Cambridge resident wants city to allow backyard chickens

Jen Beattie is petitioning the City of Cambridge to allow residents to have backyard chickens so that she can teach her two young daughters about where their food comes from. 

Currently, her family keeps their chickens on her grandparents' farm, just outside the township of North Dumfries.

"It's nice that they're 10 minutes away, but it would be a lot more convenient if they were just in our backyard," Beattie said.

Beattie and her husband Nick Dautovich have an extensive vegetable garden each summer, and Beattie said she would like to have a source of protein – chicken eggs – in her backyard, too.

Bylaw prohibits backyard chickens

Cambridge's animal control bylaw says poultry and fowl are not permitted on properties within city limits unless the land is zoned for agriculture, open space, industrial or rural residential.

Cambridge officials say the city is reviewing the animal control bylaw, specifically the part regarding backyard chickens.

In Guelph, Beattie pointed out, chickens, ducks, geese and pigeons are allowed if they are kept in pens.

Beattie started an online petition, asking the city to consider changing its mind about chickens. She's hoping a large response will demonstrate pent-up demand. 

"It sort of started as me calling the city and saying, 'What's the status of the bylaw and can we get it reviewed?'" she said.

Because of the petition, Beattie says she's hearing from "all sorts of people", including those who have had chickens before, people who have them now, and people who have moved from another city where they were permitted to have chickens.

Noise, smell and coyotes

Those who do not want chickens often don't want to deal with the noise or the smell, or they are afraid that the chickens might attract predators like coyotes. 

"In terms of smell and noise, they're actually very clean creatures and not very loud. I think the loudest they get is 60 or 70 decibels, which is a human conversation," Beattie said.

The coyote issue, she added, "is a fair concern."

"But I also believe that if a chicken coop and run is properly enclosed, they're not going to encourage [coyotes] more than a small backyard dog," she said. "I also think we can't not expect coyotes in town when urban sprawl keeps on moving on."

Educational aspect

Beattie said her daughters love to feed the chickens and find them amusing.

"They love them. They love to be involved. They like to go and see how many eggs they laid overnight and wonder why they might have laid more eggs or less eggs," she said.

"It breeds compassion for something that isn't a dog or a cat or something fuzzy."

Kitchener chickens on hold

Kitchener is currently reviewing it's bylaw regarding backyard chickens after a resident was forced to give up her four chickens last July.

Victoria Raab, director of corporate communications for the city, said staff are planning community consultations on the topic before taking any recommendations to council.