No chickens, no problem — according to Mount Pearl's newest bylaw which prevents residents from housing the birds in backyard coops.

David Penney had a handful of quail, hens and even a resident rooster living in his backyard for nearly two years up until early this week.

The family's pets provided fresh eggs and helped them save a few bucks.

Now they're gone.

"It's sad. I have four kids. Just me. I've got to do what I can to save a dollar here and there. It's not easy raising children by yourself with a fixed income. It's hard," Penney told CBC News on Friday.

"The kids loved coming out and feeding the chickens, playing with the chickens, having a conversation with the chickens — just seeing what they do."

Domestic pets

Mount Pearl City Coun. Bill Antle said that in 2007 a bylaw was created to prohibit the housing of livestock within city limits.

He said in 2015 the bylaw was changed, but didn't include restrictions against livestock.

When the city looked to update its bylaws in July, it added livestock, such as cows and horses, back to the restricted animals list.

Mount Pearl has amended its animal control bylaws, and no longer allows any type of backyard pet. Resident David Penney is disappointed that he had to give up his chickens, quail, and rooster. <a href="https://t.co/Km1my4iOUr">pic.twitter.com/Km1my4iOUr</a> —@janellemkelly

However, chickens and hens can still be owned within Mount Pearl, but they have to be kept inside of a home to be classified as domestic pets. Antle said even goats and pigs can fall in that designation.

"If you have a pet such as a hen or a chicken, and it's in your house 90 per cent of the time, you'll have no issues," Antle said.

A lot of the hesitancy from the city surrounding backyard chicken coops mostly boils down to keeping the animals within the city's noise ordinance, which runs from 11 p.m. to 7 a.m.

Antle said the city often receives noise and odour complaints from residents stemming from animals living mostly outside. He said the city is trying to regulate that.

"It's really not to hurt the residents at all, it's to help the residents," he said.

"Everyone needs to be responsible pet owners, no matter if that's a chicken or a hen, or a cat or a dog."

Coun. Bill Antle said residents of Mount Pearl can keep chickens as long as they're kept inside. (Gary Locke/CBC)

But Penney said he didn't know he could keep his chickens in his home. He said there was no communication with the city since a year ago when he addressed some noise complaints, and that he only received a piece of mail stating that he had to find another home for his pets.

If he had known about the alternative, Penney said he would have just kept his chickens inside.

"I have an unfinished basement, I could have kept them there," he said.

New homes

Penney quickly found a new home for his pets immediately after getting the city notice.

Now his flock lives among their peers on a free-range farm in Conception Bay North where the owner has graciously accepted a few extra wings.

"He came by and picked them up. He's got free-range chickens in his backyard. He's got a coop for collecting the eggs. He loves it," Penney said.

"He said we can visit any time. I think I'm going to take the kids out this weekend sometime."

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