problem with neighbours chickens

welshsue

Morning.

Stressed and very tired this morning. Woken up at 6am by a cockerel doing his early morning call in my front garden right outside my window.
He was there with his 2 girlfriends. They belong to a house 2 doors down from mine and are always getting out onto the road (It is a B road, 40mph limit). The fence is just too low so they just jump over it. We had to help our neighbour the other day as one of them was in her garden. Hubby managed to catch it and chuck it back over the fence.
We cannot approach the owner as have had problems in the past with her (hubby went round one day to tell her one of her cats was dead in the road, she wasn't home, there were just young kids there). The next thing we know, we get a solicitors letter siting us for spying on her and harassment. Someone had reported her to social services and she wrongly assumed it was us. The police arrived on our door step and we have been advised to avoid her. She also has dogs and they are always out doing their business in the garden and on the road.

Who can we report this to??? Had to get pest control in before as we were getting rats (5 times) due to her putting meat products out for the chickens. They had a word with her and the rats for now have stopped.

I don't have a problem with the cockerel crowing in her garden as we cannot hear it that well and it certainly would not wake us but when it is right outside your window it is a different matter.

Help please...

Mupette

Environmental health i guess would be the next step if you cannot approach her.

Empty_pockets

All you need is a roasting tin, some salt n pepper.....

bagginslover

It might be worth checking your deeds to see if keeping poultry is allowed in your street-it's not allowed in mine (though it is in the street whose gardens back onto ours). If it's not, a quick report to the council will fix it. If it is allowed, you can still report them for noise nuisence. Cockrels shouldn't crow if shut inside, and chickens ought to be secured at night to guard against fox attacks really

It might make things more akward for a while, but keep complaining til you get a result, get your neighbours to as well if you can (though don't upset them too with nagging, you need them on your side )

Fire_Fox

Start keeping a timed and dated log of all incidents and raise your concerns with the relevant authority in writing (e-mail is fine) so there is a written record. The RSPCA should be able to deal with chickens and dogs escaping onto a road as they can be hit and killed. Contact the dog warden, if your council has one, next time the dog is loose. You might also try your local police (NOT the emergency number) next time the chickens get on the road as they are an RTA risk. Environmental Health at the local council deal with noise complaints, smells and vermin.

AFAIK the council do not generally enforce covenants in the deeds as this is a contract between private individuals/ companies, you have to report them to the 'lord of the manor' or property developer depending on what the deeds say - and if you can find them! - you may well need legal advice for this. One exception is if the house is a 'right to buy' as the covenants will then be between the council and the current owner. If the property is rented then any breaches of the lease should be reported to the landlord as he is responsible for upholding the covenants.

bagginslover

Interesting what you say about the covenants Fire Fox. My house is ex-council, but we are the 3rd set of owners since it was bought from the council. Does the covenant still stand if we bought it froma private individual? I'd love to keep chickens

Sorry to go off topic OP

Fire_Fox

bagginslover wrote: »

Interesting what you say about the covenants Fire Fox. My house is ex-council, but we are the 3rd set of owners since it was bought from the council. Does the covenant still stand if we bought it froma private individual? I'd love to keep chickens

Sorry to go off topic OP

AFAIK yes, the covenant is between the original owner (council) and the current owner (you). When you signed the contracts you took on all rights and responsibilities associated with the property. These covenants are frequently unenforceable because the original owner cannot be found, e.g. the local bigwig and landowner back in 1813. Do you know what the specific wording of the covenant is? Can you definitely not keep any number of chickens as pets or is it more about smallholding or breeding?

You could try to get the council to lift the covenant but I don't rate your chances: councils don't like change and would want you to pay all their AND all your legal fees. You might just go ahead regardless if you are confident none of your neighbours know about the covenant and none will report you. Might be worth you searching/ posting on the House Buying, Renting and Selling board, covenants of this nature have been discussed before.

suki1964

Cant understand why they have a cockerel in the first place.

Hens yes

Cockerel - like why?

Froglet

To annoy the neighbours,obviously!

It makes me smile when people move to the countryside and then moan about them,but in a town it is more than a little inconsiderate.From the sound of it ,the neighbour is selfish and couldn't give a stuff .So you will have to end up going down the legal route,however much it upsets her.

ceridwen

Must admit that, in those circumstances, I'd be googling for "treats hens love" and wondering if the cockerel might be tempted enough to cross over the wall to get some if it was lying around....and hungry enough to venture out into that road to get some more....

But then - she was being antisocial to have a cockerel there in the first place and sounds like the type of neighbour that will put peeps through all sorts of hoops to get officials to deal with her....so if she has one that cant resist "goodies" the other side of the wall then...

Frugalista

ceridwen wrote: »

Must admit that, in those circumstances, I'd be googling for "treats hens love" and wondering if the cockerel might be tempted enough to cross over the wall to get some if it was lying around....and hungry enough to venture out into that road to get some more....

But then - she was being antisocial to have a cockerel there in the first place and sounds like the type of neighbour that will put peeps through all sorts of hoops to get officials to deal with her....so if she has one that cant resist "goodies" the other side of the wall then...

Only somebody who is severely unhinged would ever consider stage managing the death of an innocent living creature by being crushed and mangled by a car!! What a sick, vile suggestion :mad::mad::mad:.

I am absolutely incredulous that anyone would be so disgusting to suggest this! Where do you stop - would it be the dogs next, then the kids???? :eek:

The OP has already said that they don't have a problem with the cockerel crowing in the neighbour's garden as they cannot hear it that well and it certainly would not wake them. Like the majority of posters on here they understand that the cockerel is only doing what cockerels have been doing forever - and is an innocent creature.

The problem is with the neighbours and, in a civilised society, there are correct ways of doing things - I too would suggest Environmental Health and local council, and keep pestering them until something is done.

Good Luck