CLYDE — Village of Clyde councillors hosted a public hearing during their May 13 meeting on a proposed bylaw that would allow residents to keep chickens and other unique pets like pot-bellied pigs and waterfowl on residential properties.
The purpose of the bylaw was to receive public feedback on the Urban Chicken Bylaw, which received first reading on April 8. No further action was taken as councillors wanted more time to consider what was said at the hearing.
The bylaw outlines the conditions that residents must abide by in order to keep chickens, such as applying for a unique pet licence, providing each chicken with at least four square feet of interior floor space within the coop and at least square feet of outdoor space and setting up a nest box for every one to two chickens and a perch for each chicken that is at least six inches long.
Roosters are prohibited under the bylaw and no one may keep chickens for commercial purposes, such as selling their eggs or meat.
The bylaw spells out the conditions for keeping unique pets, such as establishing a suitably sized enclosure that is located in the rear of a fenced property and a minimum of 10 feet from any dwelling and five feet from any lot line.
Up to eight chicken and other unique pet licences may be issued for each residential property, but a person may only keep up to four unique pets.
The bylaw also outlines how its provisions will be enforced, such as giving the village’s peace officer the ability to carry out inspections and request pet-owners to produce their licences.
There were no written submissions on the bylaw and no one signed up to speak in favour or against the bylaw.
However, there was one resident who indicated she had a vacant lot where she would like to keep chickens, as they would help keep the bugs down and provide fertilizer for her garden.
Noting that she would like to keep up to 10 chickens (or however many the bylaw allows), she asked if the village looked at other similar bylaws in other communities.
Chief administrative officer Jaye Parrent said they reviewed several bylaws relating to the keeping of chickens and other unique pets in large and small jurisdictions.
She noted the bylaw is mainly in place to prevent situations like someone keeping 50 chickens in their yard.
“Really, it’s not meant to restrict anybody, but it’s meant to provide some guidance,” Parrent said. “I think council has been really mindful in ensuring that it’s not restrictive.”
When asked about the type of fees being considered by the village, Mayor Charis Logan said they were looking at a fee in the range of $100 per year.
Although the amount of the unique pet licence fee is not specified in the bylaw, a range of fines for various offences are included.
For instance, if a chicken or unique pet is found at large, the fine is $100 for the first offence and $250 for each subsequent offence.
The keeping of a prohibited rooster also nets a $250 fine the first time and $1,000 for each subsequent offence.
