CHICKENS: Squabble should be addressed

I am writing this in regard to the article in the Coeur d'Alene Press, on the front page of the Local Section entitled "Woman cries fowl over chicken rule" dated Tuesday, Oct. 19.

The article states that Jennifer Mayberry isn't trying to ruffle feathers. That may or may not be true, but your article also states that Brett Boyer will be discussing this at the next City Council meeting and that the City Council has agreed to consider the proposal to allow chickens on less than an acre of land within the city limits. I spoke with the Rathdrum County Clerk, Melissa Taylor on Tuesday, Oct. 19 and she stated that the City Council did not agree to consider the proposal. They were merely looking at what other cities are doing and weighing the pros and cons and have not at this point decided to put the issue on the Agenda for the Nov. 9 meeting.

I live next door to the Mayberrys and on Oct. 9, her bird (she says chicken, but I thought it was a rooster), jumped the fence into my back yard and chased my dog around (the dog is a Corgy and very small). His barking alerted me that something was not normal. I immediately called my dog in for fear the bird would get the dog or the dog would get the bird. I attempted to alert my neighbors to what was happening, to no avail. I called the police, who said they would send Animal Control to remove the bird, and as I was doing this yet another chicken was about to light over my fence. The Mayberrys' daughter ran in the backyard to stop the bird, I informed her that her rooster/chicken was in the back yard and I was afraid to pick it up cause it was coming after me. She replied that he can be mean, as her mother screamed for her to stop talking to me and go inside.

It wasn't until Animal Control showed up that the situation was resolved. Mrs. Mayberry yelled across the front yard that I only called the police because I knew having chickens in the city limits was illegal. Sounds to me like someone's feathers are ruffled. I have seen her chickens/roosters run around her back yard and jump on her patio table and roam free there for some time. I think that could also be a sanitary issue. Is Mrs. Mayberry really that concerned about the quality, purity and cleanliness of food that she indicates in her statement. Free range chickens can carry worms, mites, flees, all sorts of hazards. Just a word of caution to other neighbors. My house is currently on the market for sale, in fact there are quite a few in my neighborhood and in the surrounding homes. Will this cause an issue for me selling my home, I wonder. The Mayberrys still have the chickens.

DESIREE STRUBLE

Rathdrum