I’ve got a few friends raising chickens in their backyards in Newton. From what I’ve heard, there’s been a huge upswing in backyard urban/suburban chicken farming in recent years.
I’m curious just how many chicken farmers we’ve got here in Newton. Do you have chickens in your neighborhood? Which village do you live in?
There appear to be chickens in Ward 3!
Who are you callin’ chicken, pardner?
Can we consider that an announcement of your candidacy Ted?
Well played Greg, well played!!
I have not seen any around the Newtonville area but I imagine there are some…
Gail, don’t count your chickens before they’re hatched.
Ted, I don’t think Gail is counting chickens, she’s counting candidates. Right now we’re looking at a goose egg.
Jerry, on the other hand, is counting chickens.
Can confirm actual chickens in West Newton as well as Auburndale.
OK, we’re up to four villages and counting.
and speaking of chickens, why are Chris and Steve the only candidates (challengers and incumbents) so far who’ve posted a comment here?
I think it must be a general trend. My paper just covered the backyard chicken issue yesterday with a video from Billerica:
http://www.lowellsun.com/ci_23232132/backyard-chicken-movement-flies-billerica-video
where they recently became legal. And we ran a rather ambivalent editorial:
http://www.lowellsun.com/opinion/ci_23238068/lowell-going
because the city of Lowell is considering permitting them.
I assume they’re legal in Newton, if so many people openly have them. I think they’re rather appealing, and certainly more pleasant to listen to than leafblowers. My sister’s in-laws in Vermont have a lot of them, and a big enough yard that they built a large coop on wheels that they can move around to different areas of grass.
Maybe I should move to ward 3? With my luck, the minute I move, 3 candidates, all related to the Kennedy’s, announce their candidacy.
This was one of my favorite feature stories that we did at the TAB. The story is five years old so the data is probably no longer pertinent (I have no idea how long chickens live), but it’s interesting read.
Gail – bad link? It says story no longer available. Not fair after that teaser of an introduction.
Jerry – The link works for me on my laptop but not on my iPhone. Did you try a different device?
I won’t out their caretakers but there are definitely chickens in a backyard in Newtonville. (They are appropriately within our Historical District.)
OK, so far we’ve got Upper Falls, Nonantum, Auburndale, West Newton, and Newtonville accounted for.
So where are the Chestnut Hill chicks. the T’ville toms, the Waban woosters, …. ?
While Upper Falls, Nonantum, Auburndale, West Newton and Newtonville have chickens, Village 14 can have virtual chickens.
… and speaking of Waban, there’s absolutely no truth to that terrible rumor that Terry Malloy has been running a weekly cock fighting ring in Waban.
Same link now works on the same device today, hmmm.
That was a great story! In 2008 they said that most of the folks with chickens then were old timers who were keeping up old family traditions. Since then, from what I can gather, its lots more younger folks raising chickens for the first time.
I know of one friend who was raising chickens in Newton Corner- would have to confirm if she is still doing it
I hope the writer of that Tab story is still writing. Nice style
Chrissie Long, as many of our readers will recall, was one of the best. She left the TAB to write for the Tico Times in Costa Rica and then became executive director of a fledgling nonprofit that helped impoverished children in the country. Now she’s back in the U.S. getting a graduate degree at the Kennedy School of Government.
Why did the chicken cross the road???
@Gail thanks for the update on Chrissy. She was a great reporter and I am not at all surprised she has gone on to do even more impressive things.
@Emily: My pleasure.
… continuing with this thread’s educational mission of all things chicken.
@Tom: Why did the chicken cross the road?
So he could visit the jail in which sat the young chicken with six other chickens on his head.
You know: “Chickens roosting on an all penned frier.”
Ba-dum-bum!!!!!!
There are definitely chickens in Waban! Some in my freezer and some soon to be on my grill!
There are live & clucking chickens in Waban. The house of which I speak was the original farm house, but I’m not sure if they have been continuously raising chickens there since the (1920s era) development sprouted around them. Looks like it, though.
I wasn’t going to comment on Newton Chickenmania, but during the 50’s a neighbor on Dickerman Road raised ducks, chickens and geese. All of the foul were used for food or eggs except for Henrietta, a large hen that was a favorite family pet. One day his elderly grandfather showed up when the folks weren’t home and proceeded to kill one of the chickens so he could surprise everyone with dinner when they came home. Unfortunately, the chicken he chose was the cherished pet, and the kids really freaked out when they came home and found Henrietta roasting in the oven.
Bob:
You’re like Betty White on “The Golden Girls.” No thread/episode is complete until you share one of your stories!
Dear old grandpa. What a great (and totally horrific) story Bob.
@Jerry. Somehow I thought you’d enjoy it.