Can my neighbour kill my chickens?

[justbugged]

There is a saying that "Good fences make good neighbors." It sounds like this maybe the case here. i would make sure that it would not be convenient for the neighbor to wander around on your property looking for his wifes animals. If he hurts himself on your property then he sounds like a guy that would try suing you because he can, and he is a jerk.

 

[HudsonValleyGirl]

WOW

That being said, you might want to make some sort of tractor for them.

 

[The Lisser]

Quote:
Darkmatter, I like the way you think.

My first thought was that the OP should get some hogs and keep the hog pen next to that neighbor's property line. But Guineas would be even better!

Melissa

 

[Qi Chicken]

Quote:
It was yes to both. The complaint can be made either way. Some city by codes allow chickens, but don't allow noises between certain hours, and of corse trying to explain that to a roo is nearly impossible.

I like the NEARLY. It's hard, but it's possible!!!

 

[Renee]

Please stay away from people with "anger management problems." We value your contributions here, and would not like you to have it out with someone like that. It sounds like this person may have been required by the law to take an "anger management course" which he failed, but at which he learned some lingo. I would delay the tree-trimming until things have calmed down a bit or he is back in prison. You never know what someone like that is capable of.

It looks like you might have to spend some money on better fencing, locks on your gates, and as mentioned, put up NO TRESPASSING signs. If your roosters are close enough to your neighbors to really annoy them, you could consider moving them to a different area of your 12 acres.

It's your right to keep things exactly as they are (aside from the wandering fowl) but it may not be in your best interest with a nutcase next door. Best to handle the situation with kid gloves.

Good luck with your efforts to handle this guy.

 

[noodleroo]

It sounds like he is terribly bothered by lots of things. Some of the things are brought about by you and I'll bet most are not. He doesn't like hearing the roosters and then they wandered onto his property; that was probably like a 'last straw' as far as containg his temper. His anger makes him look for ways to be right to justify his actions. There are tons of people just like this-just waiting for the opportunity to explode because they have never learned to deal with their own problems and the anger that problems cause.

I believe that if your chickens venture onto his property, he has the right to kill them. Same as if his dog came onto your property; it works both ways.

Think of him and his property as you would a predator. You keep your chickens as (reasonably) safe from other predators; you have to keep them safe from him. I would start with a good fence between the two of you. Your chickens are your responsibility; his anger is his..........

 

[willjal]

Well said noodleroo.

 

[psittacinekane]

Thank you everyone for your help with this. Coming on here and posting allowed me a chance to step back and see it from all sides.

You are all right about the fencing. I'm going to figure out a way to contain them far away from him. (I went and had a look at the fenceline this afternoon, and they wandered over there to scratch and dig through the large piles of rotting branches and leaves he dumps along my Flex-rail fence, out of his view.)

Silencing these four though, is baffling me, so I'm going to have to cross that bridge with By-Law Enforcement if and when they get here. (They're too tiny to do much with, and I hate wasting a life if we're not going to eat it.

)

I'll hold off on the trees for now. The guineas and peacocks, however...hmmmm... quien sabe about them.

 

[Katy]

Here in Kansas it's the livestock owner's responsibility to have a fence to keep your animals off another person's property. If you don't keep your animals contained you can be held responsilble for any damages that they cause whether it's cattle eating someone's crops or a chicken scratching in someone's garden. They can keep your animals until they are paid restitution for the damages they have caused. It's legal to kill a dog that is threatening or killing your livestock, but I don't know if it's legal to kill the chickens. I'm sure these kinds of statutes differ from place to place.

 

[dogdollar]

In Texas, if he is on your land, and the land is not posted, it is not trespassing until you ask him to leave and he refuses. Then it becomes criminal trespassing. If the land is posted (and there are rules governing how it is to be posted), then it is criminal trespassing the moment he steps on it.
If I were you, I would try very hard to come to some terms with this guy...jerk or not. There are few things that are more unsettling than having a neighbor on bad terms with you, especially when you own animals. Try hard to make some peace....give him a couple of dozen eggs every now and then.....if it works, you can have peace of mind. If not, you will at least know that you tried to make peace. Remember, a LOT of people don't care for chickens one little bit, and from their perspective, a rooster crowing is a nuisance they have to be subjected to, in their own home, on their own property....all because YOU want to keep a few chickens.
On the subject of your livestock in his yard...you'd have to check your local ordinances, but if it were a cow or horse that wandered onto his property I don't think he would rightfully be able to kill it; especially knowing it was yours, but I don't know if this extends to chickens, dogs, cats, etc. especially when 1.) he perceives them as a nuisance and 2.) it happens repeatedly because you have made no effort to correct the problem.
I hope I'm not being hard on you...I love chickens and enjoy hearing a rooster crow...but I have been through an issue with a crazy neighbor, too...........we had been okay neighbors for years; just waving and making occasional small talk. One weekend I see him and his family packed up in an SUV pulling a trailer, leaving the house, and I notice he didn't take his dog, who was still in the yard. A day or two later, I notice he was still gone and asked another neighbor if he knew if the dog had food and water and they told me that from their yard they could see he had food and water, so I quit worrying about it. Two days later, this guy is banging with his fists on my front door....telling me that I had been trying to STEAL his dog (I guess the other neighbors told him I had asked about it) and that if I ever set foot on his property he would call the law, and if my dog ever went in his yard he would shoot and kill it...he was violent...cursing and screaming. I tried to explain to him that I was just trying to check on his dog and make sure it had water, but he wouldn't have it. I finally had to stick a 12 gauge shotgun in his face to get him off my porch and property, and he moved a few months later, but it was very unsettling, especially when I was away from home, to know this guy next door had an axe to grind. I would hate to see you in that same position if there is any way to avoid it.
DD

You may be able to find your local ordinances here : https://www.backyardchickens.com/laws/search.php