County Cites Family For Pet Chickens

WASHINGTON (WUSA) - A dozen chickens are at the center of a dispute in Kensington and it has escalated to the point where a county code officer is getting dozens of e-mails from people petitioning on behalf of the birds.

It all began when two neighbors complained about a rooster that the Stancill family kept along with a dozen chickens.  The animals came to their home one year ago because 16-year-old Tyler Stancill grew up wanting a pet chicken. 

"They just looked a lot cuter," he said.  "I'm not much of a dog person. I like birds better, especially chickens. They are entertaining and enjoyable pets."

Family members say instead of dealing with the complaints directly, the town punted the matter to the county claiming that its hands were tied. Margy Stancill said when they were confronted with the matter, her family had to make a tough decision. 

"We decided to give away the rooster," she said.  "We thought it would help us in keeping our hens."  

But it turned out to do the opposite.  When a county inspector came to follow up on the city's formal complaint, he found that the placement of the chicken coop was suspect.  He claimed the Stancills were violating a code ordinance that reads:

"Any accessory building or structure used for the housing, shelter or sale of animals or fowl other than a household pet must meet the following setbacks;25 feet from a lot line; 100 feet from a dwelling." 

The chicken coop is placed just 65 feet away from the next door neighbor's house.  That neighbor signed an agreement allowing the structure.

"Our next door neighbor wrote a written notarized letter saying he was fine that the chicken coop went up," said Margy Stancill.

"We're trying to apply the code consistently," responds County Code Enforcement Officer Peter Hyrcak.  "If that neighbor doesn't have a problem with it someone else will. I told them I'm going to write them a ticket recommending no fine." 

The mayor told Hyrcak that two anonymous community members still have a problem with the chickens.  Meanwhile, the Stancills point to a certain line in the code - other than a household pet - and object to the citation. 

"These are our pets," said Margy.  "We've raised them since they were chicks.  We've named them, we hold them; pet them and love them like any other pet."  In the county code, if you look into setbacks for dog houses or rabbit hutches or other structures than its only five feet and we are in compliance of that."

The hobby is growing in popularity all over the country, indicating such a scenario could creep up to affect many more counties with similar code stipulations.  Indeed, Stancill belongs to several websites and clubs that help connect people who raise chickens for pets. 

"Personally, I think it's silly when you look at the number of animals that people have in their houses that aren't well taken care of," said David Cummings, who lives in the house nearest to the coop.  "And if you observe the chickens here, you can see they're obviously well taken care of."

He is one of many neighbors who are speaking out in support of the Stancills' chickens. 

If Hyrcak does write the citation, it will inevitably be sent for a judge to review.  That judge will have the final say deciding whether those twelve chickens qualify as pets.