Town of Sidney staff are working on a bylaw change to approve backyard hens in the community.
Council directed staff to prepare the bylaw change at the council meeting on Nov. 27.
“The backyard chicken process will come to council at a future meeting,” Sidney Mayor Cliff McNeil-Smith said at the regular meeting on Jan. 8.
Staff are looking into what hen-keeping regulations may be suitable for the town.
“It’s something that we’ve been looking forward to,” said Cherie MacLure, who has been pushing to see backyard hens in Sidney for more than five years. “There definitely could be problems with chickens if they’re not well taken care of, but with a properly written bylaw, then things should run smoothly.”
The Town of Sidney received a petition in 2018 with some 300 signatures in support of backyard hens.
“We had the petition that went around our neighbourhood and we were able to gain 300 signatures in a couple of days,” MacLure said. “Hens give you lovely farm fresh eggs. They’re great gardeners. They keep away grubs, slugs and pests. They help dig up the land before you plant the seeds. It’s important that we learn that food is not something that just sits on the grocery store shelf.”
Roosters would not be allowed and staff are considering regulations for hen-keeping structures including maximum heights and areas.
“We shouldn’t have backyard hens here in Sydney when we live so close together with the noise, the rats and all of that,” said Sidney resident Freda Poplar.
“You’re going to hear those chickens all day. I’m against it for a lot of reasons. If we were on farmland or something like that, then I would have no problem with it. I wouldn’t be against it if you had an acre or half an acre.”
Previous councils said conflicts over odours, the potential for backyard animals to attract rats and the town’s small lot sizes were some of the reasons having backyard hens has been prohibited.
“You get all sorts of problems with smell,” Poplar added. “Chickens smell and they’re not necessary. It’s fine to say that the owner is gonna keep it clean, but when you have problems, good luck trying to get the municipality to sanction to have it cleaned up.”
A staff report sent to committee of the whole on Nov. 20 outlined some recommendations for council’s consideration. The regulations would limit which properties would be eligible for hen-keeping based on size and whether there is sufficient room in the backyard for a suitable enclosure without being right beside the neighbouring properties, windows or building entrances.
“I can guarantee you whoever lives next to a chicken coop, their housing value is going to be affected,” said Poplar, who was a real estate professional for 35 years before retiring.
“It’s absolutely inviting trouble with the neighbours. In my own experience, people have had to sell their houses because the neighbour just got totally out of control.”
Staff have held meetings with Capital Regional District (CRD) Animal Control, Victoria Animal Control Services and various staff from other municipalities in the region. The staff from other municipalities in the CRD that have permitted backyard hens did not indicate that there had been a marked increase in rat populations from the hens.
“They are not going to attract more rats,” MacLure added. They are already in our community. Most people don’t see them because they come out at night.”
According to Sidney staff, one of the animal control professionals said the main attractant of rats is typically the hen’s food, but this can be mitigated by ensuring that food is stored securely in proper containers.
“We will just need to keep their food inside a Tupperware bin where rats can’t get in,” MacLure said. “It’s a good idea to keep the food in the coop with the chicken and not leave scraps everywhere for rats to come in.”
