neighbours

[Annie]

Hope this is the best page for your thoughts. We live in a largish village at the foot of the Campsie Hills north of Glasgow our house is on the outskirts off the village on an estate about 30 yrs old - ok so far. We have already tested the news of our intention to keep chickens to a couple of neighbours and had a positive response but have a problem with the family whose property joins onto the bottom of our garden. The 'boy' of the house is car and motorbike daft and his favourite pastime is revving one or other of his machines up for 10 minutes at a time. A couple of years ago we tried speaking to his Ma but where met with the response of whats he supposed to do he's fixing them .Things became so bad that along with a couple of other neighbours we got the community wardens involved and to an extent the problem has lessened. Ma is not going to like chickens next door and we feel her time will probably have come to get revenge ! There has been no communication between us for a long time we steer clear as far as possible but do we take the bull by the horns and tell her our intentions or go ahead and cross that bridge when we get to it ? Anybody had a similar dilemma when starting out ?

[jannie]

I would be more worried about the noise of the engines upsetting the chickens than the chickens upsetting your neighbours....they can get pretty freaked out by unusual noises...mine start buk buk bukking when they hear walkers chatting as they pass. ...can you site them at the top of the garden.?

[janepick]

I would go round with a box of eggs, be bright and cheerful and not mention the past.... it will be hard for them to be hostile to you if you are being so nice! Last thing you want is them making trouble for your new girls

[4c lady]

If it was me I wouldnt tell them as you are not attached to them housewise. I live on the edges of a big estate and im the end house of a terrace block but there is a row of houses along side me and behind me. Our fences/house frontages are only seperated by a pathway. I told my immediate next door neighbour but didnt tell anyone else. It took my neighbours 3 months before they finally realized I had chickens and my next door neighbour but one only found out I had chickens last month and ive had them since August 2008. Cars dont bother mine in fact they have learnt the sound of my car as the always know when ive got home and are all pacing the run fence before I even get to the back door. As long as you dont have a cockeral you will be fine - chickens arent that noisy you just get the odd one who wants to tell the world they have laid an egg but a dog barking is far worse. I do have tall fencing and it is covered by thick ivy so I think this deadens the sound a lot. I have 12 chickens too. I let mine out at 7 (as I go to work) on weekdays and 8 on Saturdays and Sundays. When I first had them I was paranoid about every sound and the - do they smell panic but 2 years on I think if anyone was going to complain they would have done by now.

[Victoria]

I'm with Jannie!

[manda]

Do the deeds of your house say it's OK to keep chooks? That would be the only stumbling block if the lady in question was going to take any revenge...if the deeds say no chooks she could force the issue. If the deeds don't mention anything about livestock (and in many cases chooks are included in that) then all good - you can then choose whether you tell her or not or include free eggs as an olive branch

[redd_angel55]

I agree with Manda, check your deeds first! I only told my nearest neighbours that we are getting chickens and they love to hear them bok bok'ing away all day.
Good luck

[Totally Scrambled]

As Manda says, if you own your house check the deeds, if council/housing assoc check the tenancy agreement. If nothing is mentioned go ahead but I wouldn't tell them you're getting them. As has been said chances are people won't even realise you've got them.
If it takes your neighbours some time to notice then try and get their own back the time lapse will help you especially if no one else has complained. If you tell them in advance they can start complaining right away if they are the sort to be vindictive.
If you see them peering over the fence you could always get a recording of a cockerel, play it at odd times and wait for the council. They will look silly if they complain about the crowing when it is plain you don't have a cockerel
Dom

[Fuffy]

I agree with all the others.

But I would make VERY sure the chickens couldn't get out! Also assuming your deeds are OK, it's actually none of her business. And if she were to complain about the noise, you could point out that they don't do it at nighttime ( so long as you don't have a cockerel).

Consequently, if she were to try something she would be setting herself up for major trouble...trespass, theft...whatever.

Am I making any sense?

Good luck

[redd_angel55]

If you see them peering over the fence you could always get a recording of a cockerel, play it at odd times and wait for the council. They will look silly if they complain about the crowing when it is plain you don't have a cockerel
Dom

I like the way you think Dom!

[geronimo666]

Chickens (ours anyway) don't even flinch at loud noises,
it's more movement and stuff going on close to them mine flinch at, we have loads of car garages at the back and people with all manner of exhausts and de-cats, big lorries, noisy quads go shooting off up the road, they don't flinch, but when the wind blows their door shut, they jump a bit

[secret squirrel]

I would just go ahead and get them. You will have had them for ages before they notice. My neighbours all say that they love hearing the chooks in the garden. MY neighbour 3 doors down sits in the garden and listens for them.
You can please some people some of the time but you cant please everyone all of the time.
You will live with regrets if you miss this chance. Its `your` garden and you can do what you please in it.
Mine arnt too bothered about loud noises, and dont forget, the colder weather is on the way and your neighbours son wont want to be out fixing cars when its too cold, but your chooks will prefer cooler weather to hot, so time is on your side, seasonally.
lorna

[bluebell]

I would go ahead and get your chooks - deeds of your house allowing. You could argue (well if push came to shove) that the boy creates more noise and more pollution, etc., with his cars.

At the end of the day revving a car is louder than any hen. If she was to approach you offer half a dozen of the girlies eggs, and mention you may have not had a good start but live and let live and all that

[GerryOB]

I was really worried when we got ours as I didn't realise how noisy they can be when they have laid an egg. We don't get on with either of our immediate neighbours, or one that lives a couple of doors away who is known as the neighbourhood watch, because if anyone does anything, she's there complaining about it.

Anyhow, we decided that as we have to put up with their foul language, kids screaming and shouting and their dog barking when they go out and leave it shut up, and in the case of the other side, where I've suffered several years of broken sleep because of their kids screaming and crying in the night against the party wall, that it would make a change for the noise to be coming from our side of the fence. The way I see it is that general birds make a heck of a racket and no one complains about that, yet I have four and if they are complaining, then it goes to show they are doing it because it's me and for no other reason.

Love the suggestion about the cockerel recording. I'm *SO* going to try that if the nosey woman down the road starts complaining

[Natalie]

Don't worry about your neighbours!! i live in a ground floor maisonette, i didn't tell anyone i was getting my girls!! luckily my garden is attached to my property and the girls live down the bottom end, the upstairs garden backs onto mine!! i was worried about what they might say, but the guy upstairs says he is so amused he can't help but watch the chickens when he's washing up!! I was worried about about the noise, but they are no louder than the crows making their racket in the morning!! Once though at 5.30am Ethel was clucking like a trooper and i jumped out of bed ran down the garden to try and shut her up, eventually she did!! I was convinced upstairs were going to complain, but they never said a word!!

As for loud noises, mine don't seem to mind anything, they are use to my son running round the garden like a, looney, we have had neighbours let off fireworks during the day, they don't seem to but an eyelid!!

So do check the lease/deed though!!