Coeur d'Alene man hopes to get his ducks in a row.

COEUR d’ALENE — “Why not ducks?” 

That’s what Aaron Fletcher said before buying some ducklings in May to keep in his backyard, to eventually produce eggs and provide lessons about the food chain and personal responsibility for his children.

“I love duck eggs,” he said. 

But not everyone does. 

Three weeks ago, an animal control officer with the city of Coeur d’Alene knocked on the Fletchers’ door.  

“We heard you have ducks,” Fletcher recalls the officer telling him. “You have to get rid of them. Ducks aren’t allowed in Coeur d’Alene.” 

Fletcher was surprised. He had bought them at North 40 Outfitters, about a mile from home and assumed it was fine. 

Nope. Chickens are OK. Not ducks.

“I didn’t even think about checking the city ordinances,” he said Friday. 

Fletcher questioned the difference between ducks and chickens. 

“They’re not hurting anybody. They’re not loud like roosters,” Fletcher said. “I don’t understand why chickens are allowed but ducks aren’t."

City code on the matter reads, “It shall be unlawful for any person to own, keep, or maintain any domestic livestock or fowl within the limits of Coeur d'Alene," except chickens. 

“If they’re not chickens, you have to get rid of them,” Fletcher was told. 

He decided to fight for his 15 fine feathered friends.

Fletcher collected nearly 50 signatures from residents around his Anne Street home on a petition that said they didn’t object to ducks living in the area. 

Then, he went before the City Council on Tuesday. 

“How do I go about getting an ordinance changed?” he asked. 

Fletcher explained he wanted the ducks to be part of the curriculum on animal conservation for his homeschooled children, and besides, he likes duck eggs, which are higher in protein than chicken eggs. 

“I just want eggs. That’s really what it is. I’m not a big fan of chicken eggs,” he said. 

He said his ducks, a mixture of breeds including Indian Runner, Blue Swedish and Cayuga, are generally healthier and hardier than chickens. An Indian Runner can produce 300 eggs a year, while the Blue Swedish and Cayuga can each produce nearly 200.

The ducks primarily are kept in a pen but are sometimes set loose to roam the backyard to eat bugs and grass. 

Asked if the ducks were noisy, Fletcher said, "Ducks quack. Chickens cluck. All animals make sounds.” 

Friday, his ducks proved his point. One minute they were silent, and the next, a symphony of quacks rose up.

Councilwoman Christie Wood told Fletcher the council did not have the authority to take action that night.

“It takes a while to change an ordinance,” she said. 

Wood said the issue would have to be placed on an agenda and the city would need to do some research on the matter. It would also have to go to the Planning Commission, and the council would need to discuss it. 

“We are unable to give your ducks a stay, not of execution,” Wood said, laughing. “Nobody is trying to execute your ducks."

It could come to the council in October. When Fletcher asked what he should do with his ducks until then, Wood said he needed to go through the proper channels. 

“You need to comply with the ordinance," Wood said. 

“I wish he could keep his ducks,” Councilman Dan Gookin said. 

Alexcia Jordan, general manager and CEO of the North Idaho State Fair, said they could help find a temporary home.

“We have resources. When it comes to animals, we can absolutely help,” she said. 

Fletcher said animal control contacted him Wednesday and said he had two weeks to get rid of the ducks. 

He asked if he could keep them until October, when the council might change the ordinance but was told no.  

Fletcher said Friday he hadn’t yet found someone willing to provide safe haven for his ducks.

What if he can't?

Fletcher paused, then said, “I guess I’ll just eat ‘em.” 

    Ducks waddle around in their pen in the backyard of Aaron Fletcher's Coeur d'Alene home on Friday.