I am writing a letter to the editor regarding my frustration with the urban hen situation in Innisfail. I am the proud owner of four hens that reside at my sister's acreage outside of Innisfail.
I would love to be able to bring my pet hens home. I’m not sure why a farming community such as Innisfail has objections to its residents having hens in town.
Being around my hens brings me great joy; it is almost therapeutic to watch them interact with me and each other. Hens are quite entertaining and can give you a sense of well-being just watching them.
Many people would say hens are noisy, stinky barnyard animals. I would like to say that on average hens are relatively quiet animals, usually tucked into bed by the time the sun goes down.
They will cluck and possibly cackle, but this is usually upon laying an egg, which is usually laid in the early part of the day. In town I would say that the average dog is much louder and makes more waste then hens. Just like most other pets if not taken care of properly, a chicken coop could become stinky, but with regular cleaning, odours from chicken coops are not an issue. Plus the manure produced by chickens can be added to your compost to make fertilizer for your gardens.
A number of towns and cities in Alberta that are not farming communities are allowing urban hen projects. To name a few: Edmonton, our province's capital, allows three to six hens, Red Deer allows four hens, and Lacombe and Airdrie both allow four. Camrose is proposing an urban hen project and I believe Grande Prairie is in the process of implementing an urban hen project, or has already implemented one. This list may have changed, but I believe it to be correct.
I would appreciate the opportunity to have my hens in town and am showing my support to get the bylaw changed to reflect this.
Linda Braun
Innisfail
