Be honest..how noisy are they?

MotherQueenXeno · 2021-06-02T06:28:21+00:00

We were thinking of keeping 3 chickens in our suburban back garden. My neighbour is concerned about noise, is this a legitimate concern? I don't want to cause bed feeling with my neighbour but at the same time they are not particularly quiet people.

DonLewis · 02/06/2021 07:29

Cockerels are nosiy. Chickens aren't especially noisy.

Original poster

MotherQueenXeno · 02/06/2021 07:35

That's what I thought, no way we would get a cockerel. But he still seemed iffy about it when we told him this so I am wondering if he knows something we don't.

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Ipanemama · 02/06/2021 07:37

Ours can be noisy when they’ve laid an egg, about a minute of happy crowing that’s it. It’s during the morning not at night and not all our hens do it.

Original poster

MotherQueenXeno · 02/06/2021 07:42

Yes someone told us about the egg laying song. Very sweet. I wouldn't class that as a nuisance level of noise at all as it's for a a short amount of time. Maybe he is worried about them waking early in the morning and squawking.

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ayooplass · 02/06/2021 07:49

They can be noisy. One of mine has a loud squawk, the others are a bit clucky but not too loud. As well as egg laying they make a noise if they are spooked or annoyed. But it’s not usually for too long. And it’s during the day. Don’t hear them at all at night.

Original poster

MotherQueenXeno · 02/06/2021 07:58

If it's during the day I don't see a problem unless it's ridiculously loud. I wonder if some breeds are more talkative or if it's down to personality. Do they make much noise very early in the morning in summer as it gets light?

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GrannyClanger · 02/06/2021 08:02

Ours used to make a noise in the summer when it was light because they wanted to be let out - we changed our set up so they are now in a secure run, and don’t get shut up in their house at night so they can come and go as they please. That aside they only make a noise after laying eggs or if they think there’s a predator around! No noise at night and I wouldn’t say they make a lot of noise generally.

Original poster

MotherQueenXeno · 02/06/2021 08:18

Thank you. Ours would have a coop/large run set up and only allowed to free range when supervised as there are so many cats around here so perhaps that would prevent morning rackets.

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Whatthechicken · 03/06/2021 16:10

Mine just kind of chirp. If they cluck I go running in case something is wrong. They are ex bats and when I first got them they didn’t make a sound at all - which was a bit sad. Cats are not likely to be a problem. My semi feral hunts rabbits, but she’s a bit scared of the chickens. I don’t let the dog off loose though when they are out, because she may worry them, but my favourite chook (the quietest, sweetest one), will attack the dog.

TheChosenTwo · 13/06/2021 19:18

Our neighbours behind us were a bit worried when we got our chickens, they said they didn’t like the idea of it because of the noise/smell.
To be fair, they’re much closer to their house than ours. We agreed that if after we got them, if they were genuinely unhappy about it, we would pass them on to our chicken keeping friend.
Well about a month after the hens arrived, we met the woman in the street and she asked us when they were coming. She was shocked to know that they’d been living with us for a month, she hadn’t heard them and neither her, her husband or her dog seemed to be remotely bothered by them.
We took them some eggs to say thank you for being so kind.
About a month ago, dh was in the coop cleaning it out and she popped her head over the fence and looked a bit embarrassed to find dp in there, she confessed that she had fallen in love with them and had moved a bench under her side of the fence and regularly just stood over to watch them.
They really aren’t that noisy at all. An occasional cluck from ours, far less annoying than a dog barking.

Whatthechicken · 13/06/2021 19:40

@TheChosenTwo you sound so considerate as a neighbour!! Telling them about what you were doing, taking some eggs as a thank you, wish all neighbours were like you... it would make life much nicer.

TheChosenTwo · 13/06/2021 19:51

Well we just thought it was fair really, we don’t live rurally so it’s not the norm although we know a couple of people who keep them.
Being considerate is just nice isn’t it?!

Heyha · 13/06/2021 19:59

Ours are irritatingly noisy in the morning when they want letting out (always earlier than the toddler waking up!) but as others say if you're confident in your run setup you could leave the house door open. We have a lot of wildlife so do shut ours in. I need to get round to ordering and fitting an automatic door opener but I think they will be getting an upgraded house so they will have to keep up the morning clucking for now. No near neighbours and can't really hear them with windows shut but that's the only time I'd say they were above background noise. They do the egg song and shout at crows but they are very short bursts.

Whatthechicken · 13/06/2021 20:00

Yes it is, and it’s made for happy relations which will pay forward. Simple but effective!

TheCountessofFitzdotterel · 25/06/2021 13:57

I had some noisy ones and the neighbours complained. They were pure breeds; my current basic hybrids are far less squawky.

UtterlyUnimaginativeUsername · 25/06/2021 14:23

Ours are quite chatty, but there are 7 hens, 4 adolescent chicks, a rooster and a guinea fowl in there and they all set each other off. One of them, in particular, is an absolute drama queen and will go off for ages about nothing in particular.

When we had a much smaller garden, we had three hens, and they weren't a problem at all, noise-wise.

Don't worry about cats, our cats have a healthy respect for the chickens and steer well clear. Chickens are much more formidable than you'd think!

Original poster

MotherQueenXeno · 25/06/2021 14:42

Thanks! It seems like noise shouldn't be a much of a concern then.

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AlwaysLatte · 01/07/2021 15:29

Cockerels are pretty noisy, ours crows on and off all day (we don't let him out too early though!)
The hens are pretty quiet - just the occasional fuss when they bump into each other or try to steal food from another one.

Redsquirrel5 · 16/07/2021 18:22

Two of our bantams are really noisy. We have a drama queen too. She makes the most noise and we can hear her from the kitchen sometimes. Mostly just telling us about the egg but sometimes just because she wants to be noticed like if we are having a cup of tea at the bottom of the garden and she can see us!

MarchLikeTheMonth · 19/07/2021 09:51

They are noisiest after laying an egg - sometimes they get into a bit of a call and response with one of the other hens and it can go in for a bit.
In the mornings there can be a queue for the nest box and they can be pretty noisy with that.
Seen some people says they are only noisy during the day... Which is true... But consider the day currently starts about 4am!!! Not ideal of a weekend when they are singing to each other.
We've had chickens almost 2 years and had a few complaints from our immediate next door neighbour. We live in a housing estate and have other gardens backing onto ours, but never any complaints from other neighbours.
Don't underestimate the noise. Also consider the chicken food could attract rodents. We've have a rat only once thankfully, but something else to consider.
Despite all this I love our girls. Such a low maintenance pet and a joy to watch.

BrokeBaroness · 22/07/2021 10:52

I've ordered an automatic coop door so the hens can be let out as soon as it's light and I can have a lie in!

Stickytreacle · 22/07/2021 11:18

They can be noisy, just have a look at how many posts there are on the subject on places like the Omlet forum with people having problems! The main issues are when it is at the crack of dawn. (It nearly always is). The hen laying 'song' sounds quite sweet, but in reality can be raucous squawking.
That being said I think chickens are far more preferable than loud music, constant pressure washers and lawnmowers etc.

As for the cats, ours were all well scared of the chickens, who would regularly chase them!

Rats and mice will be attracted though as pp said, which might be another thing to think about.
If you don't have a large garden and the neighbours are already concerned I'd be thinking twice tbh.

Dipsydoodlenoodle · 08/09/2021 10:15

I see the post is a few months old now. I'd LOVE chickens but my house deeds state I'm not allowed them. I've checked online and I can get them - but if there is one complaint then they have to go.

If you haven't considered it, it might be worth checking your house deeds or in with the local council to see what the rules say. Nothing worse than getting them and then someone complaining and being forced to get rid.

BooseysMom · 01/08/2022 15:20

Dipsydoodlenoodle · 08/09/2021 10:15

I see the post is a few months old now. I'd LOVE chickens but my house deeds state I'm not allowed them. I've checked online and I can get them - but if there is one complaint then they have to go.

If you haven't considered it, it might be worth checking your house deeds or in with the local council to see what the rules say. Nothing worse than getting them and then someone complaining and being forced to get rid.

Resurrecting this old thread as I have wanted to get 2 chickens since moving here but our deeds state no poultry, pigeons and pigs . The 3 Ps!! I was born on a farm and am used to the noise of hens and cockerels crowing. I think dogs are far more annoying. We're not bothered by rats here even with the neighbours chucking out all manner of bread products onto their lawn. You can guarantee if there were rats when I got hens it would of course be our fault though.
I wish I could get the hens. I feel half alive here on this depressing estate and my childhood farm is a distant memory 😪

springerspanners · 05/08/2022 18:58

Ours sing and squawk when they've laid an egg and also when they know we're in the kitchen and want us to come and say hello!! It can be loud but it doesn't last long 😊