I know that this letter is a bit of an expose on urban chicken keepers, and so I apologize in advance; however, I feel that I need to tell a story. I have been keeping two hens in my yard for 5 months, with the intent of collecting fresh organic eggs for my household, as well as for the creation of high quality fertilizer. These hens, which for all intents and purposes are completely silent and nearly invisible, were allowed to roam in the yard during the day, and were penned up in a secure shelter at night. I live in Pinewood, right against Cranbrook Hill, and in the five months that I have kept a couple of hens, I have never had any issues with the resident bears, foxes, or numerous coyotes in the wooded area to the west of me. Today I came home to find one my chickens dead on my front lawn, killed by an ignorant dog owner who decided to let the dog off of the leash. The argument could be made that I should have kept my hens penned up at all times; however, I would argue that of dogs and chickens, only one of those species is capable of killing and maiming, and deserving of a restraint. The worst part is that the dog owner left no note or any sign of taking any responsibility, and now my household has lost one of its members.
Urban chicken keeping has been adopted in many places in North America (New York, Vancouver, Seattle, to name a few) as part of the local sustainable food movement, and I hope that one day the ignorance of a few will diminish to the point that it can be adopted here in town.
Daniel Abraham
Prince George
