We live in Troy, OH about 3 blocks from the Miami County Courthouse. About 8 months ago my wife and I decided to get 4 urban backyard chickens, after reading several articles about the benefits of backyard chickens in an urban environment, on websites such as www.backyardchickens.com, and deciding that they would make wonderful pets. After looking up the City of Troy ordinances we found it was not illegal to own chickens within the city limits. We got 4, 2 day old chicks from a friend of ours that owns a farm. We started them off inside the house for several weeks, before building them a small backyard area converting a dog house into a chicken house. About 4 weeks ago, to our surprise one of our little “hens” let out a little crow. Several neighbors commented that they loved the sound of him crowing and that it reminded them of when they were on “grandma’s farm.” We quickly started the search for a new safe home for our newly found rooster. Although he was one of our favorite chicks, we knew we didn’t want to bother our neighbors with the sound
of a crowing rooster, although still significantly quieter than most dogs around the neighborhood. Several days later we got a letter from a city official stating that we were in violation of the zoning code and must remove the chickens and coop immediately. Additionally at the top of this letter there was a picture of the coop and chickens which the city worker had to step well within our property and on the side of the house to take the photo around our privacy fence; which in my opinion is a violation of our fourth amendment rights.
Regardless, the law for zoning apparently states “animal husbandry, pasturage, horticulture, floriculture, and necessary accessory uses, including the structures necessary for carrying out farming operations and the residence of the person who owns or operates the farm, and the family thereof.” The letter also included the definition of “animal husbandry” as defined by the Webster’s collegiate dictionary as a branch of agriculture concerned with the production and care of domestic animals.
We responded back that these animals are strictly pets and that, since we no longer have a rooster, it is impossible for us to produce additional animals, which means that we don’t meet the definition of the term animal husbandry, but the city worker refused to budge on the issue stating that we would simply have to pay $150 for the issue to be reviewed by the zoning board for them to make a decision, otherwise they would seek legal action; forcing us to get rid of our pets.
We have talked to several of our neighbors and community members and there has been an out pouring of wide spread support. We have seen everyone want to do everything from legalizing them in residential areas and talking to the city about it, to writing letters, to signing a petition if one is started.
It is unforeseen what will happen to these animals, Lucy and Dottie, at this point. We believe that we will appeal, but at this point, the city is still threatening to take legal action. We feel that this is an excellent story not only because of the community involvement and support that we have seen, but because of the great interest that has surrounded us by it. On an almost daily basis we will see someone that asks “so what is the update on the chickens” or “so I heard that you have a chicken problem.” It also shows the amount of wasted tax dollars to force someone to remove their pets, in an already hurting economy.
