hens making SO MUCH NOISE!! Anyone else have this problem?

[sierracyd]

Hi,
We have 4 little hens in a tractor in our back yard (residential - 5,000 sq ft lot size). Every morning at dawn they begin this screeching routine and it is as if they are trying to out-do each other! It is really, really loud, and really terrible. I had no idea that hens could be so loud. It isn't the "bok bok baGAWK" (they do that too periodically) but more of a high pitched whining screech like we have a flock of pterodactyls! It stops if we go out there and give them treats or wave a towel or stick at them, but then usually starts up again in a few minutes. Then, around 8 or 9 a.m. they generally stop and only do it when they see us.

We are sure that they are spoiled and are begging for morning treats, but we haven't been able to wean them from the behavior.

We have had them for 4 years, and it seems as if they are getting louder every year. We have been lucky that the houses on either side and behind us are rentals, and renters turn over frequently and don't complain.

We're probably going to have to give them away because the noise has become so intolerable.

I'm just wondering if anyone else has this problem and if so, if you found a solution!!

I'm also wondering if we replace them with another small flock someday, if there is a breed that is known to be quieter than average?

Thanks!

 

[Imp]

Mine can be a little noisy in the morning too. They just want out of the run. I usually just give up and let them out, hopefully before they irritate neighbors. So far no complaints. As far as a possible solution could you cover the tractor and keep them in the dark till later in the morning. Good luck.

Imp

 

[Quack Shack]

Definently how my piggies on stilts get us out of the house for some attention and playtime with the kids. My laying hens are the louder than the roos at times during the day. Have you tried a radio? Serious. We took to playing some jazz this Spring and I noticed they weren't quite so noisey during the day aside from the usual new egg and we need some fresh water announcements.

 

[Monk]

Are they Leghorns? They are known to be more vocal(noisy), especially when they let you know they have laid an egg for you.

 

[sierracyd]

We think they are a type of mini game hen but we aren't too sure. Feisty girls, that's for sure.

Thanks for the input. Yeah, we actually tried covering the coop with old sheets a couple years ago and it worked for 2 days and then they started up again.

The noise is only really bad early in the morning so I'm not sure the radio would help as it would also be a noise nuisance at that time of day....but I like the idea of soothing them with jazz

I think locking them in an indoor coop (with insulation for noise...) and then letting them out into a run at some time in the later morning would be the best solution, so even if they make noise it is muffled, but building a whole coop seems daunting right now.

I'm really just wondering if we get a new flock someday, if we'll have the same problem. I really like having chickens except for this one issue! If I had some assurance that other breeds might be quieter than ours, it would help.

Do other people on this forum get hen noise complaints from neighbors?

 

[columbiacritter]

My girls are very quiet in the morning for the first hour or two then our "Opera Star" hen starts up. Not the egg song or the usual buk-buk-bukaw, no she has a whole range of arias and long solo pieces she likes to perform.

Lucky for us we're rural and our nearest neighbors are almost totally deaf. The only time she's a problem is the weekends when my husband wants to sleep in without a chicken singing scales under his window.

 

[cposz]

Just one of ours is doing this and just started doing it this week! Early in the morning - and no amount of going down there and shushing her helps. For the past few months since we got them (as adults) they have been so quiet - now one of them thinks she's a roo or something.

 

[CMV]

At our house when one of the hens starts screeching we say "Well, one of the girls has a bee in her bonnet." By giving your loud hens treats to shut them up you are reinforcing the undesirable behavior, so you should probably stop doing that right now. I have found that the hens that are screaming usually just want to get some attention. When mine start up I go visit with them for a few minutes, maybe collect any new eggs, chit-chat with them, make sure they have food and their water is clean. This is usually enough to make them quiet down.

 

[All about the EGG]

Oh yeah!

 

[Chickenaddict]

Sounds like the classic everyone join in "egg song" or they want out. Yeppers I have the same problem... solution? Get ear plugs lol