Disease. Pests. Broken Promises. Property Values. Hostage Taking. Those are 5 issues every homeowner should consider as a group called “Urban Farmers for Food Freedom” seeks changes in city regulations to allow people to keep 10 agricultural animals running free in their back yards.
They are preparing to circulate a petition to force an election that could cost Visalia taxpayers up to $120,000. If successful, it would permit 6 chickens and 4 miniature goats – perhaps pigs and sheep will be next on their agenda.
What are the disease risks? On July 1st, 2015, the CDC – the U.S. Government Centers for Disease Control – issued an advisory to “Backyard Flock Owners” due to widespread outbreaks of human Salmonella infections linked to live poultry kept in backyards. The entire advisory is available online but specifically notes that children under 5, adults over 65 and people with weakened immune systems are more likely to have a severe illness from Salmonella. It causes diarrhea, vomiting, fever, abdominal cramps and can result in death unless a person is promptly treated with antibiotics.
Your kids or grandchildren could be exposed by visiting a friend’s birthday party or a neighbor’s yard. Chickens and goats also carry E. coli germs, plus mites and lice and enough dander to cause asthma attacks. Goats, according to a local farmer, are fly magnets and sound as loud as a car alarm but they don’t have an off switch.
The Valley Voice issue of July 2nd carried an article about the Avian Flu Virus infecting a huge poultry farm nearby in Kings County. Better known as the Bird Flu, American farmers have slaughtered and burned or buried over 45 million chickens so far this year to prevent the spread of the disease. Do you really want that risk in your neighborhood? A mutation of the Bird Flu has only infected a few hundred people worldwide but it killed 60% of them.
Before you sign the petition, take the family out for a picnic next to one of the nearby dairy farms. As you inhale the odor and fight the flies for your food, consider that you could have that same challenge on your patio if your neighbor is keeping goats and chickens in their backyard. Spilled chicken feed draws rats and mice that will ignore the fence between your yards.
For over a quarter century my family has paid local property taxes and like many other long term Visalia residents we have lived in a quiet area where folks observe the municipal codes that help guarantee peaceful neighborhoods. But, by demanding changes to those rules so as to allow agricultural animals, the Urban Farmers group will undoubtedly create hostile relationships between some neighbors. That would essentially break the promise of the serene city that drew us to Visalia – truly the gem of the Central Valley.
Allowing these animals could reduce the desirability and value of all of our homes. When you sell your house you must complete a standard legal document to disclose, among other things, “Neighborhood noise problems or other nuisances.” You must disclose if your neighbors have backyard goats and chickens. If you don’t disclose the nuisance, and the new owner then discovers the noise and odor and pest infestations, your legal troubles could be long and terribly costly.
The Urban Farmers group has already had their proposal rejected by the City Council and is now holding us hostage to give in to their demands or they will force an expensive election paid for with our taxes. There are already areas in Visalia where some animals are permitted due to grandfathered exemptions. It seems only fair that we ask members of this group why didn’t they choose to live in those areas – or in the country – rather than try to force their agenda on the rest of us? By refusing their petition, we preserve our property values and neighborhood harmony as well as prevent exposure to some terrible diseases, noxious odors and pest infestations and the noise from bleating goats.