Resident loses bid to keep chickens in Merrillville backyard

A Merrillville resident’s hope of continuing to collect fresh eggs from his own backyard were scrambled Tuesday, when the Town Council voted down his request to raise four chickens at his West 65th Avenue home.

“I lost. You beat me,” Michael Shannon said later in the meeting.

He said he will have to get rid of the chickens, which he said he wanted both for the purpose of producing eggs and for his daughter, who is in 4-H.

The matter will go back to Merrillville Town Court, which was waiting for a council vote before taking action.

Shannon had maintained that chickens are defined as domestic fowl, not predators, and wouldn’t be injurious to his neighbors’ properties.

“If you do Google Earth maps, you’ll see that Merrillville is surrounded by farms,” Shannon said.

But Councilwoman Chrissy Barron, D-5th, said chickens are considered wild animals and a public nuisance under a town ordinance. She also said the chickens would be injurious to the health and welfare of the town, will diminish property values and are against the zoning ordinance.

Councilman Don Spann, D-1st, said he had a meeting with Shannon’s neighbors and many were against him keeping the chickens.

In other matters, residents in the 65th Avenue area told the council of problems they’re having with loose dogs running loose in the area, some of which have terrorized people and attacked other animals, of car break-ins and loud noises.

Charlotte King and Phyllis Harvey said they were attacked by what appears to be a pitbull mix while walking. King said after animal control addressed the issue, the dog’s owner let the dog out as they were walking again, “We’re now carrying golf clubs and garden tools. What are we supposed to do,” Harvey said.

Police Chief Joseph Petruch said they should call 911 and ask for animal control.

“She can write a ticket and you can be the witness,” Petruch said.