By Barbara A. Preston l March 30, 2021
Roosters may have to schedule conjugal visits, according to a proposed backyard chicken ordinance in Montgomery Township.
“Members of the public have requested that we address the issue of allowing people on lots of a half acre in size or larger to keep chickens,” Township Administrator Donato Nieman said at the March 18 meeting.
A Montgomery ordinance allowing backyard chickens would be crafted after a similar ordinance in Hopewell Township. Mayor Devra Keenan, who said she has kept chickens, had concerns, specifically on the inclusion of roosters and the required fence height of the enclosures.
She said she is primarily concerned about noise. “We have some complaints now about people who bought chicks who grew into roosters and they are quite noisy.”
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The new ordinance could allow roosters a “maximum of 10 days, and no more than five consecutive days for a rooster to visit for conjugal purposes,” Nieman said. “I’m not sure roosters are warranted,” Mayor Keenan said.
The committee decided to table the ordinance while Nieman investigates the issues of noisy roosters and fence height requirements.
