You Shall Not Pass: Keep the Gates Closed

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.[media-credit id=3 align="alignnone" width="300"]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.