It is your responsibility to keep your birds in your own yard. Depending on the breed, and your planned fence style and height, they may be able to hop, climb or fly over it, so be certain that it is tall enough to contain the breeds you have, and that bushes, trees or other objects the birds...
If you want unusual birds, consider araucanas. Also sultans, houdans, polish, d'Uccles. Apart from the d'Uccles, they all come in both largefowl and bantam.
you need to hold him in your left hand, facing your arm, not away from it as in your photo. When your fingers surround his legs, his body will be in your palm.
Not sure why you think they cannot say "fresh" or "local"? Eggs and/or their carton must be dated, and listing a location is certainly allowed (look at the egg cartons in any supermarket) What you cannot use are terms such as organic or free-range, etc. that have very USDA specific meanings...
Most states have laws that cover dogs attacking livestock, and in most cases a dog that is attacking off the dog's owner's property can be shot. In some cases the dog has to be actively attacking; in others, it simply has to have attacked. So you need to find out all state, county and...
actually split is more than just heterozygous...it is heterozygous and recessive. Therefore the trait does not show, but you know the allele is present due to breeding records, and can be passed to offspring.
on skin colour, black is not polygenic. It is due to the presence of the dominant Fm gene. The bird will additionally have the gene for white or yellow skin (should be white, but isn't always) but that colouring is hidden by the black skin
In general, city and zoning ordinances have a section thaaat addresses non-complying uses. Non-complying uses is grandfathering...it may mean that if chickens were on the lot when the ordinance changed, that those specific birds may continue to be there, but cannot be replaced if for any reason...
in some states, you may only shoot dogs that are in the act of attacking your livestock, and in many states livestock only include hooved mammals. In Arizona, chickens are poultry, not livestock. It is the same in many states.
Sigrid's book is extremely good at explaining to a genetics beginner how the genes that determine chicken plumage colour and patterns work. Starting with general Mendalian genetics information would actually take longer to understand how the genes interact. Not that that is not aa good thing...
not really correct about black, at least not in regards to genetics.. what you're talking about is the appearance of light that is reflected or absorbed.
If they are legal per zoning and code, and not in violation of your CC&Rs, the neighbor has no grounds. Even if they were able to get the rules changed, you would almost certainly be protected by grandfathering.