neighbors

[jjthink]

I have a roo too, and so I hear you on that one! He's so wonderful though - love him a lot. I am in a residential neighborhood in a small town and the ONLY person with chickens. Livestock is not allowed on less than 5 acres (I have much less...) so it depends how they try to interpret it....I consider my birds pets and they are not for commercial purposes so I would fight it if the subject ever comes up.

Anyway, in order to try to keep neighbors happy, so no one challenges me on this, in addition to de-pooping obsessively to ensure there's no odor, I also have an insulated coop which really keeps the sound down, at least in the cold months when windows are closed. In the hot months, people have their AC's on so they don't hear him then either. The only time periods that are worrisome are the really nice days when windows are open in all the land. I try very hard not to let them out before 8 a.m. I am also lucky because my roo crows very little. Sometimes on a particularly nice day he'll crow for a few minutes in broad daylight, I think in celebration of the nice weather! My neighbors dogs, in contrast, sometimes bark - one specializes in ear piercing screeches - incessantly for hours and it's soooooooooo grating.

The roo vs. hen thing is something I always find interesting because I think in many cases the hens make more noise (tho none as much as dogs). When hen Annie wants O-U-T of the run, she can make any roo look like a cupcake. So usually my efforts are expended on keeping her - not him - quiet! She's quiet and happy as long as free ranging, the little tyrant (I love her too).

Hope everything works out for you and your feathered friends.

JJ

 

[BayCityBabe]

Regarding the landlord: Seems unlikely that he or she would throw out a good tenant and FORGO INCOME because of complaints. ("oh, so sorry to hear that you are smelling a sour odor, I will give up $700 mo. of my income so that's not a problem for you" - as if!)
I have worked in property management & the only time I ever confronted a tenant about his behavior was when it was an issue with another (higher paying) tenant in the same building. I didn't want an obnoxious person, whose lease was about to expire, to keep me from renewing a contract with a Big Deal Tenant. Doesn't sound "fair", but $ is $.
Another thought: Find out if yours is a "right to farm" state. Then, if anything comes to a head you can just throw that out there. I doubt that anyone is really so worked up about things that they would do in-depth research on local ordinances & such.
Best of luck.

 

[flakey chick]

You clearly do have a smell problem: your neighbors stink.

When I first approached our neighbors about getting chickens their response was "Oh boy chicken poop. that sutff is great in the garden." I would compost and try to give it to someone (gardener) who will apreciate it.

 

[tiki244]

Quote:
you betcha my neighbors stink

Bay City Babe where would I find out about about a right to farm state? I live in Wisconsin. we should be able to farm!!!!

Madison has a 4 chicken rule,,but mine are bantys and I dont live in Madison!

My neighbor that gets all the gossip is telling me I cant even keep chickens in the house. Very upset about that!!! Come on now! So I put them in a cage in the house at night?!!! what is with that.

My compost turned to dirt- part of it, the other part I have covered with a tarp,,,,,should I remove it? the compost? But we are allowed to have a compost pile!

GlacierNan what iss sweet PDZ and is there a good kind and bad kind like DE?


These people seem to be in a real uproar.....I know there are quite a few regulars down at the corner tavern and I suppose once they have a few "group mentality" really sets in.

I dont drink. So am not in the group. The one tavern regular had a dog that barked all day every day till just this year. The other neighbor had screaming meamies all day every day till just this year. I never complained.

It is very unnervig to hear that the neighborhood is "trying to decide my fate" behind my back. You know what I mean? Thanks for the good ideas and support. I will look into some of this stuff. Thanks so Much I really am in need aof a boost these days. ugh. Cant wait for the neighbor on the other side to have one of his beer bashes

Do these people seriously think their way of life is the only way people live?

 

[sundance]

I use DE, when I replace the hay in the chicken coop. The run is fenced so I don't worry about it. but again i live wayyyyyyyyyyyyyy back in the wood with wild cats coyotes foxes skunks( sounds like you live with the skunks to.) When I clean up my coop I put it on the compost heap. If the neighbors say anything ask them if its the compost they are smelling since you can't smell anything. After all everyone is trying to recycle these days.

marrie

 

[BayCityBabe]

I Googled "Wisconsin, right to farm" & there's alot of stuff. This link might interest you.
http://datcp.state.wi.us/workinglands/pdf/sept7/Right_to_Farm_Laws_Briefing_Paper.pdf
I think the particular utility of this concept is that you can create a smokescreen, ala "Blah, blah... right to farm...blah, blah..." This should shut up the yappers at the bar. I do not believe that these gossipy little monkeys are going to bother you, especially if your "friend" (notice that I put that in quotes) relays the message that you have done your homework and Wisconsin is "right to farm."
In my own situation, my neighbor "lady" (notice that I put that in quotes) is EVIL & NOSEY, so not only did I look up the ordinance before I ordered chickens, I printed copies of it to wave in her face if need be, THEN I let my own neighbor "friend" (big gossip) know that I was so excited to get chickens and happy that our ordinances allowed it.
Please do not let all this upset you.

 

[dskinla]

For odor control, and animal health, has anyone tried EM, Effective Microorganisms from Sustainable Community Development (scdworld.com)? I know of people on the east coast and in the midwest who use EM in chickens' water, feed, and diluted sprayed inside coops and over litter and they swear by the product's effectiveness and safety. It's both a probiotic and antioxidant as well as odor abatement. I use it in my garden and I drink it for health purposes. I don't have chickens yet, but if I get them I'll definitely use EM in their food and water and to treat their coop and run.

 

[silkiechicken]

How about buy a fresh bang of steer manure from the local store and spread it on a flower bed and say that's the smell. Are you sure it is your birds or just one nasty neighbor? Best of luck.

 

[auskittle]

Quote:
i don't think that smell stays for years and years. we clean out the coop eveyry once in a while when we finish it doesn't smell at all. but when it's there it's terrible!

you usually get used to that smell. we had like 40 chicks ina pool in our living room and didn't smell anything, then friends came over and mentioned how terrible the smell was.

 

[Cassandra]

At the advice of Nifty I've been putting pine straw down in my (dirt floor) coop and run. We actually talked about this in the easy garden website and he recommended it for composting.

I haven't found it to be as good for THAT. However, it totally eliminated the smell. I don't put a whole lot. I have eleven hens in a run. Every month or so (when I feel like raking it up) I go get a couple of wheelbarrow loads or a few five gallon buckets of pine needles that have fallen into my driveway. I dump that into the run. They spread it out themselves.

The reason I haven't been able to compost it is because it disappears! I don't know what happens, it turns into dirt I guess.

I mention this to you because before the pine straw, whenever it would rain or stay wet in the run for a day or two, the smell would be awful! I mean, seriously, I would gag just going out there to feed them. I don't know how it works, but since I started putting it in there, I smell NOTHING. It doesn't smell like pine straw... it just doesn't smell at all.

So, if you decide you ARE having an odor problem, might be something to try.

Cassandra