en-us https://www.intensedebate.com/users/637912 Comments by BOwens http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75096983 When this idea first starts emerging as something that may really happen the same pattern occurs over and over again. There is initially a lot of concern. Some people will be swayed by the arguments that CLUC makes, some will not. The more interesting thing that happens is that when a city actually decides to allow for backyard chickens, the vocal protests all disappear almost instantly. I think there are two reasons for this. The first is that once you actually spend some time around a small number of birds kept in a backyards, you appreciate them for what they are, very small animals. They do not come close to producing enough noise, smell, or commotion to impact a neighbor. This is just a fact. I know it does not hold true for large numbers of birds on the farm, but it is a fact of raising a small number of birds. The second reason is that the small number of people who like to vocally oppose anything and everything, move on to other topics. They forget about chickens. Please do not take my word. Talk to any animal control department, police department, city council member, or neighbor in a city that allows chickens. Wed, 12 May 2010 18:00:31 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75096983 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75067711 If that were actually going to be a problem I would think it would also be a problem with small cats and dogs. Seems like it really has not come to be an issue. One big difference is that hens are kept in a coop and therfore protected, so as not to attract predetors. Believe me the chicken owner is alot more concerned about predators than you are. Wed, 12 May 2010 14:38:10 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75067711 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75067188 Should people not be allowed to grow tomatoes in their backyard either? That is another example of food production that has no impact on neighbors. Wed, 12 May 2010 14:33:47 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75067188 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75066773 As the procees stands now it looks like ti will be first come first serve, no one has been selected. Wed, 12 May 2010 14:30:57 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75066773 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75066191 I would think you would actually want to talk to someone who wanted to raise a chicken before you made judgments about their understanding of the commitment. What people realize is that keeping a few hens in a backyard is nothing like living on a farm, and in fact requires about the same level of commitment as a dog. It does require a commitment and it does require the owner to act in a responsible manner just as all animal ownership does. At the end of the day though, it has no relation to the lifestyle of living on a working farm. For most people interested in this, it has nothing to do with romanticizing the rural lifestyle. Many people have gained their exposure to chickens by being around them in the city, which is not uncommon. It may be useful for you to look into how a few chickens are kept in the city to see what a dramatically different pursuit it is than keeping larger numbers of chickens on a farm. Wed, 12 May 2010 14:26:35 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75066191 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75064390 This is not an argument based on any reality. The council has already recieved input from a leading expert on poultry from ISU in regards to the fact that backyard chickens pose absolutely no helath risk. How do you think it is safe for cats and dogs to spend time outdoors, and then also spend time being kept indoors sharing living quarters with families, but having a chicken outdooors in a coop is not safe? Wed, 12 May 2010 14:12:12 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75064390 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75060929 CLUC absolutely agrees with this sentiment of storing chicken feed resoponsibly. It is vital that food is stored in a manner as to not attract pests, just as it is the case with any pet food, or human food or garbage for that matter. Wed, 12 May 2010 13:44:02 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75060929 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75060497 I believe that everybody in CLUC agrees that the city does have many important issues to deal with, and hopes to take up very little of their time with this one issue. This should be an easy vote for the council, and CLUC will be glad to see them spend very little time on it in passing the resolution, so they can continue spending the bulk of their time on the many large compelx issues before them. As a group CLUC has shown great respect for the councils requests to work on the councils time frame and only bring this issue to them when they felt they were ready to address it. It is a reality of the city council that they deal with a large variety of issues at any single meeting, and no single issue is veiwed by the entire population as the important issue that the council should be devoting its time to. Wed, 12 May 2010 13:40:05 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75060497 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75058648 It is only relatively recently that chickens began to be seen as an animal that did not belong in the city. For most of this countires history chickens were wide spread in urban backwards, and still are today including cities as uraban as New York City Many people are growing tired of their food coming from factories, and Cedar Rapids citizens are going to need to get readjusted to the idea of small scale food production coming back to the city. I do not understand how this is so terifying as the city is already full of urban animals. Is it that we are ashamed of our agricultural roots, and are scared we will look like hicks if we keep chickens? It is time to get over it. If your neighbor does something that has no direct impact on you and does not hurt anyone, I do not undertand why you feel you should have control over it. Wed, 12 May 2010 13:25:23 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75058648 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75056965 It may be useful to look at any other city that allows chickens to see if this argument holds up. What you will find is that every animal control dept. will tell you that they get virtually no complaints on chickens, and they take up absolutly no significant amount of time from those animal control departments. Wed, 12 May 2010 13:11:29 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/local-news/2010/05/11/backyard-chicken-advocates-continue-to-push-council#IDComment75056965 http://gazetteonline.com/blogs/city-room/2010/03/11/expect-a-good-city-council-debate-before-urban-chickens-arrive-in-cedar-rapids-backyards#IDComment62229186 It is a funny trend that you see when you talk to people about backyard chickens, that they will say we should not have chickens because dogs and dog owners are such a problem. Very small animals like birds are a great alternative to larger ptentially noisy animals like dogs. In most cases they will be an alternative, not an addition to other animals like dogs. If you have never been around backyard urban chickens you know that they have zero impact on neighbors and animal control departments have no significant issues with them. Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:59:45 +0000 http://gazetteonline.com/blogs/city-room/2010/03/11/expect-a-good-city-council-debate-before-urban-chickens-arrive-in-cedar-rapids-backyards#IDComment62229186 http://gazetteonline.com/blogs/city-room/2010/03/11/expect-a-good-city-council-debate-before-urban-chickens-arrive-in-cedar-rapids-backyards#IDComment62228430 There is a place for everything, and it certainly is the case that not everybody is going to want chickens, but if someone wants to have a small number of very quite birds in their backyard and keep them in a manner that will not impact you, I am unclear on why you feel you should determine what others can or cannot do in their backyard. Please keep in mind that the small number of birds that CLUC is asking to be allowed has nothing to do with the scale of bird production that might be seen outside of the city. These are small animals that require a small amount of regular care that easily allows for no sound or smell that will impact a neighbor. They are much better for neighbors in this respect than an average dog. Mon, 15 Mar 2010 14:53:17 +0000 http://gazetteonline.com/blogs/city-room/2010/03/11/expect-a-good-city-council-debate-before-urban-chickens-arrive-in-cedar-rapids-backyards#IDComment62228430 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/blogs/24-hour-dorman/2009/11/14/column-laissez-fowl#IDComment43433969 We'd like to keep the debate for this request grounded in fact and supported by data and examples. Arguments based on childhood memories, fears and gut feelings are simply not compelling or supportable. Mon, 16 Nov 2009 14:21:13 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/blogs/24-hour-dorman/2009/11/14/column-laissez-fowl#IDComment43433969 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/blogs/24-hour-dorman/2009/11/14/column-laissez-fowl#IDComment43372405 That may be true that a person can envision a scenario in which many backyard hens not kept properly could create a health hazard. Since hens are allowed in many cities across the US though, I think that it is more useful to look at the reality of the situation, instead of hypothetical imaginings. If this is an issue of concern to anyone, I highly recommend that they research any city that has legalized backyard hens. I guarantee you will find that it has gone extremely well, and definitely has not brought health concerns into communities. Remember most people are doing this to produce food for their own family, and are extremely concerned about proper sanitation. Sun, 15 Nov 2009 20:59:22 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/blogs/24-hour-dorman/2009/11/14/column-laissez-fowl#IDComment43372405 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/blogs/24-hour-dorman/2009/11/14/column-laissez-fowl#IDComment43367660 Thanks to Mr. Dorman for this interesting analysis backyard hens. I especially agree with his thinking that backyard hens have great potential to be an engaging activity that will promote discourse between neighbors, particularly neighbors with children. My only concern with this is his suggestion that a person should need to have each and every neighbor agree to it before they could go forward. This seems like a pretty high hurdle considering someone can get a large dog with no input from their neighbors, and hens have such an extremely small potential to impact a neighbor. The city already has regulations in place to resolve issues of hens potentially becoming a nuisance to neighbors, and in town after town that considers backyard hens we see this same pattern of initial concerns of how hens will impact neighborhood relations, but time an time again the concerns are shown to be unfounded and back yard hens end up creating no significant turmoil between neighbors. Thanks again, Mr. Dorman, I enjoyed the read. Sun, 15 Nov 2009 19:46:22 +0000 http://oldgo.gazlab.com.php5-15.dfw1-1.websitetestlink.com/blogs/24-hour-dorman/2009/11/14/column-laissez-fowl#IDComment43367660 http://gazetteonline.com/local-news/2009/08/20/chickens-may-come-to-roost-in-cedar-rapids-iowa-city#IDComment31509838 With respect to your point about virus transmission it is important to keep in mind that animal to human transmissions generally occur in situations of people actually sharing the same living quarters as the animals. There are many strains of bird flu, with H5N1, being the most serious as it relates to potential human illness. This strain has never been detected in the United Stated, though of course if it were to reach Iowa in the future any urban chickens would need to be eradicated as a precaution. The CLUC group was interested in this issue and interviewed Dr. Darell Trampel from the Iowa State University on the subject. He responds to poultry health questions raised by producers and veterinarians, serves as a liaison between the College of Veterinary Medicine and Iowa poultry organizations. The following is a direct quote from him on backyard poultry; “Under normal circumstances, a well maintained chicken coop should not pose a disease risk to humans that is greater than that posed by many of our other domestic animals” Fri, 21 Aug 2009 20:25:05 +0000 http://gazetteonline.com/local-news/2009/08/20/chickens-may-come-to-roost-in-cedar-rapids-iowa-city#IDComment31509838