Chickens are as American as can be. All our founding fathers had chickens. Raised in small numbers they are clean, healthy and a harmless, positive activity for kids, families, and communities. They are quieter than a dog and help families bring homegrown naturally raised food into their kitchens free of inhumane factory farming that uses antibiotics and hormones.
Stand up for healthy living and a basic American right. The right to grow your own sources of food. As Government gets involved in what you raise and eat, they enter your diet considerations in a big way. They also are telling you that they know better than you do how to eat healthy and clean food, and also that they are more informed than citizens about birds and food safety. They are not. In fact, they often know very little and are woefully incompetent at keeping you and your family safe and healthy.
Here is a picture of our chicken MeiMei, ("Sister" in Mandarin). She couldn't be more different than a chicken raised in a dark warehouse with masses of others crawling all over her. MeiMei is clean. Her eggs are better too.
Stand up for healthy living and a basic American right. The right to grow your own sources of food. As Government gets involved in what you raise and eat, they enter your diet considerations in a big way. They also are telling you that they know better than you do how to eat healthy and clean food, and also that they are more informed than citizens about birds and food safety. They are not. In fact, they often know very little and are woefully incompetent at keeping you and your family safe and healthy.
Here is a picture of our chicken MeiMei, ("Sister" in Mandarin). She couldn't be more different than a chicken raised in a dark warehouse with masses of others crawling all over her. MeiMei is clean. Her eggs are better too.
It floors me that chickens are not OK but you can have an obnoxious dog pooping all over the yard and no one says something. 40 chickens would be too many, but 4 is not a problem.
ReplyDeleteI say stand your ground!
I would love to help change the CL ordinance on this. Do you have any plans on actually pushing for an ordinance change?
ReplyDeleteMei Mei is very beautiful! I hope she can return home soon.
ReplyDeleteI just read the article in the paper and I never realized that chickens were not allowed. I live by the Walkup Heritage Farm which has chickens, goats, turkeys etc. I know that farm is grandfathered in but Michael Walkup might be a good person to help you with getting this ordinance changed. I believe he used to be an attorney before he took over the family farm.
ReplyDeleteGood luck with your fight to keep your healthy lifestyle!
Thank you to all for these comments. We finally got the paper and I must say that is a nice photo of my family! We will fight this. Its about quite a bit more than just chickens. Obviously.
ReplyDeleteIts the fourth of July coming up and the parade travels right past our house in Crystal Lake. Let freedom ring! Come visit us at 274 Ash Street and we will have a petition.
Erik Blome
I too would like a few hens on my 1 acre Crystal Lake property so we can enjoy organic, humanely-raised eggs. My neighbors feel the same way. I've talked to someone in city government who said I could go in front of the city board and apply for an extension. But I'd rather see an ordinance change. I cant think of a reason a limited number of hens in a yard is a problem.
ReplyDeleteGood luck. I hope somehow you don't have to give up your pretty hens. I support any efforts in this area!
You should start a Facebook page, also. I agree with your stance and have also wanted to own chickens in our CL yard.
ReplyDeleteOops - just found it! Like the page and spread the word!
ReplyDeleteI too would love to help change the CL ordinance. My husband and I live on two acres in Crystal Lake and still, we're not allowed to have chickens. It really irks me that the application for a variance is $100 with no guarantees. We would love to sign your petition on the 4th. Tis a fitting thing indeed to petition our local government for the right to raise healthy food on our own property. And who knows, we might get really radical and put up a clothes line!
ReplyDeleteThe Gonzalez-Mahr Family
I think Crystal Lake is behind the times! Other cities have amended and they very well could too!
ReplyDeleteChickens seem to be healthier and cleaner than most animals and they provide a protein rich food!
We will be glad to support you! By the way, I live in Cary and now I wonder what their stance is.
What timing....I was just talking to my husband about getting a couple of chickens to take care of the bugs in our garden (and for the eggs too). We live in downtown CL as well (very close to you). I'll stop by on the 4th and sign the petition. Good luck!
ReplyDeleteWe plan on being at the city council meeting. I would like some chickens also. jim
ReplyDeleteI am an unofficial "chicken consultant", helping people set up coops with backyard chickens. I support backyard chicken keeping 100%. I currently keep chickens of my own, and have to rent property in order to do so, as the suburb in which I reside doesn't allow chickens.
ReplyDeleteMy problem with your chickens is this.....when you want milk....will you bring in a cow?? When you want a pork roast will you bring in a pig?? You say you knew there were ordinances but you chose NOT to follow the rules....IF you want to have farm animals on your property...MOVE!!!! I chose living in the city limits for the very ordinances you choose to ignore.
ReplyDeleteMy problem with Anonymous comments is they are a little shady.
ReplyDeleteWe just want hens and feel there is no problem with City Councils deciding to redraw the lines of what is permitted. Obviously, neither do many many other cities and towns. Dogs and Cats are both farm animals. Cats were specifically used as farm animals as a form of rodent control. I am happy that nobody has yet called me a farm animal. But certainly you could if you chose to. ~Erik Blome
Anonymous said this: "My problem with your chickens is this.....when you want milk....will you bring in a cow?? When you want a pork roast will you bring in a pig??" If I can point out the obvious, chickens are different animals than pigs and cows. Your problem is not with chickens, but with the pigs and cows. I don't want pigs and cows in our town either. That is a whole different ball game. They require a lot more land and smell much stronger, thereby being a greater nuisance to neighbors. But don't punish the chickens for this. A few chickens contained and maintained properly (no roosters) would be no more of a nuisance than a neighbors dog or cat. And they have an added benefit of providing cheap, healthy eggs, something even our dogs and cats can't do.
ReplyDeleteNO CHICKENS!! I walked by your home and heard the horrible sound of chickens, thank god I'm not your neighbor! You live in a Crystal Lake subdivision not a farm in Woodstock. Go there if you want to raise your own chickens and get out of my neighborhood! Hippies!
ReplyDeleteYou're either on the bus or off the bus man. Love is a friendship set to music.
ReplyDelete~anonymous.
I walked my dog for 2 years past their house and never knew they had chickens until I heard about it in the news. I guess Anonymous has better ears than I do. My dog didn't even notice. Mr. Anonymous just wants something to complain about. Probably doesn't like dogs either and would probably complain about cold ice cream. Give me Liberty and my chickens!
ReplyDelete“The home belongs to the Blomes, who had moved back to the area from California with their hens. The hens have since been moved to a friend's house in a different town.” Chicago Tribune, July 14, 2011
ReplyDeleteThe chickens didn't live at the house during your walks with your dog!!!!
When did the Blomes move here with their hens? That would tell us if the hens were here during the walks or not. And as far as the person claiming that they heard the "horrible" sounds of chickens. . .when did you take your walks? After the article came out and you knew what to listen for? And as far as I know, they had the chickens removed after the article came out. I've gone past their house before too on walks to the library and never knew that there were chickens there. My mom even has 40 chickens and I have never heard so-called "horrible" chicken noise as bad as you make it sound.
ReplyDeleteAnd did you really have to be mean and say "get out of my neighborhood! Hippies!" I would hate to be your neighbor, because you sound like a grumpy, nasty person. And I'd rather have chickens next door.
Chickens wouldn't be any more of a nuisance than dealing with a neighbor's dog or cat. I have laid awake listening to dogs bark late into the night on really hot nights when we can't shut our windows. I have seen big dogs, a half-pit bull even, running around the neighborhood because. . .well, I don't know why. But I didn't like it with my young children playing outside. When we walk past certain houses, angry aggressive dogs basically try to bust down their fences to try to get out at us. I have had smelly cat and dog poop in my yard, and I don't even have a dog or cat. And I have had a neighbor's cat use my kid's sandbox as a litter box. Which I only realized after I found my toddler playing with kitty poop. And a few contained chickens (no roosters) would be more of a problem than all this?
ReplyDeleteLets talk about ideas and ordinances, not people. This is not a personal issue, it is an issue of City policy that will hopefully soon change for the better. If anyone wants to talk about people or call names please take it elsewhere. Our neighbors on three sides love our chickens and eat the eggs. They have spoken to the local paper too and all have signed our petition to keep a small number of hens. In our case they are heritage hens, which are endangered and keeping them is an excellent thing for the chicken world genetic pool.
ReplyDeleteErik and Charlotte Blome
Erik, you sound like a classy guy. You're right, this is not a personal issue and I shouldn't have said that Anonymous sounded like a grumpy, nasty person and that I'd rather have chickens next door. I actually felt bad about that as soon as I sent it. So, I'm sorry to Anonymous. If you were my neighbor, I'd share the eggs with you and hope that you'd see the benfits in homegrown, fresh eggs. They are a whole different thing than conventional eggs. Trying them when a friend gave me some was what made me realize what I had been missing all this time and how pathetic the conventionally produced eggs taste. "Farm frsh" eggs have a meatiness to them and a full flavor that you don't find in store bought eggs. But this of course would only matter if you like eggs to begin with.
ReplyDeleteI agree fresh eggs are great. Cudos to you all. Though I am very angry to read someone bashing pitbulls in previous post. My pitbull is a fantastic dog perhapes you should not believe all media you hear/read. I thought we love all animals here...
ReplyDelete