Some Naperville residents have questioned the city’s chicken ordinances and are calling for the laws to be revisited. The issues will be reviewed on Sept. 20, 2011.
For more information, read this article from the Naperville Sun Times.
12 Sep
Chicago Alderwoman Lona Lane Digs in Against Chickens
Lona Lane, alderwoman in the 18th ward, thinks chickens are for the birds – and is prepared to pass legislation to ban them from her ward. Although she can identify only one complaint about the birds in her ward, she wants to ban them entirely as disease-carrying pests. She proposes fines of up to $1,000 and up to six months in jail for illegal chickens. Read more here.
If you would like to counteract Lane’s efforts, consider inviting her on the Windy City Coop Tour!
11 Sep
Whole Foods Now in Bed with Monsanto
Whole Foods caved to the genetically modified crop giant, Monsanto.
“In a cleverly worded, but profoundly misleading email sent to its customers last week, Whole Foods Market, while proclaiming their support for organics and “seed purity,” gave the green light to USDA bureaucrats to approve the “conditional deregulation” of Monsanto’s genetically engineered, herbicide-resistant alfalfa. Beyond the regulatory euphemism of “conditional deregulation,” this means that WFM and their colleagues are willing to go along with the massive planting of a chemical and energy-intensive GE perennial crop, alfalfa; guaranteed to spread its mutant genes and seeds across the nation; guaranteed to contaminate the alfalfa fed to organic animals; guaranteed to lead to massive poisoning of farm workers and destruction of the essential soil food web by the toxic herbicide, Roundup; and guaranteed to produce Roundup-resistant superweeds that will require even more deadly herbicides such as 2,4 D to be sprayed on millions of acres of alfalfa across the U.S.” (Ronnie Cummins, January 27, 2011. Whole Foods Sells Out to Monsanto: The Organic Elite Surrenders to Monsanto: What Now?)
Why is this important?
Monsanto has turned seeds into a patented, genetically modified commodity (Round-Up Ready seeds), which are designed to work with Round-Up fertilizers, tailored to the plants’ genetic make up. The fact that they are patented means a farmer who does not grow Monsanto crops, but whose fields are found to have stray Monsanto plants, can be sued by the agribusiness giant.
Monsanto also requires that all farmers who use its products sign an agreement that they will not save seeds and grow plants from them the next year. What? Since when does agriculture work like this?
The company often bullies farmers into signing agreements and threatens then with lawsuits. So a farmer is forced to buy seeds every year from the agribusiness giant. This severely limits biodiversity in our nation’s food crops. According to one source, Monsanto products account for 90% of the U.S. soybean crop.
Monsanto is moving into international food markets, threatening to become a monopoly that controls the world’s seed supply.
Read more about the ills of Monsanto here.
So either we grow our own, the way we want it, or agribusiness and “organic” partners like Whole Foods will grow it for us, their way.
I’ve blogged a link to Whole Foods’ side of the story here.
11 Sep
Sept. 25, 2011: Windy City Coop Tour (formerly Henapalooza)
Time: September 25, 2011 from 11am to 2pm
Location: Chicago’s North Side (and surrounding areas), 4134 N. Monticello Ave
Website: Windy City Coop Tour page
Phone: 773-640-2402 (for bike tour only)
Thinking of getting chickens or just curious about backyard Chickens in the City of Chicago? This leisurely bike ride will take you to a number of Chicago Chicken keepers. The tour is open to all ages, and you will see a large variety of chickens breeds, coop designs, as well as the gardens and yards they occupy. Home to Roost will make an appearance at one of the sites (TBD). Each host will be able to answer questions you may have concerning regulations, feeding, coop designs, space required, egg production, and issues common to chickens in an urban environment.
So save the date of Sept 25th. This is both a group bike tour and/or a self-guided bike tour.
The group bike tour meets at 4134 N. Monticello at 10:30 am. The bike tour starts at 11 am. The biking group tour should last a couple hours and actual length will be determined by the group itself.
The self-guided tour starts at any of the 20+ host sites and just follow the map provided at each site.
The “Windy City Coop Tour” is open as a non-biking event, too.
The Official Windy City Coop Tour hours are 11am – 2 pm Additional information including web site, press release, maps, etc. are forthcoming and will be provided on the Windy City Coop Tour page. Not required, but an RSVP to the bike tour will be helpful in planning. We hope you can join us!
2 Sep
Chicken Terminology
Here is a list of chicken-related terms that might prove helpful when talking about your birds:
Bedding: material such as straw or pine shavings that is placed on the floor of the coop and in nest boxes. It absorbs moisture from poop and serves as nesting material for a hen to lay an egg in.
Cecal droppings: pasty, smooth, foul-smelling droppings
Chicken: a domesticated bird kept for eggs and meat. Refers to both male and female.
Cloaca: the place in a bird’s body where digestive and reproductive tracts join. Ends in the vent.
Comb: the fleshy, red thing on top of the head. The comb serves as a radiator, releasing excess heat.
Cock: rooster, a male chicken.
Cockerel: a male chicken less than a year old.
Coop: the protected, solid enclosure where chickens sleep and lay eggs.
Crop: a temporary food-storage pouch located at the base of a bird’s neck.
Grit: small stones that chickens will eat. Grit remains in a chicken’s gizzard, where it grinds whole grains (corn, wheat, etc.). If you have birds that are in confined housing who are fed whole grains, they need grit.
Hen: a female chicken that has begun to lay eggs.
Limestone: See oyster shell.
Meal worms: larvae of the darkling beetle. They are high in fat (13%). Feed occasionally as a treat.
Molt: to lose feathers. Chickens molt at 18 months of age and will do so once a year for the rest of their lives. They lose their feathers in a cyclical pattern, so they will not be completely featherless. During this time, they stop laying.
Nest box: box enclosed on 3 sides and the top where hens lay eggs; integral part of a coop.
Oyster shell: sources of calcium that hens ingest. Their bodies break down these sources and use them to shell and expel the egg.
Pullet: a young female chicken that is not yet laying eggs.
Roost: a thick rod or 2×4, raised off the floor, where chickens sleep at night
Run: the part of the coop that is enclosed in wire and does not have any flooring; the run allows birds to scratch in the dirt and spend time outside while protected from predators.
Scratch: chicken crack. This mixture of whole grains (corn, wheat, oats, barley, etc.) is not a complete diet should be given only as a treat, and not on a regular basis. It can also be given in small amounts in the winter time, right before bed, to keep the birds warm.
Spur: sharp growth on the leg of a rooster, used for fighting.
Vent: the opening through which reproductive and waste materials pass.
Wattle: the fleshy, red appendages under the beak. Like the comb, these act as heat radiators.
Any other helpful terms you’d like to see?
1 Sep
Sept. 24, 2011: Green Connections Bike Tour in Oak Park
Join Home to Roost and other green endeavors for a bike tour in Oak Park!
The tour will provide an opportunity for Oak Park and River Forest residents to learn about the many green initiatives that their neighbors have implemented and support them in thinking about what they can do in their homes, schools and neighborhoods.
There will be about 15 sites on the tour, including private homes, schools, universities, community gardens, and local businesses. Home to Roost will be at a client’s home.
The tour will run from about 1 PM to 3:45 PM and will end with a gathering at 4 PM to allow participants to debrief.
Register for the tour at www.greencommunityconnections.org starting September 1.
30 Aug
Sept. 7 Windy City Harvest Open House for Adults Interested in Urban Agriculture
If you are interested in urban agriculture as a profession, consider Windy City Harvest. This organization is currently seeking adults to apply for their certificate program.
Open House
There will be an open house on Sept 7th. Current students will be giving tours of the AVI & CCBC farm sites. Here is an invite: http://www.chicagobotanic.org/greenyouthfarm/evite/index.html
Windy City Harvest Program
The program will start in early Feb and run through mid Oct, 2012. There is no age limit or other restrictions, however, this is a labor intensive program – students must be able to lift material weighing up to 50 lbs on a daily basis and work outdoors in all kinds of weather.
Check out the following documents for more information:
Please return your application by September 30, 2011 to:
Luanne Janikowski
Chicago Botanic Garden
1000 Lake Cook Road
Glencoe IL, 60022
Or fax it to 847.835.4484
To complete the application process for 2012, you will need to attend a Mandatory Information Session. Pick one of two dates: September 23rd or 30th 9am-12pm at the Arturo Velasquez Institute.
29 Aug
Chicken-Keeping Class 9/24/2011 at Elgin Community College
Home to Roost will be leading a chicken-keeping class at Elgin Community College on Sept. 24. Information from the course catalog is listed below. Call 847-622-3036 to register.
CEs 111 Raising Chickens in a Suburban Setting
Jennifer Murtoff is a farmer’s granddaughter who raised her own fowl in Pennsylvania. Today, she is a consultant for urban and suburban flocks in Chicagoland. She leads workshops on backyard chickens and gives presentations for groups and schools interested in raising their own flocks. The trend to provide your own nutritious food has led many communities to change ordinances concerning backyard fowl. Come and learn the basics about local laws, coop construction, health issues plus chick and adult chicken care. Jennifer provides concise information that can help you decide if raising backyard chickens in a suburban setting is for you.
300 80725 SA 10AM-12PM 9/24 ATC-235 Murtoff $35
28 Aug
The Urban Chicken Consultant Suggests: Chicken Sitting
Here is a potential niche market idea: chicken sitting!
When chicken owners go out of town, they have to find someone to care for their birds. In steps… the chicken sitter!
This would be a good side gig for someone who likes chickens and has some time to drive around town to take care of other people’s birds while the owners are out of town. If you have ample property and can maintain quarantine of diverse groups of birds, you may be able to do it from home.
Read up on disease prevention in flocks before trying this. Different flocks coexist with different micro-organisms, so it’s important to keep their germs to themselves.
28 Aug
Chicken/migratory bird volunteers wanted
I volunteer with Chicago Bird Collision Monitors, whose main purpose is rescuing migratory birds that crash into glass windows in the Loop (see my post from September of 2010). Occasionally we get calls about chickens wandering the streets.
Chicago Bird Collision Monitors is looking for volunteers to:
- monitor buildings in the Loop
- drive birds to the western suburbs
- rescue chickens
- foster chickens
If you’d be interested in helping out with any of these, please contact Chicago Bird Collision Monitors at 773-988-1867.
NOTE: While Home to Roost is concerned with the safety and welfare of chickens, we are NOT a chicken rescue. We do not take in birds.
Home to Roost 