Help me hush my hens!

[bucketgirl]

After months and months of quiet, sweet hens (2 Buff Orp, 1 barred rock), my ladies have begun to lay, and are making a consistent racket - vocalizing from about 6am until dusk with few, if any breaks. It's driving our neighbors nuts.

Short of getting rid of them, can anyone give me some tips for quieting them?

We've moved the eglu to the other side of our house, and started shutting them in at night until about 9am. I'm hoping this muffles the noise. My husband has noticed now the coop is on grass, they are quieter, so I'm wondering if it was boredom that was doing it?

Anyway, any tips, ideas, thoughts, toys, theories, wives tales... anything you have on keeping chickens quiet so I don't have to get rid of them, please please please post!

 

[Kittymomma]

Not really sure. Your idea that it might be boredom is interesting though. You might try throwing some treats in a couple times a day--chunks of apple, weeds, grapes.....don't overload them just give them something healthy that they have to "find" in their run. Couldn't hurt anything and might help. Best of luck!

 

[chick818]

OMG, I have been having the same problem. I believe it to be only one guilty party for the time being. We tried shutting the window at night and the hatch to the run, but I still hear her. (The neighbors haven't started complaining, yet) But it wakes me up, I have even tried sleeping with earplugs! I googled it and found out that they do an "egg laying song" or "egg song" if you look at it on you-tube you will see it and should sound the same as your hen's song.... Too Funny...

 

[chick4chix]

O M G- me too!! I have 6, 24week old pullets- (2 wyandottes and 4 EE's) only one (SLW) is laying so far and she make NO noise - she quietly goes up into the nestbox of the ark - lays her egg and quietly comes back down. It's one of the EE's that is making all the racket and she won't shut up! When I come out to see what the fuss is- she'll come over to me to say a thing or two about a thing or two. When I give them treats- she still makes noise- to make sure everyone else in the neighborhood knows that she has treats- or is bored- or dreams of laying an egg- or wants out of the ark- or wants in the ark or...???!
It used to be a secret that I had chickens in my urban setting- I'm sure the entire neighborhood knows now (this just started on Sunday) and it won't be anytime at all before I get an visit from the animal control

 

[koifarm]

Your ladies in waiting are just vocalizing to keep in touch, if you sit with them for a while, you will notice many different vocal sounds they use as a method for communication, chickens are really a very social bird, talking is a way of keeping the flock happy and adjusted and also as a way to communicate finding food, seeing danger and laying an egg....
The sounds they make are quite peaceful but when they lay an egg, they want everyone to know it. I shouldn't think your neighbors would be bothered by the noise unless you have a flock of 50-100. You only have three hens and I can't imagine the noise being a problem. Moving the tractor helps, also feeding them household compostable scraps, veggie peels, melon rinds and such like. You can also purchase 50# of "scratch feed" which is a mixture of corn and other grains and feed them half a cup twice a day....if you can, get a lawn chair and a cup of scratch feed and let the ladies out, call them up in any way you like and scatter the feed at your feet, they will soon be buddies. They probably think you are the roo as well so they want to let you know when an egg pops out.
If neighbors are really a problem and your county or city ordinances do not prevent you from housing hens then it's their problem, but try buying a dozen eggs from the store (sshhhh) and giving them to your neighbors, it may smooth the pathway a bit....