[Durham INC] more chicken thoughts

[Kelly Jarrett]

Come on Randy. Rats will eat anything--the food we put out for dogs and 
cats. The food we put out for birds. Those little corn cobs people put 
out for squirrels. The food waste we throw into our compost heaps. The 
acorns we leave on the ground under our oak trees. Surely you're not 
going to push your argument and propose we ban dogs, cats, composting, 
and oak trees. . . .




RW Pickle wrote:
> I had the opportunity to talk to an "old chicken farmer" today about this
> upcoming issue for our City. I first ask him what he thought about
> chickens in town (he lives in Durham City now). He said he didn't care as
> long as it wasn't next door to him. When he said that, my next question
> was, why? What he said next is something that I doubt anyone will ever
> know until they have chickens; he said rats. Yep, rats. He said that rats
> liked the same food chickens like and would show up shortly after the
> chickens arrived. So not only will those feathery foul be an addition to a
> yard, they will attract their 4-legged furry buddies, the rats. He said
> anyone who would wanted chickens because eggs were too expensive had
> bigger financial problems...
>
> Then he started in on predators that like chickens for dinner. Foxes (we
> have a couple over here so I assume they are across our City), hawks (I
> see them regularly over here) and raccoons (and we have a bunch of them
> over here) were mentioned. He told me of the time when a raccoon grabbed
> one of his chickens through the wire fence of the coop, tried to pull the
> chicken through the fence (it was much too large for that) and eventually
> settled for just eating the chickens legs off. Needless to say that
> chicken was dinner... So, in addition to the eggs, it looks like neighbors
> will get to see first hand the food chain in action.
>
> When we got this far in the conversation, it turned to milk because he
> thought milk was much more expensive and consumed more than eggs. He's
> right, milk does cost more and they always seem to have a bunch of it at
> the grocery store when I go. So maybe we do use more milk than eggs. At
> least that's the case at my house. So does that mean cows will be allowed
> at some point as well? Some of my neighbors have 3-5 acres over here, so
> there's plenty of room for grazing...
>
> And what about those pot-bellied pigs the City said we couldn't have (a
> few years back). Does that mean we can have them as long as they'll be BBQ
> and bacon? Most of these were pets I guess, but I'm sure these chickens
> will have names if folks are allowed to keep them. I'm sure some will even
> consider them pets.
>
> The Herald Sun came out yesterday with an editorial supporting chickens.
> Their case for chickens was weak at best. But one thing they said struck a
> chord with me that really didn't sound like a positive thing when you
> consider the consequences. Fertilizer, that was a positive thing to them.
> Well, if they had a clue that water runs down hill and ultimately ends up
> in the drinking water supplies we are trying to clean up, then adding
> fertilizer to the mix is exactly opposite of the direction we need to be
> going. The major problems with our drinking water supplies is nitrogen
> loading (as in fertilizer...). So adding more fertilizer to the mix via
> chickens can't be a good thing as they suggest.
>
> Or maybe you read the article in the Durham edition of the N&O this
> weekend. It's the free paper they throw out every weekend over here. It
> had an article written by one of my neighbors who wants chickens. He went
> on about how excited his neighbors were about the idea. I can tell you,
> the feeling is not embraced by very many over here. He went on talking
> about the beautiful colors of the various types of chicken eggs laid by
> various kinds of chickens. What has that to do with anything? I thought
> the purpose was to eat the eggs. And every egg, no mater what color the
> shell seemed to be, when I cracked it open and dumped it in a bowl,
> whipped it with a fork and then poured it in the frying pan, turned out to
> be a shade of yellow. Those green eggs of Dr. Seuss... I've never seen
> them.
>
> You keep hearing that Charlotte, Asheville and other NC cities have
> chickens. Those same cities have those new flashing billboards as well. I
> have to think that what may good for some places in NC, just may not be
> good for the Bull City...
>
> RWP
> 27 Beverly
>
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