My name is Mike Ancona and I am a Mantua Township resident. More specifically my family and I reside in Buckingham Village Development in Sewell. In 2020 the pandemic hit us hard just as it did so many others. We spent many hours in our back yard just trying to find purpose and projects to keep busy. My wife expanded her garden and I expanded our koi pond. One day while driving, a chicken coop caught our eye which started the conversations about raising a few hens and enjoying our very own fresh eggs. The research took off from there and our backyard chicken obsession began. My wife joined several local chicken groups and took a class on raising them properly. We ordered our nice red coop to match our house. Our property is well maintained and the chickens have only added to our garden area. Long story short, we now are owned by our three hens: Cleo, Stormy and Toasty. 

 

Unfortunately, due to misinterpreting the verbiage of our current ordinance and how it lists livestock we have been contacted by the township office and instructed by our zoning official that chickens are actually not allowed in our zoning district - we are being forced to rehome our 3 girls. This has devastated my wife and son. The girls know their names, recognize us and are as happy to see us as we are near them. To say we are  attached to them would be an understatement and we are struggling to know we don’t have a final say on what we keep in our own backyard. We are hoping to start a positive change in Mantua Twp’s zoning ordinance and allow residents to have pet chickens. We know that there are some people that will be against this. Some of their reasons may be due to misinformation or previous experiences they’ve had with irresponsible pet owners, but everyone shouldn’t be punished  because of one or two bad eggs.

It is important to note that many surrounding towns do allow backyard hens and are just as densely populated as our township. Pitman, Wenonah, Mullica Hill, Runnemede, Voorhees and Haddonfield all allow backyard hens just to name a few.

 Our family has volunteered to work with our town council and code enforcement but we have been dismissed or completely ignored. Some towns have enacted chicken advisory boards which takes the additional micromanaging off of the code enforcer and police officers. 

We desperately need more residents to step up and support the change and be heard. Anyone willing to speak up are encouraged to do so!! 

Please help us keep our pet hens and be allowed to have fresh eggs to feed our children! 

 

Please see below for some myth-conceptions: 

 

Myth 1. Chickens Carry Diseases Communicable to Humans. Fact: The truth is that small flocks have literally no risk of avian flu transmission to humans. With proper hand washing and biosecurity with chicken poop removal there is minimal risk of transmission of any diseases to humans. 

 

Myth 2. Chickens are too Noisy. Fact: Laying hens — at their loudest — have about the same decibel level as human conversation (60 to 70 decibels). Hens are so quiet that there have been cases of family flocks being kept for years without the next door neighbors knowing it.

 

Myth 3. Waste and Odor. Fact: A forty pound dog generates more solid waste than ten chickens. To be more specific, one 40 pound dog generates about 3⁄4 (.75 pounds) of poo every day. Ten chickens generate about two-thirds (.66 pounds) daily poop.

The advantage to chicken manure is that it can be used as valuable, high-nitrogen fertilizer. Unlike dog or cat poop, chicken poo can be combined with yard and leaf waste to create compost. Just as valuable, about 40% of the chicken manure is organic matter which is necessary for building fertile, healthy top soil.

 

Myth 4. Chickens Attract Predators, Pests & Rodents. Fact: Predators and rodents are already living in urban areas. Wild bird feeders, pet food, gardens, bird baths, trash waiting to be collected all attract raccoons, foxes, rodents and flies. Technically, chickens are part of the solution to pesky problems. Chickens are voracious carnivores and will seek and eat just about anything that moves including ticks (think Lymes disease), fleas, mosquitoes, grasshoppers, stink bugs, slugs, fly lanterns, and even voles, mice, baby rats and small snakes.

 

Myth 5. Property Values Will Decrease. Fact: There is not one single documented case that we know of about a next door family flock that has decreased the value of real estate. 

 

Myth 6. Coops are Ugly. Fact: Micro-flock coop designs can be totally charming, upscale and even whimsical. Some of them are architect designed and cost thousands of dollars. Common design features include blending in with the local architectural style, matching the slope of the roof and complementing color schemes.

 

Myth 7. What Will Neighbors Think? Fact: You can’t control what anyone thinks, much less your neighbor. Once folks gain more experience with the advantages and charms of chickens, most prejudice and fear evaporates; especially when you share some of those fresh, heart-healthy, good-for-you eggs from your family flock.

We are asking you to sign our petition and join us in working towards having our town council update the outdated ordinance and allow for keeping a reasonable number of hens and enjoy the many benefits they bring in to our lives and environment! 

Thank you