Chickens and Neighbors - Precautions?

[pansophia]

Our coop is nearly finished, the feeders and most of the supplies are in the garage waiting, and hopefully we'll go pick up our chickens next week!

We are doing this in our suburban backyard and have tried to be very sensitive to our neighbors. We don't actually need neighbor or city approval to have just two hens but we've asked around as much as possible to make sure everyone is comfortable. It is a bit unusual, to say the least!

So far the response is great and I have a feeling that our chickens will be neighborhood celebrities! This brings it's own set of concerns as I want to protect the health of our chickens and our neighbors. are there any precautions you have to taken to assure your neighbors that you are being careful?

I've seen recommendations to keep a tarp on hand to cover the run in case of an avian influenza outbreak. What about smaller things like keeping hand sanitizer near the coop for visitors.

I don't want to be paranoid, but I do want to be prepared.

 

[bigzio]

Pansophia, Being concerned is important and that will go a long way in educating your neighbors. Hand sanitizer is a good idea, cause washing your hand after handling the birds is a great practice to share with everyone.

Avian influenza is the least of your worries and totally blown out of proportion by our gov.
Heaven knows they never mislead or cover up issues. Propaganda runs rampid in our country, so one needs to sort out the truth.

Backyard chickens in america are as safe as washing your hands.

Sharing fresh, more nutritious eggs with your neighbors is good for them and you.
Good Luck.

bigzio

 

[goddinfla]

If the neighbors give you too much trouble you may have to consider culling.......the neighbors, that is.

 

[chickbea]

I agree with bigzio about the avian influenza panic. The most I ever do to keep things safe at my place is to isolate any new chickens coming in, and I try to keep wild birds away (I cover the run where the food is with berry netting, and I only feed wild birds in the winter, far from the chicken area).
I have neighborhood kids come visit my chickens fairly regularly. I do set a couple of rules, though: no feeding them when I'm not there, and absolutely no going into the pen without us home.

Oh - I also have a little sign on my electric fence so no one can cry about getting a zap!

 

[kelli120]

My neighbors don't have an inch to complain about any pet I decide to have. On one side of my fence the neighbor has 5 moody pit bulls and 2 other smaller dogs, on the other there is only one dog that makes it his business to do his "business" in our front yard. Across the street there are 2 dogs that they refuse to keep on leashes, one house down from him they have no less than 6 hunting hounds that howl every night, and directly in the back of us there is a cat lady, next to her there are 3 yappy chihuahuas, and another loose pit bull that roams around.


So I don't think I will have any problems with my 4 hens (no roos of course, I don't want to disturb my neighbors)

 

[chickbea]

Oh my!

 

[Critter Crazy]

I dont care what my Neighbors think, cause well we just dont get along very well. But they are far enough away that It dosent matter. we only have one neighbor that can be seen from our house, other than that we are surrounded by woods. I own the property directly behind there house tho, and have been tempted to place a large pen with peacocks, just to be mean!The cost of the birds has kept me from doing this so far!

 

[teachumusic]

Our hens are goofy. The white Leghorn thinks she is a roo sometimes and comes out to crow. I couldn't believe my ears the first time it happened. But she lays eggs! She's our only white egg layer.

The neighbors on our right had chickens so they don't mind. The ones on the left were worried but ok with it now. But they let their dog bark for an hour straight every morning so I don't care when Sunny crows.... :.)

 

[Llysse]

I think it's always a good idea to stay on good terms with your neighbors if it's in your power. (Sometimes it's just not in your power!) Bigzio had a great suggestion when he mentioned sharing eggs... unfortunately, with only two hens, you might not have too many extras to share around. I guess that means you might be able to recruit a couple more local chicken keepers to the cause once they've tasted REAL eggs... ?

Some things neighbors tend to be concerned about aside from the noise of roosters (which won't be a problem for you), are the looks and the smell of the coop. If you keep the coop clean, honestly there's not usually much smell outside. As for looks, I don't know what yours looks like. Some are adorable, and some are more utilitarian. If you're interested in proactively keeping the peace, you might consider the looks of your coop if you haven't already. Maybe add a coat of paint, or a box of flowers outside the window or planted along the run.

It's easy to be frustrated with neighbors who have yappy, poopy dogs who have the nerve to complain about noisy, poopy chickens! I'd much rather listen to a crowing rooster, so I can't understand it myself. On the other hand, avoiding neighbor trouble if possible is always a good idea.

 

[pansophia]

I agree that the avian influenza thing is blown way out of proportion, but we're a country of fear mongers so if I can convince people I'm prepared or at least aware then it's worth it to me.

For the most part since we're only doing something fully within our rights and the law I don't care what the neighbors think. But we like most of our neighbors and want to maintain that. Someday we hope to have a bit of land out of the city but for now we are in the heart of suburbia - and an old, tightly packed suburb at that. Though chicken keeping is gaining popularity in the area, we're still getting a lot of "What? You can have chickens?? Here???" sorts of comments. Hopefully we'll educate a few people!

It's obvious that most people around us don't know that it's perfectly legal to have two chickens (not roosters) and permits for additional poultry are available. Even with the law behind us, it only takes one or two busy bodies to cause a fuss or even try to change a law. I'm hoping that a large dose of caution and education will prevent that from being an issue. As a real estate agent, I know *exactly* what one crabby neighbor can do.

Thanks for all the comments and reassurance! Our coop will probably be substantially done today and then I get to prettify it. Why am I so excited to paint a chicken coop but refuse to pick up a paint brush to fix up the house??