HELP- Need to hide my coop

[ArizonaNessa]

I love the previous poster's idea. Haha I can almost bet there is no law or code against having a barnyard themed backyard. You can decorate it like a little farm and do just as the person suggested. Someone is gonna be feeling really silly when they go in and bust you for having some stuffed fake chickens and heck just for effect you could make a little fake hog pen too!!!!

The people investigating the claim will feel as though their precious time has been wasted and they will just roll their eyes at any future complaints.

 

[Casey3043]

I think the idea of a little coop filled with realistic plastic chickens is a wonderful idea, and if you can play the sounds of soft clucking and an occasional egg song, it would just add to the ambiance. I think you are right that the management company would get tired of coming out there to see *NOT* real chickens!

 

[Davis5454]

While you are at it....a few cow sounds and donkey sounds and pig sounds would be nice too!!!

I'm of the opinion that you paid for it....it's YOUR land and they have no constitutional or legal right to tell you that you can't have chickens.

Ask them what LAW you broke!!! I hate neighborhoods like that.

 

[wombat]

I'm sorry you're in this situation, but I agree with the other posters that i this case, "rules are rules." You'd have been in a better position if you had sought to get the rules changed to allow a small number of birds before you got them.

HOA rules are rarely like municipal ordinances. Municipal ordinances can become out-dated, community opinions change, and things like keeping chickens in your backyard, which was out of favor for quite some time, come back into favor.

People who buy in HOA neighborhoods *want* rules to limit what their neighbors do. HOAs are generally less flexible than your average town council, and more political. There's an entire community near us that requires a permit and inspection by an HOA compliance inspector before you can paint anything on the exterior of your house, get new shingles on your roof, or put in a flower bed that isn't in the back yard. The HOA fees are exhorbitant, and the HOA agreement and rules are about 400 pages. We'd considered buying a rental property there a while back, and decided there was no way we would deal with that level of bovine fertilizer.

I rented in an HOA community once, that was bad enough. We were straight out of college at the time, and had a bit of fun with finding crazy things we *could* do just to annoy our neighbor ... like getting 20 pink lawn flamingos ... and having several big hairy dudes hang out in lounge chairs in the front yard drinking beer when the neighbor had an open house whiile his house was for sale ... because we were sure he'd stolen the lawn flamingos. If I were you, I'd plan on moving.

Good luck, but odds are, you're going to need to find a home for your chickens before you can get the rules changed. Got anyone who can give them a temporary home, so that you can go in "birdless" and try to get the rules ammended? Got any friends amongst your neighbors who have lived in the neighborhood a long time, and would be willing to side with you?

 

[lildinkem]

Hi,
I built a portable coop/pen that is 8' x 8' x 4' tall.
I live in inner city Indy. I have a pair of Lawn mower wheels on one side, this makes it easy to move in and out. You could roll them in at nite into a shed or barn or even the garage. During the day I move it to fresh grass. Don't have a need for a mower LOL Chicken mowin with these pens. The roof is two 2' x 8' fiberglass waffle type of roofing. I learned to get the ones that block the sunlite out. The birds love it. I took my 3 month oles out into them and in the one months they've doubled in size. Chickens when allowed to eat grass, that will make up to 30% of their diet. I even have a nice chair to sit inside the pens with them. Very cool to sip Ice Tea with the kids runnin a muck over ya.
Good luck in NJ, my mom was born in Fort Dix. I was raised in NYC for 13 years. Prolly I am the only kid from PS 90 Richmond Hills Queens to have chickens. Or even hold one. Have fun.

 

[Ladyhawke1]

Quote:
I just love this idea. As soon as I get off the floor I am going to try it.

Right down the road from us...in the fancy community....they have three life size, plastic, black and white cows. Ya all can see them from the road. I don't mind a bit.

 

[Buugette]

I don't have chickens... I have a nice rabbit hutch with a run. I have one very rare and exotic Hilltop Crested Parolet from the deepest darkest regions of Africa... and 5 extremely rare Chernobyl Rabbits imported specifically for me. Did you know that there are less 100 found anywhere in the world?

(Never mind that they look like a White Crested Polish Bantam hen and 5 varied colored Silkies... you just never mind that...)

D

 

[mayden]

I like the fake chicken idea. Don't know what you would do with your other chickens but I think it just may work especialy if they come back and see that they are plastic. I know rules are rules but some rules just don't make sense. What's the harm.

 

[wing it]

are you allowed to have a shed ?? fence??

 

[rsiegfried]

Thank you all for your replies.

To clarify, the community we live in has a "villa" section in which all of the homes are exactly the same and residents pay a maintenance fee. We live in the section that is comprised of individual homes, not exactly the same, each on 3/4 acres and not maintained by the homeowners association .

Regardless, there are rules that specify that only "normal household pets" are allowed. We didn't seek "approval" because the chickens are in a 3' x 5.5 ' arc and never roam free. There were no complaints of noise, smell, unsightliness. Only a complaint that we have them. If the real estate market in NJ was better, we would move TODAY! This is not the first issue we have had. This same neighbor complained that we were violating the rules by allowing our dog in our yard unattended and without a physical barrier. Despite the fact that we have an electronic pet fence and the dog NEVER left the property.

We will probably try a 6' privacy fence. I will definitely try the fake chickens. At least I can humiliate the ASS who is my neighbor.

BTW: I went to PS 135 in Brooklyn and have chickens.... for now.

Rich:cd

www.rsiegfriedmd.com