May 10, 2019 – West Bend, WI – The Zaremba family is celebrating chickens.
Just in time for Mother’s Day Joe and Mary Zaremba and their kids Tommy and Lyla have become ‘parents’ to four chicks.
“Reggie, Yoda, Janis and ‘TBD’,” wrote Joe in an email.
It was January 2019 when the West Bend Common Council officially voted to make chickens legal within the city limits. The Zarembas celebrated by being the first family to officially secure a license.
Next came the homemade coop and then the birds.
“So a bit of a change of plans, Tommy is home sick, Lyla is at school and we had to pick up chicks this a.m.,” wrote Joe. “So they are home now….. my gosh they are cute and they will be thrilled when they see them.”
Everybody in the Zaremba family had a different reaction to the baby birds. Lyla, 8, wondered if she “can hold the chicks and feed them and have them follow me around.”
Tommy, 10, thought they would be a “new/unique pet,” he wanted the eggs but not the extra chores and parents Mary and Joe wanted the chickens, “For the learning experience, for the eggs, for the fun new/different pet experience, for our kids!”
There are quite a few rules in the City of West Bend ordinance about chickens – details are in Chapter 9 and Chapter 12 under licensing and permits.