the Neighbors

[Quailbuddy]

Quote:
Yes i agree with this, i told my neighbors that it was part of a school ( FFA project which it was ) and that When they started laying I would be hapy to give them some eggs here and there . . . . now im just waiting for the babies

 

[Mahonri]

In Phoenix, it's legal to have chickens, but you do have to have permission from any neighbor whose residence is within 80 feet of the coop.
They also have to be enclosed and are not allowed to free range. Most let them free range anyway.

 

[All about the EGG]

Quote:
Its called being polite. Especially if you are going to be five feet from them. Cramped in the city and having chickens can be a lot different than being in the burbs or in the country.

 

[chookchick]

I would definitely talk to the neighbors about your plan. It is really hard to build a coop, then have to move it, because your neighbor is not happy with the chickens being there (Been there, done that). I know, I know, it's within your rights, but a lot of super annoying, just plain mean things are also "within your rights". Best to try to keep the peace with your neighbors, cause it makes life really hard when you hate each other.

 

[speckledhen]

Quote:
Its called being polite. Especially if you are going to be five feet from them. Cramped in the city and having chickens can be a lot different than being in the burbs or in the country.

They never said for sure what the five feet was all about. They said "suburban", not "urban", but we'll need clarification about the distance between the coop and the neighbor's house. Still, no one asked me if they could get another dog that barks all night or another cat that rips open my garbage bags at night so to me, or if they could do target practice at 11 p.m., it has nothing to do with being polite, IMO. Unless you are going to back off your decision to get a couple of hens when they tell you that they think chickens are filthy, disgusting creatures, then why ask, really? Guess I'm not an nice person, then, because if it was entirely legal and I knew I was going to keep up with the maintenance, I would never ask the neighbors. But, that's just me, I suppose. Why are my rights less than theirs because it involves a chicken or three, is the way I look at it.

All that said, I'd locate a coop as far from all neighbors as possible. Just know that hens do make noise and sometimes, lots of it!

 

[Chook-A-Holic]

I never have understood the logic of someone getting a dog, tying/fencing it in the backyard, throwing it some food every now and then, just to have it yapping 24/7. That is my #1 pet peeve. I hate yapping dogs, but I blame the owners not the dogs.

Sorry to the OP for getting off topic.

 

[dntd]

personally i'm not asking no one, i have been a good nieghbor and they haven't, we are building our coop so that they are not close to anyone's house as the whole back of it is going to face the nieghbors huge shed and the other properties it's the corner of thier yard but still a distance wo they shouldn't be fussy about the birds. 5 feet from any house not property line would be an issue I would think.

 

[kichohana]

I also am not asking permission from my neighbors. I am not in the city limits, but in the county. The nearest subdivision is 4-5 miles away. There is an old farmhouse just outside our subdivision and they have chickens, and roosters roaming their property. Our neighborhood has "covenants" say no chickens, but we all voted to not have an "association" because no one wanted to be the neighborhood police. If there is no association, there is no one to enforce the covenants, right? My DH agreed that if someone has a problem with the "no chickens" clause in the (unenforced) covenants, we would go door to door and remind them each of the covenant they are breaking. Besides, the lots our houses are on are 3/4 acre and above (mine is 1.1 acre). I have a 6' wood privacy fence around my property. My property backs up to a wooded area and the neighbor behind is over 100 yards away. My coop is close to a fence I share with a neighbor who (illegally) put in an above ground pool too close to the property line and without permits. Long story, but they haven't even lived in the house for over a year. You can see some of their house/yard on my homepage in the photos. My coop is at least 60 feet from their house (it's a lot closer to mine!)

I also have neighbors with barking dogs in yards, cats that roam and poop in my flowerbeds, and feral cats that I trap and relocate. I am in the group of get the chickens first and explain later, if I even have to.

 

[7peeplings]

This sounds like a non-issue. I will be following city regulations by placing it (at least) 5 feet from our fence/property line. I think most people would think it is interesting (and positive) to have chickens, but i've never seen another yard with a coop in this city. Thanks everyone for the ideas!

 

[ellent]

I haven't done it yet, either, but I am planning to get hens, and here's what I'm going to do: I have printed off a picture from the "coops" section of the (very attractive) coop that we are going to build. I may also do pictures of the 4 kinds of hen I am hoping to get. I am going to take those, and tell (not ask) the neighbors that I am planning to get the hens, show them where I am going to place the coop, and tell them that if they have any concerns, I will be happy to put up a fence or planted screen, and to please let me know if the hens bother them at all. I also plan to offer them some eggs, but since that's down the road a bit, I think it best to just approach the issue now. It's not like they aren't going to notice the chicken coop!