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Elderly Woman Facing £17,000 Fine For Feeding Pigeons In Front Garden

Elderly Woman Facing £17,000 Fine For Feeding Pigeons In Front Garden

She attracts around 600 birds a day

Amelia Ward

Amelia Ward

An elderly woman has been told she could face a £17,000 (30,000 AUD) fine if she doesn't stop feeding pigeons in her front yard.

Elizabeth Vlajkov, 72, from Adelaide, has been feeding the birds in her garden for the last 25 years, but it's left some of her neighbours unhappy.

The Australian's hobby reportedly attracts up to 600 of the creatures a day, meaning her neighbours are kept up at night and having bird poo over the houses and cars.

7News

She's been warned by the local council, who have said that legally she could be fined thousands if she doesn't stop.

But the kind-hearted lady is worried that if she doesn't feed them, they'll go hungry.

Speaking to 7News, Vlajkov said: "[The council] is hurting innocent birds.

"I feed them. I spend $6 every day for their food."

She added: "Charging the old lady for pigeon feeding... that's awful."

The news outlet reported that Salisbury Council has claimed it contacted Vlajkov three times, but after hearing nothing back, had to issue a formal cease and desist order. It comes under the Local Nuisance Act.

It's not the first time a well-meaning act has caused local councils to respond with a fine.

A nurse who left free apples outside her London home for her neighbours was fined £150 by her local council - for 'fly tipping'.

Kind-hearted Lydia Farrell, 33, left fruit in pots and boxes against the wall outside her home, with a sign that invited passers-by to help themselves to the fresh apples. The fruit came from a tree in Lydia's garden and she said it would have gone to waste otherwise.

Understandably, Lydia was shocked to receiving a fine notice from local authority Ealing Council, in west London. She was even warned that she could face court if she didn't pay the £150 fine.

She shared a post on Facebook, which read: "Feeling disheartened... The council has fined us £150 for 'fly tipping' because we've been leaving free apples outside our house in cardboard boxes (because people were taking the pots!)

"A good deed unfortunately gone wrong."

Facebook/Lydia Farrell

One Facebook user replied, saying: "This is a really really good deed, loads of homeless people in need of food, kids going hungry and people struggling financially so to offer free food to anyone is really good."

The council revoked the fine in the end.

A council spokesperson said: "The council recognises that the spirit of the residents' actions was with good intentions. We will be in touch with Ms Farrell to rescind the fine.

"Our priority is to make sure the borough is clean and litter free and we apologise for any inconvenience this may have caused."

Featured Image Credit: 7News

Topics: World News, Australia News, Animals