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Chicken keepers

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Chickens in a very urban area

5 replies

O2BNormal · 27/04/2012 15:09

Is it even possible? Do I need permission? Are neighbours likely to complain? What about the foxes?

We have a good sized garden so there's plenty of room for a run, but we also have neighbours on three sides and a lot of foxes in the area.

OP posts:
Popoozle · 27/04/2012 16:11

I don't know about the legalities - sorry, but would be interested to know this myself.

My neighbour (new build housing estate, terraced town houses, gardens on three sides) has about 8 hens and 2 cockerels. The hens are no problem at all, it's the cockerels waking me up at 5.30am every day I'm not so excited about!

boomting · 27/04/2012 22:10

Yes, it's possible! Unlike larger livestock (sheep, pigs, goats etc.) you don't need a CPH (Country Parish Holding) number. If you have 50+ (won't apply to you!) then you also need to register, but that's not permission, that's just letting DEFRA know. The only potential legal problem that you could run into is if your house deeds forbid it.

I have close neighbours on three sides, and none have never complained. This is despite the fact that one has spent years complaining about our leylandii, although another neighbour went off us at the same time (slightly Hyacinth Bucket characters that lot, not a massive fan of them to begin with tbh), although they never actually said anything. The final side (despite a change of owners, and incidentally the house whose garden is bordered by the coop) has always enjoyed their presence.

Don't keep cockerels, as they will annoy, but hens are really very quiet. To avoid rats / mice, don't scatter food on the ground, keep the feeder in the coop overnight, and store food in a metal dustbin / something else they can't chew through (not plastic!). Urban foxes are the biggest potential blight. Make sure you shut them in as soon as it gets to dusk (if you won't always be in at that point, it is possible to get self-closing popholes - they put themselves to bed when it gets dark, although you should check to make sure; if they don't go in by themselves then it's a sign of red mite), don't let them out of the run unsupervised. I never experienced an attempted dig-in, although I don't think I've ever seen a fox where we live (large village / small town), compared to the millions of the things in the city. What I did experience, however, was the grass getting a bit too long by the run, the wood deteriorating slightly (the coop was about 6 years old at this point) and the foxes found the weak point and got in like that. Bastards took the lot. Really, it's enough to turn this veggie in favour of fox hunting! If all else fails, there's always the option to buy a humane trap and a .22 gun (no licence required, according to the advert) from the back of Country Smallholding magazine . . . yes, I do know someone who's doing this in the middle of a small town! One option is to put a chicken wire "skirt" around the run which the foxes can't dig through, or to dig chicken wire in (either several feet deep as a 'wall', or under the entire thing).

Grockle · 27/04/2012 22:57

Yes, it's possible!

As Boomting said, check the deeds of your house - I've lived in two houses that have stipulated no livestock (and that extended to pet chickens). If that's ok then yes, it's perfectly doable.

I have close neighbours on 3 sides - the houses either side both say they like the chicken noises. I'm not so sure - they are very loud, crowing at 5am in the summer (I never knew hens crowed but mine do a pretty good impression of a rooster). I give my neighbours eggs to placate them. I wouldn't have a cockerel.

Foxes are a nightmare so you need a very secure run for them. Mine used to free-range all day but I had too many incidents with the fox to continue - I couldn't guarantee the safety of my girls and it's not pleasant to go into the garden and find the remains of your favourite girl strewn all over the garden Angry (ex-veggie who could be persuaded to shoot a fox)

mummymeister · 28/04/2012 15:18

You need a secure run for them with double chicken wire nailed underneath so that the foxes cant dig in and to deter the rats. you will get rats if you have chickens so think about how you can deal with them and any neighbours that get them because if they do they will blame your chooks even if they have nothing to do with it. no cockerels really - noise abatement notices will follow if you do. also be prepared for your lawn to be trashed. more than compensated for when you eat your first lovely fresh egg with the bright orange middle! Make sure you get a house and run that you can move around the garden and regularly do this and clear up in the summer so neighbours dont complain about chicken poo smells.

O2BNormal · 29/04/2012 13:54

Thank you! Lots to think about

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