This post is about chickens.
Specifically chickens in Cambridge, MA.
Up until yesterday no law restricted chickens in Cambridge.
More people are aware of our food supply issues, quality of life issues for our food suppliers, and the environmental impact of our diet. As a result, more people are starting to raise chickens in their backyards.
Chickens are allowed in New York City, Chicago, Los Angeles, Albuquerque, and many, many other cities. But now, not in Cambridge. Zoning decided against them after a hearing in which one neighbor of a chicken raising household was concerned about the following:
a) Possible increase in rats or other pests
b) Possible disease (the neighbors were worried they'd get avian flu)
c) Smell
The chicken owners were easily able to effectively combat items a and b with a city rodent inspection reports and veterinarian's certificate of health. Item c, the only one I think would be a viable question, did not, apparently, come up within the zoning meeting.
Instead, the zoning board argued about what a pet is or is not. The questions, as I've read at least, revolved around whether or not it's okay to eat parts of your pet. For instance, you don't raise cats to eat their kittens whereas you raise chickens to eat their eggs. While I see the point, I don't see why it's relevant.
Why should we prohibit any animals based on what we get from them? Shouldn't we instead create realistic restrictions? If a person keeps their animals healthy, disease free, in a reasonable environment (not overcrowded like 20 cats in a house) and well cared for, we should allow people to have animals so long as they are not dangerous to the welfare of others. Restrictions already apply to pit bulls in the city or endangered species. Last year a chimp beat a woman nearly to death so I recognize the importance of animal restrictions. But restriction should not mean prohibition.
I would have expected a well educated zoning board to allow chickens with some restrictions.
Limit chickens based on space available, not because chickens can't live in confined spaces (see Food, Inc. if you want to see a modern chicken house) but because the smell of chickens is a realistic concern.
Require owners to vaccinate and care for their animal's medical needs. We require this of pets anyway, it's only common sense.
Just so you know what the zoning board based their decision on, here's the only city ordinance that directly includes information on foul:
"No owner or person having the care of any domestic fowl, or any goats, sheep, swine, horses, oxen, cows or other grazing animals, shall permit or suffer the same to go at large, or to graze on any street; and no person shall publicly exhibit any animal in the streets or public places of the City except in accordance with a permit from the Superintendent of Streets."
Instead the zoning board determined that chickens were not "accessory use" or permitted use of land within the city. They based this on the fact that chickens do not appear on the list of approved accessory use items (but of course neither do other animals, including pets). According to zoning regulations, a special permit can be applied for for non-accessory use. This, of course, would be an ideal time for the zoning board to create a permit for urban chickens. But, of course, they didn't do so.
So the household with the chickens will bring their case before the city council, and hopefully, eventually, a well defined permit will be permitted.
But for now, no chickens in Cambridge.
And you know why that's a shame? Because even though I have to believe that progress eventually wins, the wheels of law take time to mend things. In anticipation of this case (and the huge popularity of this issue...75 people came to speak on behalf of the chicken household) the zoning board could easily have created a permit for this household to apply to.
Neighbor happy, Chickens happy, Chicken owners happy, right?
Well, maybe someday, but obviously not today.
2 comments:
When we bought our house, we giggled about one of the homeowners association rules that specifically prohibited raising livestock, chickens, and rabbits in the neighborhood. I mostly laughed at the thought of cows attempting to graze on our postage-stamp size back yards, and scratched my head over the bunny rule (no pet bunnies? how would they enforce that? Though I don't want any extra furballs in the neighborhood--the wild ones are bad enough at eating my hostas).
In other words, Cambridge isn't alone. Though I suspect that most rules outlawing chickens and other food-animals are in smaller places--neighborhood by neighborhood, rather than city by city.
I don't think I'd ever try to raise a chicken. Certainly not in my little yard (I kinda want some outdoor space appropriate for people, and there's really none to spare as it is). But I don't know that I'm opposed to others having them, if, as you pointed out, noise, cleanliness, and odor aren't a problem.
I was initially pretty livid at the result of the zoning board, until I realized that a permit could be created to allow backyard chickens. It seems that the zoning board didn't want to take responsibility for the issue (they could easily have set permit guidelines) and passed the issue off to the city council. I think it's only a matter of time before the area will have to pass some sort of regulation about fowl. I hope so because I want some backyard chickens (just two). Fresh eggs are pretty spectacular.
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