LA MESA, Calif. -- A La Mesa woman is drawing the attention and disdain of some city leaders because of her choice of pets.

Just beyond busy University Avenue near Allison Avenue lies a little piece of Jill Richardson's heaven. Richardson has been tending her organic garden for a just over a year. A few months ago she brought in some help: chickens.

"This is Victoria," said Richardson as she held a chicken. "She just started laying eggs. She's about six months old."

Richardson, who is a vegetarian, said the chickens help with gardening but she started raising them for health and economic reasons.

"You've got an animal that can eat your bugs, eat your weeds, eat your kitchen scraps and turn it into a valuable resource for you," said Richardson.

Though Richardson presents a compelling argument, it has yet to convince La Mesa city officials they should allow them in her area.

Not everyone is on board with Richardson's chickens. They said part of the problem is her property is not zoned for it. But if Richardson was two miles to the east, where lots are larger, city leaders said it wouldn't be a problem.

Richardson approached council members a year ago to change the law, which they considered. After months of not hearing anything, she decided to act.

"If all of a sudden somebody has chickens, we need to decide do we need to make this legal? People are doing it. Do we need to enforce the law? Are we going to actually give someone a citation for chickens?" said La Mesa Community Development Director Bill Chopyk.

City leaders said they have had complaints from less responsible chicken owners and the ordinance does serve a purpose.

"There are clearly benefits but there are also some downsides to it and it deserves a little more study," said Chopyk.

Until then, Richardson said she'll keep raising her chickens in the hope the city relaxes its policy.

City leaders said enforcement of the compliance program is based on complaints. In extreme cases, violators could face fines of up to $1,000.