Picky one neighbor suing for smell

[michelle44106]

I will let them out when I am around after dinner,So they do not have the chance to go to other people’s property.
Unless it is enclosed, some chickens are clever enough to find out a way to come out.
I think the law should give merit of accident. Also, educate more , other than punish more.
Unless raising animals are banned in the US, animals will be raised, no matter some people do not like them. I know a school raised group of chicken indoor near the window that has direct sunshine, they use compost.Well, no rain problem indoors though. I will keep five of my chickens in house, and send away the rest, and raise earth worms in the run, so the chickens will have enough worms to eat,

 

[Lazy Farmer]

Good fences make good neighbors-

 

[123RedBeard]

Just reducing to five chickens will be a huge reduction in smell from the 14 chickens you have now, by almost 2/3's!

While chickens obviously poop during the day ... they poop more at night while roosting to sleep ... look under their roost.

Do you have a way to just clean that area every morning? A "poop board" (mentioned above) is a shelf or tray that is under the roost, and has sand or PDZ on it, which helps to dry, but also makes for easier cleaning ...

Keep breathing, and smile at the crazy neighbor, she will spend all day wondering why your smiling at her ...

 

[IamRainey]

Have you contacted your neighbors who are also harassed by this woman? Is it possible you could all sign a petition that the local government stop abetting her in her nuisance complaints and law suits?

You might also check with them to see how they deal with her. Chances are if they just blow her off you're getting her full attention since she intimidates you.

 

[aart]

She would call police

So what happens when she calls the police on you?
Do the police come talk to you....what do they say?

 

[IamRainey]

Do you let your chickens free range or keep them in a coop and run? You might want to consider keeping them contained. That way you can keep them on a deep layer of pine shavings.

Pine shavings are not expensive when you buy them in the large bails. Keep 3"-4" in both the coop and run. It will dry out the poo and keep it nearly odor-free.

Fourteen is not so very many. I have 10 in my coop and you have to be right on top of the run to smell anything.

 

[Quackter]

I have a neighbor, who acts like law,by calling cops non stop, and is going to send me in jail. She would call police , if any dog accidentally got loose, if children play in my yard, said on my behalf. Another neighbor got two dead trees, and Called non stop, and yells at city clerk, and gets her way, for the new trees be planted. She told workers of neighbors to stop the machine. Because it was loud to her. She is so nosy, everyone knows her, and one other neighbor saw her twice, that she bought stuff from store, use it, and try to return it, and she got her way.
She used to complain to me and husband any time she saw us, about rabbits, squirrels, and the weather, before we have chickens.
After we have chickens, she is constantly at us. She took lots vedios, and pictures of my yard.
We used to have no fence, so they did go every where, and caused trouble, then I fenced them. But then they learned their way to come out .we are constantly improving.Last summer, the chickens learned to dig tunnel from the near by veggie garden and out. And we did not find out for a while, thought other reasons. Then we were out of town, and she called police, yelled at care keeper , a friend I asked. And I was fined. She even asked me to pay for landscaping money of hers, but she did not get it.
She said my chickens damaged her flower, this year, my chicken have never been to her yard, and her flowers were still bad. And she is suing for smell. I need to treat the coop every time it rained and get hot. But I was out of town for a week, and she called police. I asked friends to care for my coop, they could not work do diligent. Also my husband and I have different opinions, about how to reduce odor. I think compost is good, he thinks cider mulch is good. Then I figure out moss is good. We were not educated what is the proper way to do by the city regulations to eliminate odor. And we only try and see. No other neighbors have problem. Some of them wrote letters to keep me out of jail. This lady like to call cops. My car was broke, and parked on the curb for one night, and she called cops. She lied to police she is cuing me on behalf of neighbors, and the police told me if I do not know how to keep a coop, I need to quit. But my heart broken when I try to give away my chickens.I got emotionally attached to them.she is constantly looking for something to get angry and yell at police, city clerk, and store workers.I live beside her. Once I cut a branch that goes in my eye, which is out side both of our property, but the root is on her side, she yelled at me. I think she is watching us. Sometimes when I and my husband work on yard, we look up, she is right there , near the border, try to look away. Yes, animals have smell. On some days, you would smell animal pees and poos out door. Some schools keep pets and chickens in door. People work in pet stores having no health issue. How much smell is against the law? Police came , and smelled hardly , and decided there is smell.the neighbor like to walk on the border , try to catch us I guess. She has a huge yard, but I saw her several often walking along the border.
When her son was home, some times I woke up during night by loud music of his car when he came home. If I wait for him, and catch him on the act and call cops, I would be successful, but I am not such person.
It is illegal parking a car on the traffic , but accidents happen. Next time she call on us, I am in jail! Or I need a huge fund to bail myself out.Help!
I did things beyond the regulations .

Not a lawyer by any means, and it sounds like everyone else is giving you some sound advice. You're not going to go to jail unless you've been cited earlier, and failed to comply or blatantly defied the order. Civil penalties or her suing you for diminished value, etc., that is a possibility.
Best advice, document, use good practices and document everything. It sounds like she is "one of them". If none of your neighbors have a problem, I am sure the police and whomever else may be involved are used to her. If she has clout and knows people in power it could actually be a problem, (not fair, but is true), if not, they are probably just sick of her pita bread. Stand up for yourself, if it is just a case of the squeaky wheel getting the grease, start squeakin'. Heck, squeal. Get your practices down, bin composters or tarp and keep your moisture right, don't spread it until it is done, make sure you meet any and all ordnances, document your progress, document every contact with her and any official, (whether it's good or bad for you), Talk to her neighbor on the other side of her, probably issue there too. Give your neighbors some eggs, a little stroking will help you if you need statements later. Don't take no smack from a bully, or busy body, or whatever, sue her butt for harassment. 14 chickens? How bad could it be?
Share some pics, plenty of people on here would be willing to help you with ideas to make your coop easier to clean, vented, etc.

 

[RoosterML]

I say borrow a rooster from someone you know if possible and keep it for awhile. That should get her going at about 4am. Hell I would gladly pay the fine just to piss her off. Also get a blow horn and the next time you are on the property line working and she starts flapping her jaw. Let the horn rip. Heck if you can’t beat’em join’em.
Besides a fine is not that bad, your sending money into your community. Just think of it as a donation to charity.

 

[Quackter]

I say borrow a rooster from someone you know if possible and keep it for awhile. That should get her going at about 4am. Hell I would gladly pay the fine just to piss her off. Also get a blow horn and the next time you are on the property line working and she starts flapping her jaw. Let the horn rip. Heck if you can’t beat’em join’em.
Besides a fine is not that bad, your sending money into your community. Just think of it as a donation to charity.

Blow horn, nah have eggs and pinto beans, blow another horn every time she opens her mouth. What ever fine got wrote on that, would get thrown out, the illegible writing by the shaking laughing cop.

 

[Duck_life]

Thanks for the replies. My plan is to reduce chickens to five, keep them in the chicken house, which is almost covered all, other than the side, they need sun shine. The house could be kept dry is not raining heavily. I have done everything but more than the law required.

You shouldn't have to reduce because of some neighbors): if i were in that situation i would move! of course everyone is different, maybe try a run with a roof on it and fence underneath the ground a tiny bit of ways.