Why are people feeding the chickens ?

[EightFingers]

Corner of Paradise and Beach. Saw someone feeding them today, throwing out huge handfuls of what looked like grain. Last year, there were only about ten, now there are maybe fifty.
So the feeding is bad in two ways:
You get more birds and they won't eat as many bugs.....
So why feed them?

[Lee M-S]

if you want the real answer, ask the people feeding them.

a similar issue could be raised about feeding stray cats, the homeless, underpriveledged kids. Perhaps people want to do something to help those less fortunate.

><(((*< ... ><(("< ... ><('< ... >o>

[alaskyn66]

Feral cats.. doves...mongoose.. also get fed here in town..not so much the homeless... they have to steal their food.

..What would King Kamehameha do..

[PaulW]

I've seen this too! Now all sorts of birds are turning up. I feel sorry for anyone who lives near there (roosters).

[kalakoa]

The keeping of livestock is a "permitted agricultural use" for ag-zoned land... and as we all know, County zoning is the most important thing...

[PaulW]

Today a pair of nene turned up as well. That's not good at a (fairly) busy intersection.

[HereOnThePrimalEdge]

Today a pair of nene turned up as well.

The nene have been in that area for years now. Longer than the chickens. Fortunately it's a 4 way stop at the intersection, so traffic moves pretty slow.

“There are worse crimes than burning books. One of them is not reading them.”
-Joseph Brodsky

[TomK]

Agreed. I've seen pairs of nene at that place for years although I don't know if it's different pairs or the same one just returning to one of their favorite spots. The (newish) 4-way stop definitely makes it safer for them, although I'm also aware not everyone has been obeying the stop signs.

[leilanidude]

quote:

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Originally posted by alaskyn66

Feral cats.. doves...mongoose.. also get fed here in town..not so much the homeless... they have to steal their food.

..What would King Kamehameha do..

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If they are homeless and unemployed, they get about $330 a month in SNAP benefits (aka food stamps). If they cannot get enough to eat from that, it is most likely they are selling the benefits for cash to buy drugs/alcohol.

[SBH]

Aha! So this is why the chickens are crossing the road.