Preparing for "The Talk" w/neighbors

[Stingray72]

You will be surprised at the reactions you receive. I told my neighbor across the street and he was jealous. He said that if I get away with it the HOA, he's going to get some chickens too.

I thought the all the neighbors would freak, but instead they thought it was pretty cool to have a source of fresh free eggs.

 

[fallenweeble]

there ya go, get the neighbors on the chicken bandwagon! offer to set them up with chicks and then the whole darn block can be a big chicken haven!
wouldn't that be great?
i live next door to a guy who raises chickens and A LOT of roos so i can sneak a couple of roos and no one knows the sound is coming from our place. he's had his chickens every since we've lived here and as far as i know no one has ever reported him to animal control. then again, our neighborhood is very diverse and lots of folks hail from places where keeping chickens etc. in your yard is "normal." most folks here probably wouldn't even think to report something as normal as keeping chickens!
(we gotta change these laws people. if it's legal to own an umbrella cockatoo in the city then it should be legal to have chickens, including roos!)

so good luck, i hope you have much success with the neighbors.
p.s. i think the idea of offering folks eggs is a very good one. i think most people would find the prospect of fresh, homegrown eggs pretty neat. (except for picklespickles silly neighbor!)

 

[KingsCalls]

What does your neighbors consider to be a nuisance? You said they all keep their dogs in a fence so, I take it that they stay home! Would this be what they consider a nuisance? Or the possible smell? Or the noise? Dogs make noise, dogs smell (sometimes), but you said their dogs are in the fence. I think as long as you follow what they are doing you should be fine. Just do your research before you have the talk, so that you know what you are talking about.................Shouldn't have a problem.

 

[lurky]

Quote:
I agree with wooden-pony.....if the town says you can have chickens.......you dont need to ask them. But if you want a rooster....that could be considered a nuisance. So if you dont want a rooster.......you dont need to ask permission. But if you want a rooster, you could tell them you are getting some chickens and wanted to know if it would bother them if you had a rooster. I think that might be a good idea anyway just in case you end up with a rooster by accident. I paid extra for all girls and still got roosters. So at least you would be covered. Good luck.

 

[tiffanyh]

Lurky and wooden pony,
I was JUST about to say that. A nuisance I would think would be noise, so dont get a roo.

I wouldnt say anything, just smile and act all excited when the "notice" as if you never considered that they would need to know what you quitely do on your property!

Enjoy!

 

[hsm5grls]

If you are zoned for chickens then it really isn't any of the neighbor's business if you have chickens. As long as they are cared for. I personally wouldn't say anything...sometimes people freak at the thought of chicken but later when they see them and learn more about them they are fine with it. To quote my neighbor who raises chickens when I asked what the neighborhood would think if I got a roo "You are zoned for them so who cares what they think, the county says it's o.k. so get a roo if you want one"
Sometimes raising the flag before the fact causes more problems than if you were to just get them and wait until they see the fluffy butt's in your yard.

 

[Corey NC]

I left a note and a dozen eggs in my neighbors mailboxes, emphasising that my chickens are pets and if they have any problems with them to just le me know. So far there haven't been any complaints.

 

[Wildsky]

We live "just" outside the town limits.. (TINY TOWN) my chicks arrived as day olds, and we hadn't even been here a month! Then my first moment of excitement, taking my son to school - on trash day, and there outside someone's house IN TOWN was a chicken feed bag next to the trash

I keep trying to see their chickens, but still haven't (don't want to be TOO nosy)

We live just up a little hill, and have had a few kids follow my son home from school - and they're ALL surprised to see our "farm" the kids just love the chickens - can't keep em out the coop.

 

[Moselle]

Thanks everyone! We will definitely NOT be getting a roo, so that will help with the noise concern. Other concerns I can think of would be smell and a fear that the chickens will be running willy-nilly around the neighborhood. Those things can be easily addressed. The neighbors with the dogs might be concerned about their animals barking at the chickens all the time, but I would imagine the dogs would get used to them before too long (they really won't be in view of the chickens anyway.) There are tons of birds and squirrels around here already.

Do people ever seem concerned about bird flu?

 

[SeaChick]

Hi Moselle-

WE just went through this!!!!!
We live in a VERY tight neighborhood. Our lot is 55 x 100, we are bordered on 3 sides.
In our city, it was illegal to have chickens, and my daughter and I ran a summer-long campaign to convince them to change the law. But, before we even started that, we went aroung and talked to ALL the neighbors on our street and the one behind us, to make sure nobody had any objections.

here is what we did: Olivia (then 10) and I rang the doorbell. She handed the neighbor a printed-out sheet (see below) and said something like, "Hi, I'm Olivia. I live at xxxxxxx. I would like to get a few hens -but no rooster!- to keep as pets and for eggs, and I just wanted to make sure that it was OK with my nieghbors first."

Many people were enthusiastically all in favor. Maybe 40% had some minor concerns that she or I was able to answer right away, and then they gave their blessing (she actually got signatures to show the city, but of course you don't need to do that). The main concerns were:
1) noise. "Oh, there's already that loud beagle next door! Won't chickens make a ruckus!".... that one's easy. "We're not getting a rooster. Just hens, and they make much less noise than a dog!"
2) I don't want chickens running free in people's yard. What if my dog chases them? .... easy: "we'll keep them fenced in at all times."
WE also felt it was important to point out that the hens would be kept as PETS... that we'd be keeping them clean and odor-free just like any other pet... not like barnyard animals.

That was pretty much it, although once we got to talking to the town, other concerns like avian flu and smell came up. WE addressed those with research and facts... it can't heart to brush up before you go talk to them. Here's a link to the web site we have now about city chickens: www.sopochickens.org. and to the web site we used during the "campaign" :http://www.sailzora.com/chickens.htm

And this is the page we put up addressing the concerns and opposition that was voiced in our town: http://www.sailzora.com/opposition.htm

Here is the letter that Olivia wrote to the neighbors. She illustrated it with drawings of cute chickens:

Dear Neighbor,

My name is Olivia Collins and I am your neighbor at 123 ABC Road. I would like to have a few pet chickens (hens only, no roosters!) Hens are wonderful pets. They are a lot quieter than dogs or parrots, and if they are taken care of as pets, they do not smell!

Also, I think it is important to the environment to practice sustainable living. I grow radishes, carrots, and lettuce in my garden. My pet hens will give us fresh organic eggs (which we will be happy to share with our neighbors) and I will be able to fertilize my garden with their composted droppings. Chickens also eat lots of bugs which is good for the neighborhood. My parents say that it will also be a good lesson in responsibility.

Many cities in America, even large cities like Seattle, Burlington, Portland OR, Chicago, Miami and New York, allow and actively encourage backyard chickens because of the value to the community. They even have classes and seminars! Cape Elizabeth allows chickens, and Westbrook is about to change their zoning ordinance to allow up to 4 chickens per household. South Portland’s law is left over from a time when they wished to prohibit commercial livestock-raising in residential neighborhoods, but my hens will be pets, not farm animals. They will not be smelly and noisy like roosters and farm poultry.

I will be meeting with the city council on May 30th, and I want to make sure that my neighbors have no objections before I do. If you support this, please sign my petition.

Sincerely,
Olivia T. Collins

WEll, we've had the girls outside since September and the neighbors have been very interested and supportive. WE've been putting together packs of half-dozen eggs whenever we have enough, and she brings them around to the neighbors. Now some neighbors are even talking about getting their own!!

Good luck-
Stacey