Roos vs. Neighbors-Need Advice

[NYREDS]

Quote:
Hi, I'm new here. I usually just lurk, but I felt strongly about this and wanted to let you know...
Unless you see, with your own eyes, actual abuse of children, please do not call Child Protective Services. False reporting is a crime, and even though you can report "anonymously" they can disclose your name with a judge's order. (usually when evidence suggests false reporting)
I have an estranged relative who can't stand that we homeschool, and disagreed with us on our conservative (nothing weird) beliefs. She decided to call in a false report chock full of lies, even though she hadn't seen my children or been to my house in years. An investigator arrived on our doorstep shortly thereafter. Unfortunately for us, we had already been judged guilty solely based on the false report. All evidence to prove us innocent was ignored by the so called investigator. (mountains of school records, plenty of food and clothing, water, electricity, shelter, all firearms locked up in a safe, negative drug tests and no drugs/alcohol present, affidavits from other relatives and our physicians, dentist, orthodontist, etc..., no marks or other signs of abuse or neglect on the children, a CASA agent- court appointed special advocate- who thought we were wonderful parents, and so forth) She decided that we were "at risk of educational and physical neglect." I found out later that this is a huge catagory designed so that almost anyone can fall into it. (woe to those with large families who live in rural areas!) CPS makes their money from federal CAPTA funding, so the more kids in their clutches the more funding they get- too much to get into here, there is an abundance of information on the internet if you're curious. Many innocent families have had similar experiences.
But I disgress. After CPS found us "at risk" they tried to force into "services." (another interesting area of research for the inquisitive)We refused to go along, they were ridiculous and intrusive. So we appealed their findings, and went to court with a lawyer. We spent thousands of dollars and countless hours of research to defend ourselves, along with plenty of sleepless nights worrying. We were cleared of all allegations, the judge actually laughed at at the CPS agents and told them to expunge all records and leave us alone!
I know plenty of other families who aren't so fortunate, and even end up having their children taken from them, even though they were innocent! (another good subject for study) So, once again, I implore you, DO NOT report someone to CPS for revenge! Even if your neighbor is a total ass, unless he is actually abusing his children it is not right to bear false witness! I can't even begin to describe how traumatic it is to have CPS investigating you. My children still panic whenever a strange vehicle pulls into our driveway, and one of my sons is still terrified of police 3 years later. (the police came with the investigator because we have firearms) Please consider the harm you may cause.
Thanks, and sorry for the length,
Lisa

I confess I didn't read this entire thread so I'm not sure where this came from but as a former CPS Investigator I can tell you you're wrong. You don't have to be an eye witness to abuse to make a report. The legal standard for making a Child Abuse Report is "a reasonable cause to suspect". The standaed is deliberately vague because it's believed that false positives are better than false negatives.

 

[Equus5O]

Quote:
I disagree. Why should the individual with the roosters construct sound-proofing? It's not the rooster owner that has the problem; it's the neighbor.

 

[Equus5O]

Making a complaint to D.Y.F.S. or C.F.S. (the name varies from state to state) because someone is complaining about your chickens is just a nasty, horrible, vindictive thing to do. Making allegations of child abuse because someone doesn't like your chickens? Some people are nut cases.

 

[mikesbigroo]

tell em to get a life and thats the reason you moved to where you are at, to enjoy your birds and the country setting, or better yet tell them you would be happy to trade the roo's for a few hogs, i wouldn't let it bother you

 

[Beekissed]

Quote:
Eh?

Those "who oppose" are usually the people who lived there before the disturbers of the peace "chose to move to the countryside"!

Tearing up the countryside with machinery, other than plowing to grow some food, is neither noble or good, IMO. Please don't lump real country folk in with people who bought land out in the country to play with their destructive toys.

The real country folk tear up the land with their destructive toys as it should be. Hayseeds who move in with chickens pretending in their ignorance that they are homesteaders reborn subvert the laws of nature and goodness.

Your idea of real country folk is contrived drivel which you spout fourth after one too many episodes of little house on the prarie.

DearHeart, I LIVED Little House on the Prairie!

I was born here in the country, raised in a two room log cabin without electricity or running water and homesteaded for many years in this manner.

The bane of our existence was folks like yourself thinking the countryside, that beautiful, verdant place, was your personal playground to tear up. The noise pollution and soil erosion caused by "real country folk" is horrible and we used to shoot at anyone who attempted it on our place. Real country folk don't like to see the woods torn up, don't like to see our dirt roads rutted out and turned into mud bogs, don't like to hear the whine of the toys ripping up the countryside.

Sorry, that dog don't hunt......

 

[flightrisk]

At first I was sort of shocked by the responses to this question, but then I realized that this wouldn't be a balanced forum as we are all here out of an interest or love of chickens! Asking someone here about Rooster noise is like politicians debating if they need campaign reform

I am interested in keeping backyard chickens, not a chicken zealot, so may be a voice from the other side to remind you of how you might have been before you kept chickens or to make you think about and be considerate of others. You don't have a *right* to keep chickens at the expense of your neighbors and your inconsiderate actions are the kinds of things that lead to ordinances preventing them.

I see people saying about the rooster noise, "tell them to buy earmuffs", "you have the right to have a rooster, tell them tough". What kind of people are you? On top of that, you obviously have no understanding of the law. Your *right* to own animals doesn't supersede your neighbor's right to "peaceful enjoyment".

I want to have chickens in my back yard and live on almost an acre. The city allows chickens, the homeowners association does not. I am trying to change that. But I wouldn't want a rooster anywhere near my property. How can you that own roosters even stand it yourselves? What if you wanted to sleep and were awakened every day by roosters crowing at dawn? How about trying to have a quiet get together in your backyard and having to try to talk above it?

What about a neighbor who doesn't teach his dog not to bark and leaves it outside? You have to hear that noise at all hours of the day or night? Every time you get out of your car or walk on your lawn, the dog runs to the fence and barks like crazy so you can't even hear yourself think. It is called "disturbing the peace" and you could be forced to remove your nuisance.

I grant that for some, the noise of a rooster might even be pleasant, or conjure up memories of a rural childhood or some scene from a Steinbeck novel, but you should remember that for most people, these sounds would be a maddening nuisance. Understanding your neighbor's viewpoint goes a lot further in solving the problem than glib defiance.

So be considerate of others and try to work it out with your neighbors. Perhaps you could help them install a buffer that reduces the noise, or you could do something on your end with fencing and thick bushes. Is there any way to train a rooster to not make noise, like a shock collar for dogs? Yes, the neighbor can try to be more understanding also, but where do you draw the line? The neighbor isn't doing anything, you are. While you can keep animals, you also have to be responsible animal owners since your choice affects others who didn't intend to adopt your choice and whose life is now adversely affected.

 

[Wynette]

Flightrisk, I am frankly embarrassed that the very first thread you must have read on here was this one. I have said over and over, there's ALWAYS a way to resolve a conflict without being mean or nasty.

I agree mostly with what you say - and I live in a zoned agricultural area on 10+ acres. So, I can and do have roosters - several. However, I DO also respect my neighbors, as I have been at houses 1/2 mile away and can hear my roosters crow. Thus, I have established some practices with my pens. I leave my flocks cooped until 7 a.m. during the week, and 8 a.m. on the weekends. Yes, the roosters will still crow in the coop; but it's not nearly as easy to hear as when they are let out.

I've had bad neighbors, and I don't ever, EVER want one again. They can (and will) do things like let your livestock out when they know you're not around, throw poison over your fences...etc. I now have one neighbor that's commented several times about my roosters crowing, and I ALWAYS try to be understanding. They won't take eggs as peace offerings, because they know they are fertilized (you know those types!!). So, I just try to be nice and swallow my pride a bit when they comment...for me, this works, and I'd rather do this a few times a month than get nasty with them - they'll just get defensive, and again, a bad neighbor is awful to have.

Peace!

 

[flightrisk]

Have you ever lived next to someone who has Peacocks? LOL. Funny how such a beautiful animal can make so much noise! And that constant cry they make sounds like a baby or woman wailing. I think personally I would rather listen to a rooster than a peacock.

 

[Cindy in PA]

Quote:
I think it depends on the situation whether your rooster supercedes your neighbors right to quiet. Case in point, I had chickens for 12 years before they built a development behind me. I live on AG zoned land. The last two houses were built directly behind me. I toured one of the houses when it was for sale. I could clearly see my chicken coop, although there is a hundred yards or so between my property line & their house. I got a rooster last year after not having one for a few years. The neighbor directly behind me was standing in my woods with her 2 yo when I went to feed scratch one day. She asked if I had a rooster now & I asked did it bother her. She said she kind of liked it. Her 2 yo was found many times at my coop watching the chickens. If it really bothered them I would consider getting rid of it or moving the chickens, but I know I get used to the sound and don't even hear it. Now the two behind me happen to be locals who bought $400,000 houses. I am sure the other 25 houses down the road can hear Cogburn too & they may be former city people. I have had no complaints so far. Their huge lawn mowers & especially leaf blowers drive me nuts, but I know they have the right to do what they want and all is well. We live in an Ag area that has been decimated by development in the last 20 years & I don't think people from Philadelphia have the right to move here & then tell me what I can do on my property! This is still the country & people have animals, period. Don't move here and make us change. I really don't care that you paid $400,000+ for your house & now you have to look at my 1500 sq. ft. ranch house, my pole barn, my greenhouse, my chicken coop & my above ground pool, so get over it! JMHO.

 

[Sjisty]

I guess I'm lucky. I live on 3 acres, zoned agricultural. Our nearest neighbors are a family who moved to Florida from New York, a couple, their young (about 2 years old) boy, and a mother (I don't remember whether it is the man's or woman's mother). They love my roosters - they said that's why they moved here! They also bring their son over every day to visit our bull and cow. In return, they haven't had to buy eggs in a year, thanks to my girls. When it's time for the cow to go to freezer camp, we will also share with the neighbors.

I keep my chickens cooped until about 7:30 and return them to the coops at 7:00 p.m. Bart, my main man, starts crowing at about 5:00 a.m. but it is muffled by the coop (I hope). I have two who crow all day long, but no complaints from any neighbors.

With two sets of neighbors with barking dogs and one with a son with a motorcycle, I guess we are in a live-and-let-live area and we all get along. As I said, I'm lucky and I know it!