Sent to us by Rke.
Feather are flying over a proposal to ban roosters in the unincorporated areas of Sacramento County.
But county leaders said the proposal has been largely misunderstood.
Several of the complaints came from residents of Fair Oaks Village where chickens have freely wandered the streets for years and have become a symbol of the town.
“The sad part is the people who make the laws don’t live where they make the laws,” said Sasha Hjerpe, a Fair Oaks resident who has taken it upon herself to care for the chickens.
As part of a general update to the county’s zoning laws, the Board of Supervisors voted Wednesday to move ahead with a proposal to prohibit people from raising roosters, peacocks and other “crowing fowl” on residential lots.
County Supervisor Susan Peters said she has been pushing for such a ban for years.
“I’ve been awakened by a peacock before. And it sounds like someone strangling a small child. I mean it just brings you right up out of your bed. And it’s just not fair,” Peters said.
County officials insisted the proposed ban would only apply to loud, cock-a-doodle-doo-ing males, but not to softly clucking hens.
And they said it would only apply to privately owned chickens, not the free-rangers of Fair Oaks.
“This did not address that. The board did not discuss that. And I think it would be their intent to allow that to continue,” said Leighann Moffitt, the county planning director.
However, Hjerpe said Fair Oaks is likely to still be affected.
She said if the ban takes effect, rooster owners from all over the county would wind up dumping them in the village.
“Anything that crows is going to end up over here,” she said.
Hjerpe said Fair Oaks is currently home to about 140 chickens who often fight with each other and have difficulty finding food on their own.
“All I know is animal control should have a space being opened to accept these unwanted crowing birds,” she said.
Moffitt said if the proposal is given final approval this summer, rooster owners would have one year to find new homes for their birds.
A neighbor of mine has roosters and hens. Love the sound of them, besides the good eggs they produce. Another neighbor was complaining to me about them and i told him it reminded me of my youth, and that i loved to hear them in the morning. He shook his and walked off,. 🙂
Best burglar alarm you can possibly have is a few geese.
Set them off, and they’ll wake the dead. 😉
Yeah I remember Guineas on the farm too. They were good watchdogs as well.
Yup, they sure are.
Guineas are also good to have around because they Love eating Ticks. 😉
Hey Angel, didn’t know that.
http://www.backyardpoultrymag.com/jeannette_ferguson/
http://modernfarmer.com/2014/10/get-watch-bird/
http://www.guineafowl.com/fritsfarm/guineas/ticks/
good link Angel…………thx. 🙂
LOL Agreed, #1. “Set them off, and they’ll wake the dead.”
Hey Angel… 🙂
Only problem is… no off switch.
That’s for sure. LOL
Best watch dog I ever had was a little donkey. He was very good natured but no one else knew that. They have a reputation for being mean and can kick like a mule and even coyotes don’t mess with them. I used beneficial nematodes for fleas in WV. In five weeks after I sprayed them down I never saw another flea for 4 years. They have them for ticks too. I moved and don’t know how long they lasted but ticks and fleas are resistive to many poisons that are used. //garbico-organics.com/category/beneficial-nematodes I heard guineas were great too but some may not be able to have them.