FowlBlog.com

Over the past few years we have occasionally featured stories of the countless cities across the United States which have underwent to process to legalize the practice of raising chickens and other fowl in urban backyards.

It is no secret that the popularity of backyard chickens is surging, as families and hobbyist reap the environmental and economic benefits of domesticated poultry.

One of the latest in this long line of communities seeking to officially condone this practice is Lafayette, Colorado.   Lafayette, a very green conscious and socially minded city near Boulder and Denver, brought the debate before the city Planning Commission this week.  Most likely, the Planning Commission will bring a recommendation before the City Council next month and a proposed amendment allowing backyard chickens will be enacted.

The package of rules and regulations proposed which the Lafayette Planning Commission are relatively common.  The group derived the regulations from the ordinances they saw as most appropriate in the nearby cities of Longmont, Fort Collins, and Boulder.

• Limit of 3 hens per household
• No roosters
• Birds must be sealed in a backyard chicken coop at night
• Birds must have an enclosed 100 sq. foot chicken run
• No slaughtering is allowed in backyards

One rule that many chicken owners may find a bit restrictive is the limit of 3 hens per household.  An average size family which regularly consumes eggs, would most likely still need to purchase eggs with only 3 laying hens.  This is especially true during the winter months, when hens do not lay as much, according to Melissa Held of nearby Longmont.

However, regulators feel the need to restrict the number of hens to deter backyard chicken owners from obtain too many eggs, and potentially selling them – a practice which could be a potential violation of regulations.

The popularity of urban poultry is continuing to rise, and currently does not show signs of slowing down.

Here is a cool story about Joe the Truck and Frank, his pet duck. Joe offers the very insightful tidbit, “As stupid as it sounds, maybe if everyone had a duck in their life, people wouldn’t be so mad at eachother.”

Raising chickens and ducks in one’s backyard is a practice that is undergoing explosive growth in the United States.  Countless people find it to be an engaging hobby, an environmentally healthy pursuit, and a tremendous joy.

Ducks aren't just for the farm. They make great pets and wonderful friends.

This has been dubbed the Backyard Poultry Movement, and it is occasionally at odds with city ordinances and municipal codes.  Officials cite health, odor, and noise concerns.  However, while it may not be feasible to raise fowl on a large scale within city limits, it is certainly possible to keep a small flock for personal purposes, even when in close proximity to neighbors.

There is a trend of legalization of backyard poultry in cities where it was once banned.  Examples of cities where the citizens have successfully overturned ordinances prohibiting backyard poultry include Fort Collins, CO, Madison, WI, and Ann Arbor, MI.  However, this is usually only after a small skirmish between proponents and opponents of the Backyard Poultry Movement.

Such a skirmish is currently taking place in Long Island, NY, where Huntington Station resident Nina Tam and her daughter Ava Post are fighting to keep their ducks on their urban property.  Nina Tam suffers from allergies to chicken eggs, and thus duck eggs serve as a wonderful, healthy alternative.  The family is raising a small number of birds both as pets and for egg production, and they’ve found them to be a tremendous joy.

Here are Nina and Ava's backyard ducks. They appear to have a Pekin, two Black Runners, and a Fawn & White Runner.

Furthermore, the ducks are very quiet and do not disturbed the neighbors.  They are totally fenced in, and do not create a public nuisance.  They even serve as an exciting treat for area children who come observe these entertaining birds.

However, one neighbor has complained and thus the city has sprung into action to have the ducks removed from their property.  There is currently a hearing scheduled for November 5th to move closer to resolving the issue.  Nina Tam and Ava Post have garnered hundreds of signatures on petitions to encourage their city to follow the increasing trend of legalizing backyard poultry.  Also, their story has evoked an outpouring of support from poultry enthusiasts and sympathizers in the form of Tweets and Facebook messages.

Check out the social media efforts related to this story -

• Facebook Group – Help Me Save My Ducks
• Petition to Legalize Backyard Poultry in Huntington Station, NY

Many avid gardeners consider their vegetable and flower patches as more than just hobby level agricultural endeavors.  Rather, one’s garden is a reflection of one’s natural self.  Thus, just as you don’t want to use harmful herbicides and pesticides on a large scale as it is unsustainably damaging to the environment, you likewise do not want to use the same practices in your own garden.

Pesticides are bad for a lot more than pests

How then can you control harmful weeds and pests from destroying your prized herbs, flowers, and vegetables without employing the very practices which you may be opposed to on a large scale?  One innovative solution is to keep ducks in your garden.  That’s right, ducks….quacking, waddling, goofy yet adorable waterfowl.  Ducks will literally take your garden pests and nuisances and convert them to natural fertilizer and eggs (which by the way are suitable for human consumption).

Gardener Amy Grisak of Grit.com wrote a piece on how she received such wonderful help and valuable work from her feathered friends.  She writes -

Ducks will eat just about any pest. Grasshoppers, which can decimate a garden in short order during heavy infestation years, are quickly gobbled up when in reach of a hungry duck and so are Japanese beetles, June bugs, grubs and even mice. Ducks will also chase and catch flies, and root their larvae out of fresh manure and decaying vegetables.

Using ducks as an environmental and low cost gardening and farming aide is nothing new.  Chinese farmers have herded Pekin ducks by the hundreds through their rice paddies for thousands of years.  These avid foragers would seek out and consume any pest or weed they could find, yet leave the more mature rice crop alone.  Furthermore, their droppings would serve as fertilizer for the plants and soil.  A recent episode of The Amazing Race featured a challenge where contestants were to herd large amounts of Pekin ducks, as an homage to this ancient practice.

Ducks are best used in your garden when there aren’t any sprouting seedlings, as they will likely tear up the ground enough and prevent the seedling from taking root.  Ducks should be allowed to forage when the plants are mature enough that they can survive some physical movement and won’t be hurt by some disruption in the soil.  Ducks essentially use their beaks as plows, and will actively seek out even buried pests and weeds.

Also, ducks can serve as a wonderful alternative to a bug zapper. Simply keep a light over their water supply and it will attract countless insects at night, which the ducks will gladly eat out of their water.  Thus, you will have a natural, environmentally sound, and fun alternative to an unsightly blue light and power consuming device.

Which breeds of ducks make the best for this innovative and green gardening solution?  eFowl.com recommends four key types -

• Runner Ducks – these wine bottle shaped ducks are far and away the most active foragers
  

  A type of avid foraging duck, the Black Indian Runner

• Khaki Campbell Ducks – not only are these birds great foragers, they’re also one of the most prolific egg layers of all ducks.
  

  Khaki Campbells are avid foragers and prolific egg-layers

• Cayuga Ducks – these ducks are a medium size, and very popular as pets for their unique iridescent green color, as well as their quiet demeanor.
  

  Cayuga Ducks are great for pets and great for your garden

• Swedish Ducks – who knew Daffy Duck was so helpful in the garden?
  

  Daffy Duck is modeled after a Black Swedish Duck

What are you waiting for?  Get some ducks and take green gardening to a whole new level!

Ducks are only good house pets as long as you can keep them comfortable in a large box or cage. As the ducklings mature to about 6-8 weeks of age, their care demands will change such that they need access to water, will become a bit messier, and will require more space.

Ducks are not meant to live in houses, despite some owner's best efforts.

Generally, we consider the 6-8 week old mark to be “pond ready”, when ducks can be released as primarily yard or pond ducks.  Granted, they’ll still need some type of duck housing, but their domain should move to a more natural environment at this age.

Now there are certainly exceptions to these guidelines as there are for nearly any bit of pet waterfowl care knowledge.  We receive many testimonials of pet duck owners who keep their friends primarily indoors, but most breeders and experts will agree that they need to be more of a yard pet.