Glenn The Rooster Finds a New Home

Just to show us that nobody's perfect, our batch of Ameraucana hens came with a rooster. The kids obviously "knew" something was different about the bird. As a three day old chick, they named it Glenn. About the same time the news article was running on NBC-17, Glenn found his voice. Thus, we had to find him a new home outside the town limits. Glenn now lives on an animal rescue farm operated by Karen Edwards. Karen has animals of all sorts, included over 100 "pet" chickens, and works two jobs to purchase feed for her animals and support her husband who is a disabled veteran.

Mitzi and I made the decision to give 10% of the gross sales of our chicken ark plans to Karen's animal rescue. It was a beautiful thing when we presented her with our first gift of $65 this evening. Karen, Mitzi, and I all got verklimt. Thank you to everyone who has bought coop plans from us. Every purchase helps Karen feed her abandoned animals a few more weeks.

New Facebook Group Started 

Just wanted to let everyone know that Catawba ConvertiCoops has a Facebook group now! Woohoo! So if you feel so included and are a lover of urban chickens, I encourage you to join up! There's lots of fun, games, and activities for the kids... Well, not really. At least not yet. But we have one anyway.

http://www.facebook.com/group.php?gid=19363786697

Some flock to ‘urban farmer’ trend  

By Leslie Rudd, Wake Weekly Staff Writer
July 17, 2008

ARE YOU IN FAVOR OF CHICKEN AND LIVESTOCK IN TOWN LIMITS? CLICK This e-mail address is being protected from spambots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it TO GIVE US YOUR OPINION

Gas prices have affected everything from family vacations to food prices. Some Wake Forest residents like Emily Cole are taking matters into their own hands, by getting food from the backyard. Cole wants to offer cheaper, healthier food alternatives for her family. That’s why she is petitioning Wake Forest to allow chickens in the town limits. For Cole, it’s one more way to keep her family “green.”

“Food is coming in from other countries and we don’t know what the (health) regulations are, what the inspection process is. For my family it’s important to know where it comes from and how the animals are treated,” she said. Cole said the inhumane treatment of chickens for commercial production is motivation to change Wake Forest’s current livestock ordinance.

“The majority of the eggs you buy from the supermarket are about a month old ... (chickens are) stuck in a cage roughly the size of a sheet of paper, injected with hormones and fed highly processed food in order to have her lay as many eggs as possible. If a person were treated that way, it would be illegal,” Cole said.

Intent on creating healthier food choices for her family, Cole began Wake Forest’s permit process, which requires the applicant to receive written approval of all residents within 500 feet. “Many have been really excited about this,” she said. “They’re interested in having fresh eggs available to them.”

Battle For Backyard Chickens In Wake Forest

By Kerry Hall, NBC17

WAKE FOREST, N.C. -

An animal ordinance in Wake Forest has some people in the town crying fowl. They want to make it easier to legally raise chickens in their backyards.

Emily Cole, a Wake Forest resident, was interested in creating a small backyard chicken coop, but she was frustrated when she was unable to receive a permit to do so.

Because chickens are considered livestock under town ordinances, you can not raise them in town limits without the written consent of every homeowner within 500 feet of your residence.

Cole said she was heartbroken when she did not get the full support of her neighbors.

Neighbor Scott Tarkenton said, "Not in the middle of front yards and running around in people's neighborhoods. I think they should stick to the farms."

But Cole has not given up her resolve to have fresh eggs from her own yard.

Backyard Chickens in Wake Forest

Folks, here is an example of grassroots activism at its finest. When my neighbor Emily decided that she too wanted chickens after seeing ours, she decided to go a step further... and try to get the local ordinances changed. So for those of you urbanites whose local governments are not chicken friendly, take heart. There is something that you can do! Here is the original article as published at MyNC.com , and the response by a local news station, NBC-17, who did an article and news spot on the evening news featuring Catawba ConvertiCoops.

By Emily Cole

Chickens in our backyards!

In Wake Forest, there is a movement afoot. Like much of the country, many of our citizens are yearning for healthier, more sustainable options for our weekly menus. Some of the ways individuals are trying to meet this need include creating backyard vegetable gardens, buying into organic garden co-ops, buying more produce from the local farmer’s market or farm stand, and raising chickens.

Wait a minute – raising chickens? In Wake Forest? You read that right, there are more than a few residents in the town of Wake Forest who have chickens living right in their backyards, and you never even noticed! Before you freak out, and start peeking over fences, or calling animal control, I'd like to implore you to learn the facts about chickens and the new wave of backyard farmers, and maybe you'll change your mind and decide to get a few for your family.

Many members of the general public feel that chickens are noisy, dirty, and attract rats. All of these things could be considered true under certain circumstances; however, let us take a quick look at the other animals we consider pets in our town.