Dear Editor:

I want to start off this letter by saying the Alderperson John Hattenhauer is referring to is correct. I am only one individual in favor of chickens within city limits and have not reached out until I read his feeble attempt at a sound debate against chickens in Wausau. So thank you, John, you inspired me to fight for the chickens and against your poorly orchestrated reasoning.

It seemed to me, after reading John’s letter to the Editor that he is imagining a chicken coop on the same level as a factory farm. “Their droppings smell” well, any droppings – especially when wet – smell from any living being. It’s very ignorant to assume the caretakers of the potential chickens will not clean up after their hens, as all animal owners try to do. I feel as though you are forgetting that these animals will be in our yards, our piece of property that we take care of because we live there.

“This would require throwing garbage in the back yard where it will attract raccoons, feral cats, and other vermin.” John, I am not sure where you live, but when was the last time you saw a raccoon or a feral cat in Wausau city limits? You do realize that cats don’t eat table scraps, and are actually more of a threat to birds, since they kill and leave their prey to rot. My partner and I have been composting in our backyard for the past 1.5 years and have never even seen any of these threats you are so certain would appear out of thin air if we had chickens in our yard.

The salmonella argument presented is simply fear mongering. If you are so concerned with salmonella, perhaps you should stop eating chickens and factory farmed eggs from Kwik Trip. Factory farms carry loads of bacteria, not only salmonella. Oh no! Do you know where the food you eat comes from?

That question brings me to my next point. There is a shift occurring in this country and you are living under a rock if you are not aware that people are starting to care where their food comes from. John, I assume by your writing style that you are older, and you can thank my generation for stirring up such “progressive” ideas in the city you reside in. “We’ve always done it this way” are six very dangerous words.

Alaina Dedo, Wausau