KAWARTHA LAKES-Kawartha Lakes is cluck clucking closer to allowing backyard chickens.
At a Committee of the Whole meeting on Tuesday council voted to direct staff to develop and amend the animal control by-law to remove Chickens as a prohibited animal and to provide additional amendments to allow for Backyard Chickens in certain residential areas for a 2-year trial pilot project. The new bylaw would call for coops to be permitted and allow for up to 50 permits.
“This is great news for residents who wanted to raise their own chickens,” Councillor Kathleen Seymour-Fagan told Kawartha 411 News. “Very happy to have been a part of this extensive process, that was headed up by our manager of bylaw Aaron Sloan”
Seymour-Fagan spearheaded the most recent campaign in favour of backyard chickens.
“Months of public consultation and meetings with all pertinent parties from Humane Society to public health has culminated in an excellent draft bylaw to allow people to raise their own chickens.” stated the councillor.
Aaron Sloan was responsible for researching the issue and writing the staff report. He says permit holders will also be required to register with the province.
“These people that are interested in this are not farmers and yes this is considered to be livestock and why we are limiting numbers is to limit potential exposures,” Sloan stated. Â “Part of that is on the exotic diseases and we are going to require them to register with the province.”
The discussion to allow backyard chickens in residential areas has been brought to Council in the past for consideration and for a few years, residents in the Town of Lindsay were permitted 3 backyard chickens. The regulation was later repealed and replaced with an early version of the current animal control by-law.
In 2019 council received a deputation from Kim Van Demark and Ronnda Singer-Robinson to propose an amendment to the current by-law to regulate animals in the City of Kawartha Lakes to allow for the keeping of backyard chickens.
Backyard or urban chickens (poultry) and urban farming such as community gardens have grown in popularity. With standards for care and conditions, backyard chickens provide a safe source of food that is self-sustaining, local, organic and cost-effective. The COVID-19 pandemic has also created greater food insecurity and has exposed vulnerabilities in the food system, such as temporary egg shortages in the supermarkets and increased meat cost according to City staff.
Staff looked at both the benefits and the risks.
Some of the benefits in allowing backyard chickens in residential areas may include:
- Residents can grow and raise healthy food.
- Chickens provide pest control of bugs such as flies, slugs, ticks andgrasshoppers.
- Chickens will reduce landfill waste by eating food scraps.
- Chickens provide organic fertilizer for gardens.
- Chickens provide opportunity socially and through education to establishconnections with others who seek to understand what is needed to raise the animals in a residential setting.
Backyard Chickens also pose a risk and have potential negative impacts:
- Â Zoonotic disease transfers to humans living in close proximity.
- Â Greater potential to exposure to wild bird populations increasing the risk ofavian disease transfers to society-sustaining agricultural flocks.
- Â Manure and deadstock disposal challenges.
- Â Odour and noise conflicts with nearby urban neighbours.Municipalities in Ontario regulate Backyard Chickens by using regulations created under the Municipal Act for issues of animal control and licensing, and the Planning Act such as a zoning by-law
Starting September 17, 2020 staff conducted a Backyard Chickens Survey using Jump In Kawartha Lakes website.
The survey page was viewed 1236 times and staff received 536 completed survey responses. The majority of the survey participants were in the following two age groups: 25-44 and 45-64. Over 80% of the survey participants responded in favour of back yard chickens in residential areas, however of those surveyed even within the supportive responses concerns were noted. The health unit says risks can be address by the following protocols:
- Regular handwashing with soap and water
- Use of dedicated clothing and footwear
- Refrain from snuggling live poultry – touching with mouth or eating anddrinking in the area of the poultry
- Remove wet manure, bedding and dispose
- Sanitize equipment
- Store feed in rodent-proof containers
- Seek veterinary help in case of illness
- Prevent contact with wild birds
- Do not bring poultry into the house
- Ensure proper disposal of dead poultry
- No home slaughter
Toronto, Newmarket and Orillia are among a number of municipalities that allow backyard chickens. Ajax, Whitby and Bracebridge prohibit them.
“With this pandemic, food insecurity has become an issue, Â am glad we are able to offer our residents some food security for the future,” Seymour-Fagan said.The issue will now come to full council for approval. Sloan will finish writing the bylaw for completion in the second quarter of the year.
