to six but as far as I can tell you have to get permission from the health department first. The first thing you need to do if you want backyard chickens is find out about the legal ramifications of having chickens in your city. You don’t want to buy a flock and find out you can’t have any or you have to get rid of more than half of them. Find out how many chickens you can have and what conditions are necessary to keep them.
My next obstacle is my hubby and he doesn’t want chickens here. He is not opposed to having chickens he just doesn’t want them here. I understand his concerns and have decided not to get chickens until we move. Considering that we have a small yard and a dog of our own plus 3 dogs surrounding us that are out most of the time it would be hard to protect the chickens. Then we live in an area that is also full of raccoons, opossums, foxes and coyotes once the spring hits full tilt. Not sure why these animals are in the middle of the city but I have actually seen the foxes when walking the dog and I had baby raccoons terrorizing my strawberries last year.
All that to say if someone one in your family has legitimate concerns about your desire for backyard chickens listen to them. If you still want chickens then you must come up with a plan to combat the concerns. I am hoping to move by next spring so I don’t feel the urgency someone who will be stuck in the city for a few more years might. So if you can address you all the concerns you family brings you can move on to the next concern.
If you rent your home like I do you will need to ask your landlord if you can have chickens. You lease may cover house hold pets but unless it specifically talks about farm animals you will need to talk to your landlord first. I rent from my mom and I am reasonably sure she would say no, but then again I am lucky I can have a dog with her dislike of animals. Just ask or you and your chickens might be put out on the street.
The last topic I am going to talk about today is neighbors. Roosters are not likely to make neighbors happy but if you just want a few hens you might make some new friends. You should talk to the people closest to you and let them know you are adding chickens to your family. You need to assure them that you will keep your chickens and their living quarters clean and that roosters won't be waking up the third shifter next door right as he dozes off to sleep. You can also promise them some fresh eggs to help win them over. It is important to know if you are going to have someone calling every local authority they can find to report you and your chickens.
I bet you thought I was going to talk about baby chicks here and now you are disappointed. I will get to that in another post but I think it is very important to bring you chicks home to a welcoming environment. While chickens are relatively easy to take care of compared to most farm animals they do require some work. It would be a shame if you had to fight with everyone around you and learn how to take properly care of a new type of animal.
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