the ordinance in question is 6.15.010 - and if you read the law it clearly pertains to: 1) the 'keeping' of certain animals and fowl, and - 2) the nearness of dwellings to the said animals 'kept' - it reads as follows; "KEEPING OF CERTAIN ANIMALS AND FOWL - GENERALLY; a) it shall be unlawfull to keep or maintain any equine animal, any bovine animal, any sheep, hog or goat, any live hare, chicken, duck, turkey, goose, pigeon or other fowl as provided in this chapter. - b) any person maintaining any such animal or fowl within the city shall keep the premises upon which such is kept fenced. or if such animal is staked, so as to keep the animal from leaving the premises upon which such is kept, and shall not permit such animal or fowl to run at large upon the street or upon the property of any other person" (ordinance 1205 1 ~ 1, 2-18-69 formerly ~ 3-18)

first off; 1) the said animals (ducks) originate from and/or are being officially 'maintained' by (and/or are being 'kept' by) the various apartment complexes in the surrounding area; and - 2) both the city of sunnyvale and santa clara installed the duck crossing signs many years ago which clearly permit such said animals and/or fowl to run at large upon the street (and inadvertently upon the property of any other person); - 3) the various apartment complexes in the area likely have no permit to 'keep' the said animals in question (and/or realistic ability to 'keep' these said animals in the fashion specified by the ordinance, as the said animals are clearly more wild and 'unkept' than domestic); and - 4) these same said animals (ducks) have been 'kept' unfenced at various apartment complexes in the area for many years, and subsequently conduct their reproductive activities in the surrounding neighborhood(s) every year between the new moon of january/february, and the summer solstice on june 21st (the ordinance responsible for this process is known as 'natural law'); and finally - 5) there is likely a conflict of laws and/or interests of sorts between santa clara and sunnyvale ordinances regarding this matter, as one side of my street is santa clara - and the other is sunnyvale...

in retrospect; since the said animals (ducks) are incapable of being 'kept' in the fashion stated in ordinance 6.15.010, then 6.15.010 clearly does not apply to this situation, as the animals in question are clearly not caged farm animals - ordinance 6.15.010 was drafted back in february of 1969 when the valley of heart's delight was being paved over to create the silicon valley (i moved here with my family in 1967), so if you cite the year in which 6.15.010 was created; the clear intent of this ordinance was directed at farms and/or caged animals - not wild ducks who roam free, just ask the owners of the corn palace about that one...essentially; this ordinance was a roundabout way of shutting down the santa clara valley's agricultural past for a 'better' future with polluted groundwater, suburban sprawl and traffic jams etc...

and it occurred to me; why can the owner of the lake terrace apartments do whatever he wants with HIS property, but other santa clara residents cannot do the same with their own?...do you need loads of money to really do what you want with your property?...why can he pave over the ducks' habitat, and we cannot take up the slack?...and if i am technically 'maintaining' wildlife by feeding ducks then how about all the people who 'maintain' doves and songbirds? - are they not 'maintaining' wildlife in santa clara?...from now on i am not feeding ducks - i am feeding doves and pigeons and songbirds like every other old lady in santa clara; and if ducks happen to eat some...

my friends' roomate mick said there is a federal law against feeding wildlife, a law that mainly applies to hunters; so you can shoot ducks but you can't feed them? is that it? - i have found at least 5-10 dead duck carcasses on the street right by duck crossing signs this year, so what is the message here? - you can run over ducks but you cannot feed them? - what about the car wash in campbell that had ducks purposefully run over and all those campbell police department detectives looking for the culprit? what about that, city of santa clara? do you give a crap about our ducks or not?...