Loud, loud, loud hens! Help, please!

[Campine Lover]

My hens are very very loud. Sometimes they start screaming in the middle of the night even if there isn't any predators around. They scream if I don't let them out before 7:00 AM, and scream anyway if I let them out. If they know I am home, they will scream and yell until I come out. They are backyard hens, and there are many people in the neighborhood around in close proximity. I can hear the girls 2 blocks away, and one of my neighbors has a 3 month old baby. I HAVE to make the hens shut up somehow. One starts (I don't know who) then they all jump in! I have to stop them! What should I do?!??!!!!!?!??


(P.S. I have 11 hens/pullets!)

 

[stuckinthecity]

I feel your pain.... I have one hen that will do the egg song for no reason, and she just doesn't get it that ift he neighbors find out, she's going to a trade day- which probably means....fried chicken dinner. Umm, sometimes if you bring them treats it will take their mind off of making noise and they'll quit for a little bit. It's a shame that my prettiest, best layer....happens to be my loudest, most irratating.

 

[Katy]

They are just doing what chickens do...really nothing you can do to keep them quiet other than get rid of them.

 

[ranchhand]

I don't understand "screaming"? Mine make noise, lots of contented clucking all the time, and then they all join in the egg song when one lays. But screaming, so it's heard 2 blocks away? Never. So I'm confused?

My coops/runs are less than 50 feet from the house, and I only hear them when someone starts the egg song. And that's only for a few minutes.

Couple things to check:
Light getting into the coop at night?
Snakes coming in during the day?
Out of food or water?
Neighbor's dogs, cats or other noise?

 

[WoodlandWoman]

For the middle of the night screaming, I think something is probably disturbing them. It could be headlights from a car flashing into the coop, yard lights going on, a neighbor coming home from a late night or even a predator stalking around, that you don't know about. A nosy cat, dog or raccoon could be skulking around at night and be gone by the time you get out there with a flashlight. They'd probably hear and see you coming to check. Birds don't like rodents scurrying around them at night, either, even if it's outside. They could hear some scratching at the coop from any of these animals. Even light pawing or a little rattling of a door or window could cause frightened screaming. Those would be my best guesses. I would try to figure out what is causing the disturbance and then see what you can do about it.

For the daytime noise, spoiled demanding chickens can make a lot of noise! They can have a real sense of entitlement! The things they are most fussy about seem to be getting out of the run and being fed their favorite treats. Now, some aren't big complainers, no matter what you do, but some are. Sounds like you have big complainers. If their sleep is being disturbed, I would think that would only make them fussier. You could try keeping to more of a schedule for them and see how that goes.

Chickens that never get out of their run don't usually complain to get out. Chickens that get out of the run at the same time every morning usually don't complain that much, because they have a routine. Chickens that often get out, but then don't get out, seem to complain the worst. It's the same sort of thing with treats. If they are used to getting treats every day and then they don't get them or they're late, they'll fuss!

Maybe try letting them out at the same time every day or try an automatic door, so they don't have to wait. Either of those should help with the screaming to get out. Do they have enough square footage in the coop and the run? Is the screaming for you to come out in the yard related to you giving treats? You could try stopping all treats or you could only give treats once a day, at the same time.

I would also check them over for external parasites, just to make sure they don't have any mites biting them. That makes chickens fussier, too. So can molting. Some breeds are just more high strung, too. Or one chicken can get the others going.

 

[cobrien]

I agree with Woodland Woman. And I feel your pain! I would only add a few things:

Some breeds tend to be louder than others. I had a pair of Blue Andalusians that screamed during the day. One of them even crowed! I had to find them a new home for them in the country. You can't tell from the breed if they will be loud or not, but I'm just saying that some are known to have a tendency one way or the other. I got Black Australorps hoping they would be quiet - 2 of them are and 1 of them isn't, but she is nowhere near as noisy as those andalusians!

And also, crowded conditions can make them more frustrated. Do you have enough space?

I try to keep the chickens occupied during the day with big chunks of lettuce, cabbage, other snacks. I might also try some of the chicken toys from this thread
https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=17784&p=5

Good luck!

 

[WoodlandWoman]

I looked at the breeds on your page and I can see that a couple of your breeds might tend to be a little more high strung, aggressive and noisier. I was just posting the Henderson's breed chart on another thread for egg color, but it also has comments on how particular breeds do in confinement or if they are noisier.

http://www.ithaca.edu/staff/jhenderson/chooks/chooks.html

It's possible that you can modify some of their behavior. If it's mainly certain chickens, a different breed mix in your flock might help.

 

[easttxchick]

Quote:
I agree 100%. As loud as mine are with their singing and clucking, I have never understood how anyone could keep them on the DL. They are not particularly quiet birds.

 

[lemurchaser]

Mine throw a tantrum if they think they should be let out (to free range). When I had them on a schedule of getting out at 7am, then they'd starting making a racket around 6:30am (no way I could sleep through it, even with the windows closed). I picked a few days and kept them locked in their run. They were super noisy, but I started on a Monday so they wouldn't be noisy when people were trying to sleep in on the weekends. Then when I started letting them out again I mixed up the schedule, some days they get out at noon, other times 8am, other days not at all. They've been so much quieter since then. But then, mine have always been quiet when they are free-ranging. The other thing I did was not respond to them being noisy, I'd just ignore it. They had also learned that if they were super noisy I'd come out and see, and they think any time I come outside I have treats.

 

[Badlatitude]

Thanking God my hens are quiet girls and dont fuss about anything.

If I were you I would try and figure out who is starting this banter and seperate her for a day( maybe put her in a cat or dog crate in your basement? Then see if the rest do it with out her. Id hate to say it but they are all probably trained to do it now but you might get lucky. Give the noisy one away or chicken and dumplings

Its amazing how animals will key in on another animals behavior and COMPLETELY CHANGE!
I had 1 dog teach another one to be scared of everything!!! My lab was bomb proof for the 6 months I had him down in FL ( adopted him) Thunder storms every afternoon ... no bother , shooting guns didnt even phase him...... I bring him up to CT and my ding bat GSD who was scared of lightning , thunder , fireworks from 10 miles away and what not. Taught the lab the same crap! Now I have a 138lb duck dog* ( useless mouth to feed) thats scared of any noise and wount even go past his knees in water anymore

I love him tho hes my baby lol