Worried about neighbour's potential chickens

[bpym]

I keep chickens. They live in my garden but I have the agreement of the farmer that they can also walk about in his field.

A woman who lives elsewhere in the village and a woman who lives in the next village are planning to fence in a small (garden size) area of land at the end of my street. This is a few houses down from my garden. The area of land is next to the road at the brow of a hill and is bordered on one side by a dog walking route and on the other side by my neighbour's garden. She is not going to clip the chicken's wings.

My concerns are:

1. The chickens are going to get on to the road or on to the dog walking area. I will see this and will have to keep putting them back in the fenced area. This is also going to be difficult

1. The chickens will do the above, people will think they are some of mine and knock on my door to complain.

1. The chickens might attempt to join my flock because we have a cockerel.

1. She is not going to have any kind of rat control (she doesn't agree with killing rats).

1. It will annoy the farmer who may then also ban our chickens from his field.

Am I worrying about nothing? She has been offered a field to keep them in, but doesn't want to keep them there because they are by a council estate. I am wondering if I should ask the field owner if I can take over the field and move my chickens before problems start up.

Sorry. Point 1 should have ended that it was going to be difficult because I have 2 dogs and if I am walking dogs I can't retrieve a chicken if I have two springer spaniels with me.

i really don't see that it's any of your concern is it?

if she wants to keep chickens and has a place to keep them that's totally up to her

not sure why you feel you would have to keep returning her chickens or why people would automatically assume they are yours

Thanks for responding, TIY. I suppose I have made it my concern because she had no experience and asked me to go through the ins and outs of chickens with her, but I should really leave it at that. It is her choice, and I should leave her to it.

You are like me in the sense that you worry and care - that is understandable. If she has asked your advice, why not explain that clipping wings is to be recommended - maybe even offer to show her/do it for her?

if she's asked you for advice, then fair enough, warn her.

tell her to make a fox-proof run, with underneath and over the top protection.
they won't get out then, and most of your worries will be solved.

bpym - do your springers not chase chickens? Mine is a constant bloody nightmare where chickens are concerned. More and more people seem to be keeping them in odd places and if I have let him off the lead - aaaaaargh!

Agree - encourage her to fence properly so they can't get out and my mutt cannot get in.

A farm nearby keeps their hens in a field by the road. They are regularly seen strolling next to the A38. However, they don't seem to get hit and just pop back over the fence again at dusk. I understand your concerns, but I think all you can do is tell the lady in question about good husbandry and wait and see. The wing clipping thing is not necessarily the best option. A chicken that can fly has more chance of escaping predators/getting out of the way of cars etc.

Anyone else minded towards thoughts of the feral chickens on the Bungay RAB?

she has asked your advice and i would definitely follow up with some/all of the advice on here. i would do this for the chicken's sake

I didn't have any experience of keeping chickens before I got mine, but I did a lot of research.

None of my chickens have their wings clipped and they've never escaped. Ours just live in our back garden and are as good as gold. If you give them enough food and they have a decent shelter, then they just tend to remain in their immediate area. They will roam if there are obvious escape routes or a low fence/wall, but if they're properly contained then there's every chance that they'll just stay put.

If you're going to clip wings, then just clip one so that the chicken is out of balance and won't be able to get any 'lift'. They can still get 'lift' with two clipped wings.