Here’s a tip don’t get chickens in a urban area

[Fdny11Bravo]

I grew up with chickens in upstate New York, living in a outter borough of the city now, what a terrible idea. I’m a corner house it’s been about 2 years now with 5 bantams. They are EXTREMELY loud, have plenty of space, just relentlessly loud (not the egg song) just making a “CAW CAW CAW CAW” all day. I am not giving up on them, or giving them up because it is not fair to them. But i will advise anyone who has thought about it, don’t do it. Also the amount of raccoons, rodents, and cats that have been drawn to my house is absurd.

 

[artbykarenehaley]

Yes, it can be noisy to keep chickens. I'm sorry you're having a tough time with their noisiness and I can definitely relate. What breed do you have? I can't tell if you need to vent or if you want advice, and either way is totally cool with me. I gotta vent about my dogs sometimes. But if it's advice you need, try changing things up for them. I love to see the chickens check out a new treat or a fresh bucket of sand.

The noise you're describing I'm imagining is that uneasy, loud clucking sound they make. Mine do that when they want me to feed them, let them out, or are bored. That's when I know it's time to hang some apples, give them a pumpkin or an ear of corn, switch up their run arrangement, or give them some sand in a Rubbermaid tote for dust baths. When I do that they keep themselves busy and quiet for a while. Oh! Don't use string to hang the apples.they can swallow the string and die. I use a length of small guage chain I bought at the hardware store.

Chickens may seem simple but they still like to be entertained. I compare that noise to a tween whining "Mooooom, I'm bored! There's nothing to doooo..." While they sit in a room full of toys.

some breeds are super chatty no matter what you try, so like I said I totally get where you're coming from. I had some white faced black Spanish chickens in my little suburban mini farm. Hoo boy. I ended up trading them to my family that lives in the country for hatching eggs. They laid big, beautiful off-white eggs but they were the loudest chickens I have ever. Met. Ever. I called one of them Goose (always clucking like a honking goose) and the other Olive Oyl (had a nasally voice) after Popeye's girlfriend. Their replacements were much quieter barnyard mutts.

As for the vermin, it comes with the territory of chicken keeping unfortunately. I keep their feed in a big tote to keep the feed clean. but my chickens spill, the kids and I drop feed as we walk to the coop... Plus the sound and smell of edible prey animals draws in hungry animals. Best you can do is keep things secure. Good luck with your chickens, I'm glad you don't want to give up on them and I totally understand the rougher parts of chicken keeping.

 

[Backyard Divas]

I'm sorry you are having such a tough time with them! Is it related to the breed? Do you have a privacy fence or can they see all the road traffic? I'm at the end of a cul-de-sac and have a wooded ravine behind the house so it is fairly quiet traffic-wise.

My hens are really pretty quiet unless they are announcing an egg, giving a hen emotional support to lay an egg, or a predator is near. Well, except when two of my hens decided that they needed to crow in the morning because I took their roosters away. It happened on two separate occasions and I put a stop to it right away both times. Usually my hens just make quiet clucking or cooing sounds. The types I have/had are Hedemora, Cream Legbar, Buff Orpington (she was a real sweetheart), Wyandotte, Golden Deathlayers, Black Copper Marans, and Golden Cuckoo Marans. The Deathlayers were crazy active but not noisy. The Golden Cuckoo Marans was probably the noisiest. She kept up a low almost groaning commentary that sounded like she was complaining in French. "Eeeh, zees humon, she iss always late with ze scratch she iss. Why do we put up with zees orribal servees eh?"

 

[Fdny11Bravo]

Just venting lol my Cochin bantams are sweet hearts quiet minus the egg song, my Easter egger bantams i came close a few times to hatchet and soup