I understand backyard chickens are kept for many reasons and that not all considers them pets and more livestock. I do believe that there is some etiquette for neighbors and humane treatment of the animals regardless of why one has a flock. That being said….
I live in the suburbs, not the country. The area has some yard space and the houses aren’t on top of each other, but we don’t have acres. Many people in the area have chickens, including myself. My house is annoyingly directly in front of a 3 way stop. The neighbors are on a corner lot with a smaller backyard with a picket fence and a large front yard that covers the front and corner. They had chickens before I did. They had 4, the next year 8….16 and now today 34. Their chickens run all over the neighborhood, I see them blocks away at times, they are often in the intersection in front of my house and cause lots of honking. They hangout in my yard and poop in my driveway. They eat my flowers. They stop me from backing out in an already annoying intersection. People come to tell me my chickens are loose(The size of some of their eggs might indicate they are loose in a whole different way). Because their chickens have free reign of the neighborhood we now have coyotes regularly scope out our yards early mornings when I my dog is out. I find the poor dead chicken remains at the end of my drive way. We’ve talked to them and they said they are going to contain them to the small back yard, this was months ago. The yard is probably too small for their 34 bird flock and the birds roosting situation was tight when they had 4 so many of them just roost nightly on the picket fence, showing that’s not going to contain them height wise. My boyfriend even offered them a giant roll of chicken wire but they declined.
When I talk to them they assume I want to discuss chickens because I like chickens not the facts that I’m stating their flock is becoming a nuisance …and have shown me they are pretty ignorant to the species in general and pretty apathetic to their care or safety. I’m trying to keep conversations away from the subpar treatment of their flock because they aren’t my birds or business.
I do feel like the attraction of predators, the blocking of the intersection and amount of chicken poop in my driveway is my business. I’d like to start a garden in my front yard this summer, I can’t in the back as my chickens have demolished anything I’ve tried to grow. I have no idea how to talk to them or what I can even do as side filing some sort of complaint. Any suggestions?
I live in the suburbs, not the country. The area has some yard space and the houses aren’t on top of each other, but we don’t have acres. Many people in the area have chickens, including myself. My house is annoyingly directly in front of a 3 way stop. The neighbors are on a corner lot with a smaller backyard with a picket fence and a large front yard that covers the front and corner. They had chickens before I did. They had 4, the next year 8….16 and now today 34. Their chickens run all over the neighborhood, I see them blocks away at times, they are often in the intersection in front of my house and cause lots of honking. They hangout in my yard and poop in my driveway. They eat my flowers. They stop me from backing out in an already annoying intersection. People come to tell me my chickens are loose(The size of some of their eggs might indicate they are loose in a whole different way). Because their chickens have free reign of the neighborhood we now have coyotes regularly scope out our yards early mornings when I my dog is out. I find the poor dead chicken remains at the end of my drive way. We’ve talked to them and they said they are going to contain them to the small back yard, this was months ago. The yard is probably too small for their 34 bird flock and the birds roosting situation was tight when they had 4 so many of them just roost nightly on the picket fence, showing that’s not going to contain them height wise. My boyfriend even offered them a giant roll of chicken wire but they declined.
When I talk to them they assume I want to discuss chickens because I like chickens not the facts that I’m stating their flock is becoming a nuisance …and have shown me they are pretty ignorant to the species in general and pretty apathetic to their care or safety. I’m trying to keep conversations away from the subpar treatment of their flock because they aren’t my birds or business.
I do feel like the attraction of predators, the blocking of the intersection and amount of chicken poop in my driveway is my business. I’d like to start a garden in my front yard this summer, I can’t in the back as my chickens have demolished anything I’ve tried to grow. I have no idea how to talk to them or what I can even do as side filing some sort of complaint. Any suggestions?
