OGDEN (ABC 4 News) - When Terry Macarthur and his wife, Dana, were told they had to get rid of their backyard chickens they were shocked.
"Dana freaked out," Terry said. "These are actually kind of like her babies."
Before moving into their Ogden home in late July, Terry tells ABC 4 News he did his research and couldn't find anything that said his backyard chickens were illegal. However, in September he received a letter from the city saying he was in violation of the zoning ordinance.
"I had 15 days to abate it or I'd get a ticket for about $125," said Terry. "If I didn't abate that then it would go up to $250 a day."
But apparently the statutes Terry found online were outdated.
"I did what I should've done," said Terry. "I was led to believe, by what the city had published and available to the public,, that this was ok."
The city is standing its ground and says nobody can have chickens in their yard.
"Cows, horses and chickens or any producing animal is not permitted in the city," said Ogden City Planning Manager, Greg Montgomery.
The Macarthurs say they're not the only ones in the neighborhood with chickens. Yet, they're the only house being asked to lose them.
"I'm no Mickey Mantle, but I could hit a baseball to three different places from where I'm standing that have chickens."
