Chickens as Pets

We’ve been reading about a recent lawsuit that occurred in the next town over that involved keeping chickens.

You can read the details here: www.niskayunachickens.com/Nisky_Chick_s_Story.html
What we find most intriguing was this section, as described by the owner of said chickens:

“During all the months and through all the appearances, the Town never cited a single Town Code violation. Their stance was it is not possible to have a "pet" chicken. They can only be farm animals, and we are not a farm.”

This is especially interesting to us because although we have had our chickens only for a few months, we consider them our “pets”. Some raise them strictly for eggs or meat, however many consider chickens their pets. We even purchased our chicks from a website called mypetchicken.com!



In defense of chickens as pets I have a few pictures to share. Our ladies are 10 weeks old in these images. Might I point out that these hens voluntarily jump on my lap when I sit in their run and shortly after settling in on my lap they fall asleep there. Also of note is the friendly behavior they exhibit to my overly affectionate 4 year old daughter. Certainly any animal who is willing to snuggle with a 4 year old is worthy of being called a pet!




Lastly, I’d like to just comment on how interesting it is that we are allowed to call just about anything else that is an animal a pet including lizards, turtles, snakes, rabbits, ferrets, etc…
Why is it that when you keep an animal on your property that provides food in return for your care it is no longer considered a pet? And what exactly is the definition of pet?

The owners of the chickens in the previously mentioned article have now created a “Micro-Farming Initiative” in hopes that the town zoning laws might be changed to allow residents to keep chickens. Bravo!

If you live in Niskayuna, would you consider supporting this movement?
See the website for more information: www.niskayunachickens.com