We moved to Morristown with our infant son this past October with the hopes of living a simple and private life.  Earlier this year when the pandemic was just getting started, we decided to raise chickens in our backyard.  We spoke to our neighbors on either side of our house before we did anything, and they were on board.  Through the grapevine, we spoke to other neighbors and no one had any issues with it at all, and loved the idea.  Everything was GREAT until someone called animal control on us.  We were visited by animal control, and were told we were in violation of one of the town ordinances, which is that the coop is less than 50 feet from surrounding property lines.  We have a very small yard, as do all the other houses in our neighborhood, so there's nothing we can do about that particular rule as it stands.  We have a few weeks until animal control returns, and we'll either have to re home the chickens or face a summons. 

Here's the plan - in the next few weeks, we are going to go door to door to get signatures of our neighbors saying they have no issue with the chickens.  I will also be going to city council meetings to petition them to update the ordinance to say a coop must be no less than 25 feet from a neighboring dwelling, rather than property line, that way more residents in Morristown could own chickens.  There has been a lot of research put into that number, and a properly kept coop will not be a source of noise or odor complaints.  I would also encourage the town to charge a license fee similar to a dog or cat, inspections of the coop/pen, and even the possibility of creating a chicken 'class' that would educate people interested in raising chickens so they'd have a better understanding of the commitment needed.  We could even go so far as to have volunteers work along side animal control so that in the event a complaint comes in about chickens, they would be able to provide information on how to fix the problem, rather than just saying "you have two weeks to fix it, or else". 

We keep better care of our chickens than a lot of people care for their cat or dog.  They are much quieter than the birds people feed in their yards, they are vaccinated, and the coop is kept extremely clean.  Over the past week and a half, I have been feverishly networking and researching what other towns have been doing in the state as far as their chicken laws.  I have made amazing connections with people who have been working on these issues for years, and we have been given a lot of relevant information.  Most people's concerns come from lack of information about chickens, because to be fair, not many people around here have spent time around them.  They are not 'filthy and disease ridden' barnyard animals! 

In a nutshell, food is being taken off my table, as well as the tables of all our neighbors as we plan on sharing the wealth.  Our son gets such pure joy out of being near the birds, and caring for them is a wonderful way of breaking up the insanity of being stuck in the house with a quarantine still lingering.  Teaching our son responsibility and kindness from a young age through taking care of the chickens will be an incredible experience for the whole family.  Not to mention the horrible conditions meat and layer chickens are kept in - we now would know exactly where our eggs will come from, exactly what the hens are eating, and the conditions they are kept in.  We need your help with as many signatures as possible to bring to city council to show we have support not only from our neighbors, but everyone.  Many towns in New Jersey have loosened their rules regarding chickens, and it's time Morristown catches up.  It's 2020, and I now find myself having to fight to keep my chickens, of all things.  We are just trying to do our part to be a bit more self sufficient, as well as give back to the community.  If you've ever spent time around chickens, you know how wonderful they are, and if you haven't, I suggest you do, and you'll understand.  They are such beautiful, docile, and funny animals that have more therapeutic value than most people realize.  Sitting with them after a long day at work takes all the stress away!  If you were to walk down our street and stand in front of our house, you'd never even know there were chickens in the back yard.

Please help us to fix this - the whole situation has devastated our family, and we cannot understand why someone did this do us. This is not right, and we will do everything we possibly can to keep our pets.  This fight isn't just for us - we're sure there are other families in town that would love to have chickens, but can't because of the size of their property.  Historically in the US during war times or economic troubles, the government actually encouraged as many families as possible to raise a few hens to provide food for their families, so why should it be any different now?  With a few reasonable updates and additions to the current ordinances, we could make Morristown that much more sustainable.

We appreciate your help! 

Peter & Lark