Lawmakers Looking To Relocate Staten Island Turkeys
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) -- Local officials will be talking turkey Thursday on Staten Island.
Wild turkeys have been a nuisance for sometime in the Ocean Breeze section of the borough and neighboring communities with many residents complaining the birds can be vicious and create unsanitary conditions on residents' properties.
A plan to relocate the birds to the Catskill Animal Sanctuary upstate was only partially successful. Due to limited space, the U.S. Department of Agriculture had some of the turkeys killed.
Lawmakers Looking To Relocate Staten Island Turkeys
Elected officials are now looking to relocate the turkeys to new homes.
"While I understand that the wild turkeys in the Ocean Breeze area have presented an ongoing dilemma to Staten Island residents, we'd like to see an outcome that allows for their relocation as opposed to their slaughter," State Sen. Andrew Lanza said in a statement.
Officials said trying to find other sanctuaries in the state have been unsuccessful, so they are now looking for private property owners who are willing to take on the birds.
"What we're looking for is an open space, but with fencing, that would provide room for the turkeys to roam freely with access to food and water," Assemblywoman Nicole Malliotakis told 1010 WINS. "So ideally, it would be a sanctuary-type environment."
In addition to access to food, water and fencing, officials said there are other certain requirements that need to be met, including the amount of open space for the set number of birds.
"If you have an appropriate piece of property and you want to help save turkeys, we want to hear from you," Borough President James Oddo said in a statement. "No one wants the turkeys killed. We would prefer to find them an appropriate home where they can live out their days in their natural environment."
Anyone interested should contact Malliotakis's office at 718-987-0197 or email marronep@assembly.state.ny.us.
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