The livestock yard or chicken yard is an important ecosystem at Mezzacello. It’s also full of danger. The droppings, the duck water, the occasional mouse. It is a special environment and one I do not want to expand. I am also required by law to contain and warn visitors of the dangers. That sign is being ordered. In the mean time I will get by with this sign.

You can see through the gate a few precautions I take on the regular.

• There are contact pads in front of each Warren and coop.
• I spread pine mulch each season to cover wastes and mud and give a clean walking surface.
• The water is changed daily.
• There is a sanitary leach pit for waste water to drain safely away.
• Manures are collected and composted in a rodent-proof containment system so they can be “cooked” and reused.
• Feed is secured in 30 gallon cans with strapped lids.
• Chicken and duck feed is shared via a covered feeder that minimizes waste of feed by sloppy eaters.
• There’s a lot of life and a lot of lessons happening in there.

If you want to know more about the benefits, costs, pinch points, mechanics, and legal/ethical details of backyard chickens and ducks in the city, stay tuned. I’ll be sharing a couple of blogs and adding a resources page to the site. Or reach out to me directly through the contact on this website or on Social Media. Cheers – and don’t listen to the chickens or the ducks for that matter! Keep the gates closed.