Wareham residents required to register chickens over loud noise

WAREHAM, Mass. — Residents in Wareham are "crying foul" over a new law requiring them to register their chickens.

The town started requiring residents to count their chickens because the feathery creatures have been making too much noise.

However, as it goes with any public ordinance, not everyone is happy about needing to register their foul with the Department of Health or risk facing a hefty fine.

The new law was passed just last week, where animal control says more and more people have been complaining about the rooster crowing at all hours of the night. One family, however, says the town has no right to interfere with their flock.

Jeff Deforge has two roosters and 20 hens running freely in his backyard and have even become a staple in their young children's lives.

“Our chickens are almost a year old," said Deforge.

"Mainly [we] just play with them and use them for eggs," said Jecoby Deforge, Jeff's 7-year-old son.

Deforge says the new law is just more stress added for his family.

“It would be a lot to deal with, you know, everything we got going on, three kids," said Deforge.

On the other hand, Bob Either, with the Department of Health, says despite many people in the town owning chickens, the animals have become a nuisance.

"Some of the complaints say they crow all hours of the night," said Either.

According to the board of health, the fine for poultry violations rises based on the offense - the first offense will cost bird owners $50, while the third will cost $75.

“If you want to have pets you should be able to have them and it shouldn’t be that big of an issue," said Deforge.

Either says the law isn't meant to stop people from owning chickens.

"People have a right not to listen to the roosters and they also have a right to have poultry chickens and roosters," said Either. "So we’re trying to make it easy for people to do that.”

The health department also says it wants chickens registered for health reasons, in case there's ever a bird flu outbreak. The board has yet to decide on how much it'll cost for people to register their birds.

Cox Media Group