Neighbor threatening me and another neighbor about chickens

[bethany83]

Is the chicken coop near her house? I mean, its seems like with 4 acres, it would be far enough away to not hear any roosters.

In all honesty though, I am not happy when my neighbors get roosters either. I live in the suburbs, so not exactly the same, but even down the street I can hear someone's rooster crowing at 2am. It was the WORST when I had a newborn and wasn't getting any sleep at all in the first place. I had more than one fantasy about hunting that darn bird down and putting it out of MY misery!

If you do end up getting one, you'll have to build secure fencing and not just let them roam wild. If the dog shows up on your property, call animal control.

Have you thought about putting up fences period? Good fences = good neighbors.

 

[galanie]

Wow. Here's the way it would work out with me:

Her: "I'm going to send my dog over to kill your rooster!"

Me: "Well, OK then. I'll have to be sure the shotgun is loaded and handy."

What a nut. Yep, unhinged.

 

[seminolewind]

I value and love the chickens I have now, I don't live by "if it happens again." I do not want it to happen at all.

 

[newBonboard]

Quote:
I agree - Giving a reaction or getting upset over the comment is doing exactly what she set out to do. If your like me, you want to know that everything is copacetic around you and that all are happy BUT this cant always be the way things are and it's your right to have the chickens and a roo if that is what you so desire. I would never kill and punish a dog that was just doing what a bad owner told it to do ( unless it came on my property and caused intentional damage and even than I would let the law handle it ) I certainly would call animal control the moment the dog is being used for intimidation purposes on your property !! The fact that she would tell you this just blows my mind and I am guessing she is just a loud mouth blowing hot hair trying to get you to bend to her way. Ignore it !! lol

 

[haemony]

It always amazes me that people who have dogs complain about roosters. Dogs are a heckova lot noiser than roosters! Geez.

This lady had serious issues though if she threatened to have her dog kill your chickens. She's a straight up nutcase. I would not confront or engage with a person like that. She is clearly not a reasonable individual. I'd just call animal control over any loose dog. Lots of people around here have roosters on much smaller properties than 4 acres. That's a decent size property and there is no reason at all for anyone to complain about keeping chickens on that much land. I have many neighbors with only an acre or less who have a rooster. I hear a chorus of 4 roosters crowing in the morning from every direction.

I've noticed that people do not let their dogs loose around here. They must know better.

 

[ellend]

If her dog is on your property (and he/she may have NO interest in your chickens) PLEASE don't injure or kill it! It's NOT the DOG'S fault. Trying to "get even" with a neighbor by harming an innocent--instead of standing up to the neighbor--is cowardly!

If necessary, take a loose dog to a shelter. If they want it back, they have to pay--and this makes them more careful in the future. If they don't care enough to pay, with luck the dog will get a better home.

 

[ranchhand]

I'd just put up a fence to keep my birds safe and on my property, and keep the dog out.

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

Those of you recommending that the OP catch the dog and take it to a shelter are supposing that this dog will happily come to her when called and sit submissively while she leashes it and puts it in her car. If the dog is in a killing frenzy it would do serious damage to the OP were she to reach in and try to grab it. I don't know the dog, but it is possible that it would harm her even if not in a killing frenzy. There was a lady on here a while back that had serious damage done to her arm when she tried to grab a marauding dog and keep it from killing her pet chickens. If I remember right she had to have major surgery and was in therapy for months and even then did not regain full use of her arm.

If a strange dog is in your space and is in a frenzy the safest thing for you to do is shoot it. Most of us are dog lovers and would never want to harm a dog, but your personal safety and that of your children comes first. You should NEVER try to catch it if it is rampaging. Better a dead dog than a dead or damaged human. If the dog owner loved the dog she would keep it safely contained in her yard. If you have an animal control that will actually come out and deal with the problem, then by all means call animal control. However, most of us live places that don't have AC or have AC that tells us to shoot the dog. No, it is not the dog's fault that it has a stupid owner, but it will be the dog doing the damage. Your choice is only whether you will stop the dog or not. As a chicken owner it is your responsibility to protect your animals. Death by dog is not pleasant or comfortable.

 

[ADozenGirlz]

Did she say those things about sending over her dogs to eat your chickens TO YOU or someone else? I was going to suggest that you try to speak with her face-to-face to try and see what the root of her problem is. My sense is that she had a bad experience with a rooster and/or chickens and she's terrified of them. I have a friend that this happened to and those types of experiences tend to have life-long consequences.

You certainly do not need her permission to keep poultry on your property, but it would be nice to know what motivates her in the event it could possibly be addressed (ie: maybe she's afraid of being chased or flogged by a rooster then you could discuss fencing or confinement to a run when she's outside? Just a thought.)


I agree with the others who suggest documenting the threat formally with the police department. She has absolutely no right to threaten your animals with hers (assuming she made this statement to you). I would send an email to the chief of police asking for his recommendations for addressing your concerns with her.

Oh, and then get a donkey. She only THINKS roosters are noisy, see how she enjoys Dominick the Donkey!

 

[CityGirlintheCountry]

Quote:
Oh, great. Now I'll be singing THAT song all day. Sigh.