Cobb homeowner fights to keep chicken coop

MARIETTA, Ga. — A Cobb County homeowner who follows a healthy lifestyle, including eating organic food, has filed for a permit to keep four chickens and four ducks in a fenced area of her backyard in Marietta.%

%

"There's a whole movement, this farm to table thing, we eat the chicken and duck eggs and they're very good. Farm fresh every day," homeowner Chris Disser told Channel 2’s Tom Regan.

Disser, who is a stunt movie actor and cross-trainer, lives with her husband and three children in a subdivision off Post Oak Tritt Road in East Cobb.

She said in March, she received notice from county officials that she needed a temporary land use permit to keep the chickens and ducks at a residence of less than 2 acres.

The couple converted their children's playhouse and playset into a coop that is secured by double fences and overhead mesh to prevent hawks and owls from snatching their beloved chickens and ducks which are part of the family.

TRENDING STORIES:

• Is Mayor Kasim Reed breaking the law?
• Ross Harris' ex-wife: 'He destroyed my life'
• Police: Man attacks stranger with baseball bat outside Walmart

"They have a happy life. We consider them our pets. They each have names, they actually were on our Christmas cards last year with the kids holding them," Disser said.

The children enjoy caring for the animals and according to their mother, are learning about responsibility and the ethical treatment of animals.%

%

"I think its lots of fun. We get to play with them every day. They’re nice pets," said 12-year-old Logan Disser.

Several county officials have expressed concern about backyard chickens in a subdivision and the potential impact it could have property values.

Disser told Regan her immediate neighbors don't mind having the chickens next door, as long as they are secured, and kept in a clean, healthy habitat.

"They're maintaining their property that they have with the animals. I don't have a problem with it" said neighbor Sandra Jaworski.

Disser said she won approval to keep the chicken from the county planning commission, but must go before the full county commission later in November to get approval for her permit application.

Cox Media Group