ferndale ordinance | Ferndale Chickens

Feather Pickin’ Chicken, Pt2

Posted on February 1, 2013 by LauraMikulski

The Jerk is at it again. She’s even pecking me, hard, on the leg while I’m out in the run cleaning.

I’ve put cat toys out there; cabbages; low-energy treats like greens, squash, etc; a tennis ball; as well as letting them out more often, even though the Jerk doesn’t WANT to go out, because her feet get too cold. None of that was stopping her from picking at BB and Dumptruck.

So, the Jerk is now isolated. On the advice of other chicken owners, I’ve removed her from the flock and placed her in a dog crate in the basement- this’ll give the other two a little time to heal, and rearrange the pecking order a bit. Hopefully by shaking things up I’ll get her to stop long enough to get them through winter; in spring, they’ll have much more outside time and be less likely to have this issue.

The heroes of the day are Ben, for helping me set up the isolation pen and restraining the ladies with injuries so that I could properly coat them with Blu-Kote; the other hero is Blu-Kote, which is amazing in it’s ability to mask the blood to stop the picking, as well as being antiseptic.

The full gallery of injuries can be viewed here on imgur- the picture file sizes were way too big for my poor blog to handle.

Have you experienced this? What did you do to fix the problem? I’d love to add to my list of suggestions.

List of advice I’ve been given:

-picked up the Jerk and hold her while the others run around and have a good time, to shake up the pecking order a bit

-check their protein level in the food. When they don’t get adequate protein, they’ll eat feathers (saw this during their molt). This is definitely not a nutritional deficiency, since she wasn’t even eating the feathers- she was pulling them out and spitting them onto the ground.

-give them all low-calorie veggie treats to keep them occupied but not give them extra energy

-Let them free range (not possible in the city, and their outside time is limited due to the extremely cold weather anyway

-Provide entertainment. I’ve used an automatic laser pointer cat toy, tennis balls, a treat dispenser, dangling toys, a hanging cabbage, etc. No change in behavior.

-isolate the Jerk to rearrange the pecking order and let the others heal.

400 fans!

Posted on January 25, 2013 by LauraMikulski

We just passed 400 fans on the Ferndale Backyard Chickens facebook fan page! What a great thing to come in and see after cleaning out chicken poo from the coop run.

1 year down, many more to go!

Posted on January 11, 2013May 2, 2013 by LauraMikulski

2ndyearcooprenewal — First and second year coop licenses/inspection approvals

Second year coop license! Coop license renewal went well, and the hens behaved themselves in front of the city inspector.

While the inspector was out, we showed him our water heater (a cookie tin with a light bulb in it), explained why we have plastic wrapped around the run (wind break during cold, snowy spells), and explained why the hens weren’t laying (not enough daylight hours).

While he was out, he mentioned that we were the first coop to fill out renewal papers and be inspected. In case any Ferndalians read this, just a reminder: your coop license expires Dec 31 every year, no matter when you got approved. The renewal process is very straight forward: fill out your packet of information just as you did when you originally registered, minus the coop drawings, and take it back to the city clerks office with your check for $35. Bingo, bammo, done deal. You can schedule your inspection at that time as well, which is what I did- I wanted it done and over with as soon as possible.

The inspector mentioned there are a few other homes in Ferndale now with registered coops… I’m really interested in contacting the other registered coop owners to see if they’d be interested in planning a coop tour in spring. Something informational, with handouts on chicken keeping at every coop- might be a nice way to get more people registered and on board with it.

I also started a Facebook page, just to make it easier to get the word out about Ferndale chicken issues: http://www.facebook.com/FerndaleBackyardChickens

as well as a google+ page to help us gain some more visibility:

https://plus.google.com/b/103161687709305818453/103161687709305818453/posts

Here’s hoping 2013 will be a great year!

Coverage of Ferndale’s First Legal Coop- Ferndale 115

Posted on May 21, 2012January 19, 2013 by LauraMikulski

Source: http://ferndale115.com/nuevo/2012/05/18/ferndales-first-legal-chicken-coop/

Ferndale’s First (Legal) Chicken Coop

(Crystal A. Proxmire, The Ferndale 115 News, May 15th, 2012 edition)

Big Bossy, Little Bossy and Little Girl seem happy. The six week old Buff Orpingtons strut around their sandy front yard, playing like sister chickens do: nudging, pecking, cuddling, running, rolling around in the sand and darting back up the wooden ramp to their luxury penthouse, aka Ferndale’s first legal chicken coop.

Laura Mikulski was the organizer of the Ferndale backyard chicken movement. After meeting other suburban families that keep backyard chickens, Mikulski wanted to bring the option to Ferndale. She researched backyard chickens and lobbied City Council to pass an ordinance allowing them.

After several months of research and consideration, theFerndale City Council approved an ordinance that allows individuals to have a chicken coop on their property as long as they follow certain rules. Homeowners are limited to three hens. Roosters are not allowed.

The requirements of the ordinance are:

“As structured the ordinance would allow for the raising and keeping of three (3) hen chickens and no roosters. Residents would be required to receive an annual permit which would expire on December 31st of each year. Any applicant receiving a permit is required to schedule an inspection within 30 days of the permit issuance, if violations are noted at the inspection the applicant has 15 additional days to resolve the identified issues. Chickens are required to be kept in the rear yard, structures (coops) must be designed to prevent accessibility to vermin, feed must be secured in enclosed containers and compliance with the Michigan Department of Agriculture Generally Accepted Agricultural and Management Practices for the Care of Farm Animals (GAMPS) must be maintained.”

Mikulski believes in following the law, so she waited until the process was complete. She and boyfriend Ben Wojdyla then made the plans. With approximately $500 plus many reclaimed items, the chicken family’s new home took about two months to build

The entire coop area is surrounded with wire mesh that is tight enough to keep out rats and other predators. The coop is topped with polycarbonate sheeting reclaimed from another project. There is a door so people can enter, but there is also access to tend the chickens from the outside: a lever allows them to open and close the door at the top of the ramp to the chicken’s house, and a long top-opening door lets them access any eggs that may have been laid in the nesting area. The door has a magnetic top so it will stay open while they harvest the eggs. To best utilize the space and help provide a layer of shade to the roof of the coop, Mikulski and Wojdyla created a strawberry bed on top.

The doors to the chicks’ house are stained glass cabinet doors, and the siding is made of slats reclaimed from pallets. Everything is decorated to match the home and garage, an aesthetic fit with the rest of the backyard’s landscaped splendor.

On May 15th the couple had their inspection. “Basically, the inspection centered around the coop being structurally sound,” Mikulski said in her blog www.ferndalechickens.com. “He checked the roofing to make sure it was secure, and the fencing and nesting box door hinges. He asked what we’ll do in the winter, and I told him I’m firmly against heating the coop- the chickens I have will grow to be big girls, and they’ll essentially be wearing down coats. He seemed pleased with that, since there had been an incident several years ago involved a wire shorting out on a coop in Ferndale- my worst fear.

“The permit expires on December 31st every year, so I’ll need to go into the city and schedule another inspection and pay my fee in early December. I figure I’ll just do it around the same time I renew my car registration.”

Her advice to people who want to build a coop: “Draw the plan first, but be flexible in building. Consider drainage and ventilation- chickens need to be dry. Build everything at a height that is comfortable for you to work in/with. Be mindful of cleaning issues and form a plan that allows you to clean with ease.”

Finding the chickens wasn’t hard, Mikulski just looked on Craigslist. When she got them back in February she kept them in inside the house until the coop was complete. “When they’re done growing they’re going to be big birds,” she said, noting that she specifically sought out Buff Orpington chicks because of their mild-manner and their heftiness once grown.

“The ladies won’t lay eggs for a while, and when they start it might take a while before the eggs come out fully developed. Sometimes they come out without a shell. Sometimes they’re just tiny. Sometimes there could be ‘fart eggs,’ which are eggs without a yolk inside.” Once they girls do mature though, they will likely lay about one egg per day.

“I just love being able to come out here and watch them. It’s so peaceful. The littlest things make them so happy,” Mikulski said. Big Bossy, Little Bossy and Little Girl enjoy eating seed and leafy veggies. They also love rolling around in the sand and dirt. They even get along well with the family dog Hurley. “He’s never seemed bothered by them in the least,” Mikulski said.

For much more information on backyard chickens, check out www.ferndalechickens.com.

For official City of Ferndale ordinance information and more, go to www.ferndale-mi.com.

For stories of how this all came to be, check out:

http://ferndale115.com/nuevo/2011/04/20/chicken-coops-in-ferndale/

http://ferndale115.com/nuevo/2011/05/12/the-chicken-petition/

http://ferndale115.com/nuevo/2011/09/15/council-to-vote-on-chicken-coops

http://ferndale115.com/nuevo/2012/01/07/chicken-coop-ordinance-to-be-considered-by-council-monday/

http://ferndale115.com/nuevo/2012/01/15/new-rules-allow-for-backyard-chickens/

Chicken Coop Site Map & Structural Plan

Posted on May 21, 2012January 19, 2013 by LauraMikulski

As part of our ordinance, we had to submit a site map and structural drawing for the chicken coop. Ben put his engineering background to good use and put together these:

Site Map/ Site Plan

Chicken Coop Plans2 — Click for full size version. Site map/site plan: shows property lines and positions of all permanent structures. Basically a copy of my “platt map”, which I received when I purchased my home- you can get a copy from the city offices. Obviously we had to add the location/dimensions of the coop.

Structural Drawing

Chicken Coop Plans1 — Click for full size version. Structural drawing: shows the dimensions of the coop from overhead, the side, and the front. Also a detailed drawing of the footer we used, and materials listing. Everything must be drawing to scale.

Please be aware that everything must be to scale when submitting to the city of Ferndale, just like you’d have with a building plan for a home or garage. It’s not too difficult, but is certainly intimidating if you’ve never done it before.

MYTH: Chickens stink!

Posted on May 18, 2012January 19, 2013 by LauraMikulski

P1040615 — they may give you the stink eye, but they don’t actually stink

The fear of odor problems caused by backyard chickens is unwarranted. Chickens themselves do not smell- only their feces that have the potential to stink, which is also true of feces from dogs, cats, or any other animal that leaves waste in the yard. But unlike dogs and cats, who leave waste on the lawns of their neighbors or in public places, chicken waste in an urban setting is confined to the coop & run, due to ordinances disallowing them to free range.

It’s also important to realize that the maximum number of chickens a city allows is just four. Four small hens weigh less than 20 pounds collectively, and generate less waste than one average dog. (In Ferndale, we currently only allow 3 hens.)

Furthermore, chicken manure is a highly valued fertilizer that can be used in the garden, whereas waste from dogs and cats cannot because of the parasites and human diseases it can harbor. According to Dr. Hermes, OSU Extension Poultry Specialist, “Once added to the compost or tilled into the soil, the odor-causing compounds are no longer able to cause objectionable odors.” This statement is an exact quote taken from his letter in support of chickens in Salem, OR. http://www.salemchickens.com/

The reason people fear an odor problem is because their only experience with chickens (if they have any at all), is a farm or commercial poultry operation. In these situations, chickens are viewed as a commodity and are raised with the intention of profit from meat or egg production. Under those circumstances, hundreds, if not thousands, of chickens are often kept in crowded conditions with poor ventilation or regular cleaning. As a result, ammonia can build up and these facilities can stink. In contrast, people who want to raise hens as pets in the city are not looking to make a profit: they want eggs laid by healthy, happy chickens that they treat like pets. A few small birds housed at least 10’ from adjacent dwellings and in close proximity to the owner’s home, are extremely unlikely to create an odor problem for neighbors.

Composting chicken manure is a wonderful bonus to keeping chickens- the high nitrogen content of their manure breaks down high carbon items quickly and efficiently (sometimes almost too quickly, see blog: http://backyardfeast.wordpress.com/2011/05/09/composting-chicken-manure-watch-the-heat/) Adding the manure to compost eliminates any smell associated with the manure.

Additionally, there are steps urban chicken keepers can take to reduce the chances of odors even further: use a deep litter method of bedding, or use sand. I prefer the sand method in my run, where the chickens spend most of their day- it wicks moisture away, eliminating odor and the attraction of flies, drying out the manure in the same way cat litter does. I clean the run and coop once per day, throwing the waste into my composter; the only thing you can smell in my chicken run is their pine bedding and the flowers in the surrounding garden. With proper practices, no small scale chicken coop should EVER smell strongly enough that neighbors would notice.

MYTH: Chickens are noisy.

Posted on May 18, 2012January 19, 2013 by LauraMikulski

Only roosters crow loudly, not hens. Hens never crow and are generally quiet animals, with the exception of announcing the arrival of a freshly hatched egg. This sound is short-lived, never occurs at night, lasts only a few minutes and takes place once every 24 to 36 hours. Some hens are more vocal than others, depending on the breed, but there is no comparing the sound of a cackling hen to dogs that can bark all night long, power tools, lawn mowers, motorcycles, car alarms, trains, and the myriad of other loud noises frequently heard in the neighborhood.

decibel — chickens are *definitely* quieter than dogs

Please note that the 70dB is the potential level of sound energy, but that it would be a rare sound measured very close to the chicken (2ft). The inverse distance law predicts that at ten times the distance (20ft), the sound pressure would drop a tenth, equivalent to a decibel drop of 20dB. That means that for a chicken making a 70dB sound in it’s outdoor enclosure, their neighbor will experience it as 50dB’s- roughly equivalent to a quiet conversation at home. Noise is even further reduced if the chicken makes a sound within their laying coop rather than the outdoor enclosure.

I invite you to watch and listen to my 3 pullets at 9 weeks old- they’re just getting their “big girl” voices, and you can hear a sample of a “bawk” in the video below. Bonus: they look hilarious.

Chicks on a sunny day.

We’re legal!

Posted on May 16, 2012May 21, 2012 by LauraMikulski

Yesterday, the city inspector walked into the backyard saying “This should only take about 2 seconds, I’ve seen the paperwork you submitted”.

P1040832 — who wouldn’t approve this thing?

Basically, the inspection centered around the coop being structurally sound. He checked the roofing to make sure it was secure, and the fencing and nesting box door hinges. He asked what we’ll do in the winter, and I told him I’m firmly against heating the coop- the chickens I have will grow to be big girls, and they’ll essentially be wearing down coats. He seemed pleased with that, since there had been an incident several years ago involved a wire shorting out on a coop in Ferndale- my worst fear.

The permit expires on December 31st every year, so I’ll need to go into the city and schedule another inspection and pay my fee in early December. I figure I’ll just do it around the same time I renew my car registration.

The chickens aren’t very impressed with this latest turn of events, but they did run off with the building inspection sticker we received.

P1040873 — if it’s in my hands, it might be food, right?

P1040878 — see that beak? somebody snatched the approved sticker from my hand a second later.

After all is said and done, the chickens are happy, I’m happy, and my neighbors are happy. Everyone seems to like the coop, and they get a kick out of the girls antics- or lack thereof, since the ladies have been lounging a lot in their beachy coop.

The countdown begins.

Posted on May 14, 2012 by LauraMikulski

Just over 24 hours until the coop gets inspected! I’m nervous and excited.

We put some finishing touches on the coop over the weekend- lots of paint, installing the brackets for the polycarbonate roof, installing a door handle, etc. There are still some more things I’d like to do, but I’ll wait until after we get approval from the city inspector.

finished! — The coop is ready for inspection!

The green roof is prepped with dirt, and waiting for strawberries to be planted. Can you believe I haven’t been able to find strawberries at any of the nurseries this year? I had to break down and order some online.

P1040808 — Nice mix of garden and potting soil

We also put a latch on the inside of the run door, after in incident where the chickens were spooked and bumped into the door. The door only stayed open for a second, but that’s long enough that if there was a dog running around the coop, they might have the opportunity to race inside. Obviously I can’t let that happen, so my failsafe is now installed, for use when I’m in the run.

P1040818 — latch on the inside of the run door

We put some hanging planters from Ikea in the run, just for a decorative touch. I absolutely love it- the hint of extra greenery really adds to the overall appearance.

P1040814 — the chickens don’t really care about hanging planters

We painted everything to match the house and garage, so the coop seems to “belong” there.

P1040803 — the coop and the garage look good together

P1040806 — another view of the garage and coop

The lever for the chicken door is on the outside- in the future, we’re hoping to install an automated or remoted controlled door.

P1040810 — the rod sticking out with the black handle is the push/pull door control

Door hardware matches on the run door and the nesting box lid. We also added a magnet to the window cover on the back of the coop, so that the window can stay open.

P1040811 — black handle and hinges on the door

P1040807 — black handle on the nesting box, magnet keeping the window cover open

All in all, it was a ton of work this weekend. Painting the trim in the places where the 1/2 hardware cloth is attached was a pain, and took a long time to get all the nooks and cranies filled. I also went over all the “vulnerable points” after hearing something walking around the garage one night when I went to close the girls in- we used horseshoe nails to ensure that the hardware cloth is attached in every place that a predator might seek access, mainly as reinforcement to the staples we had previously used. The pavers seen around the coop are in their position temporaily, as I’ll be leveling them and making some paths through the garden in the future. At the end of the day Sunday, we were exhausted and ready to just sit down and admire the finished product.

P1040824 — Hurley likes to think she helped.

P1040826 — Hurley helps by watching the chickens enjoy their pretty new coop. Good job Hurley!

To all the people who said they wouldn’t want to live next to someone with backyard hens- is this what you pictured?

What a hard life!

Posted on May 8, 2012 by LauraMikulski

The girls are enjoying a nice warm day, perched on the edge of their coop window. I’m pretty jealous of them.

Today is the big day- we’re turning in the building permit and fees associated for the coop license. Keep you fingers crossed- I’m hoping the inspector will be able to come out in the next few days to check it out and give his blessing.

Chicks dig dirt.

Posted on May 2, 2012 by LauraMikulski

The chicks are enjoying a nice dust bath in the shade on this steamy spring day.

These girls are the fat orange cats of the chicken world, and as such are already getting a little spoiled. They come running at the sight of me in the backyard, not out of affection, but because I usually have a delicious treat. Lately it’s been dandelion greens, broccoli leaves, strawberries, and a tiny piece of ham. I think they nearly lost their little chicken minds over that piece of ham.

P1040720 — Once Big Bossy gets a bite, everyone moves in for some, now that they know it’s safe.

The girls are getting bigger every day, and looking more and more like real chickens. I think I may have even heard a cluck last night as I was closing them into their coop.

P1040734 — Chickens have inscrutable faces- the only way to tell if they’re angry is body language, since their faces have a permanent frown.

Ferndale Chicken Coop Paperwork: where to get it, how to fill it out

Posted on April 30, 2012 by LauraMikulski

The city has put together a nice bundle of paperwork for the backyard coop permitting/inspection process. I’ve taken pics of the sheets from the bundle for any prospective chicken owner to peruse before putting together their coop:

The building permit needs to be filled out, much like you would if you were building a shed.

In addition to filling out the building permit and chicken coop application, they require a basic site plan indicating that the location of the coop meets the dimensional requirements and a plan for the coop’s construction demonstrating that the material requirements are being met. The fee for the permit is $35 annually, and is paid when you submit your application to the city. You can schedule your coop inspection at the same time. The permit and application are available at City Hall, which is also where you turn in the completed paperwork.

Putting together my site plan tonight, and should be able to turn in the completed paperwork tomorrow. Can’t wait to have everything done and legal!