The joy of birdsong is lost when the source is a screaming peacock.
That pretty much sums up the feelings of Barb Sharpe and many of her neighbours in a Royal Oak neighbourhood, where she said six peacocks from a nearby farm have been wandering around and making life miserable.
Sharpe, who lives on Caselton Place, said the farm’s peacocks have been a problem for a second straight year.
The birds have been keeping people awake at night with their loud calls, and residents must also contend with their droppings and digging in their yards.
“From my perspective and from other neighbours’ perspectives it’s completely unacceptable that this is allowed to happen,” said Sharpe, who has become a spokeswoman for the residents.
The neighbourhood is adjacent to Saanich Commonwealth Place, right at the municipality’s urban containment boundary, which aims to keep rural areas from development.
Kevin McLaughlin, whose family has owned the farm since 1949, said the situation with Sharpe goes beyond the peacocks.
Sharpe also said there had been other issues, but that the peacocks are at the forefront right now.
McLaughlin said he thinks Sharpe would prefer it if the farm just shut down.
A structure was put up to keep the peacocks in place but it did not comply with bylaw restrictions, he said, adding that he had immediate plans for another structure.
“We’re attempting to rectify that issue by catching [the peacocks].”
Saanich Mayor Frank Leonard said council is well aware of the case.
“It’s an ongoing bylaw issue. Our staff have been out there on the bylaw side of things,” he said.
Sharpe filed a complaint with the Farm Practices Board, a move the mayor encouraged.
“That would likely be more effective than we’ve been able to be under bylaw, because the Right to Farm Act trumps municipal government,” Leonard said.
Sharpe said she wishes she had received more reaction from the municipality and that it had acted earlier by toughening its bylaw.
“I feel like I’m not getting anywhere with it,” she said.
