[duckling]

Hi everyone

I have recently moved to a rural location, the edge of a village with fields behind. I have a small holders license. I have now got some bantams and chickens including one cockeral. All around there are also other like minded people who have chickens and cockerals.

My problem is that my neighbor is complaining.

Where do I stand regarding this?

I am also concerned as I wanted to expand to goats, ducks etc.

Thankyou
Sadie

[Anke]

In the UK there is no such thing as a "smallholder's licence" - do you mean a CPH number?

However I think (and have been in that position myself) that your neighbour is just trying to assert his position with you being a new incomer..., especially if there are other poultry keepers with cockerels around.

We don't let our's out before it is proper light, and only at 7am in the summer. We called our neighbours bluff and told him to go and complain to the council, knowing that his house is far enough to not cause a breach of the noise levels in the early hours of the morning if the birds were shut in. Nothing ever came back to us, no idea if he ever went...

So it depends on a) how close he is to your hen house and b) how many other cockerels are nearby with comparable noise levels and c) how much you are a "village" location (we are just a small hamlet with 7 houses). Also you need to see if other neighbours join in the complaint.

If you are going to get geese... now they are really noisy!

[JEP]

sorry to say if council get involved
cockeral will have to go

[devonlady]

I wouldn't mind cockerels crowing, peacocks screaming, geese shouting or whatever! But if my neighbour practised the trombone, played rap music loudly or had dreadful rows with his wife I think I may complain!!
City, town or country unwelcome noise is irritating to neighbours!!

[Victorian Farmer]

I've been handed a inforcment order 3 times and told I would be fined .I double glazed the Windows inoculated the pen and in the end I don't care enemy more .iff the nabers are he'll bent no matter what you do will be good enough .Don't let them win its life .And yes it did get me dawn  the stock took me yares to breed .

[devonlad]

For me its a toss up between which is more important, asserting your rights etc etc  and to hell with anyone elses peace or the path of least resistance and harmoniousness all round. I personally didn't slog for 30 years to afford my slice of rural heaven to be in dispute with anyone so we always ensure that whatever we do with our animals is not a bother to others. Personally I can be woken by a gnat farting so our brief cockerel experience was not repeated- crowing at 4 in the morning is not for me.

[Q]

sorry to say if council get involved
cockeral will have to go

I can't agree with this - not always true - I have had the council letter stating that a neighbour had complained and that an investigation would be put in place (I live on a housing estate and had discussed the cockerel with immediate neighbours beforehand).
I took steps such as putting a bit more soundproofing and put the cockerel in extra sound proofing in a brick outhouse overnight. also never let them out until past 7 ( later on weekends). 
The council have not had any further contact - this was over a year ago.

[JEP]

we had a cockerel  at home for 5 years
then complaint told he had to go
never had option

[stufe35]

Councils will always try it on, obviously if someone just rolls over and gets rid of their cockerel it's an easy win for them.

[waterbuffalofarmer]

I used to have a cockerel which crowed very early in the morn, was such a pain he had to go. One I have now is an absoloute darling, doesn't crow till seven in the morn. Haven't had complaints from neighbours as the next farm along keeps cockerels which crow all hours hope the situation gets sorted soon and am sorry I can't be of more help. My point is surely a neighbour who lives in the country should expect noise from crowing cockerels, although it can be a bit of a nusience, that's country life am afraid. How close is this neighbour exactly anddid he object when you first got the cockerel?

[pharnorth]

I suppose it depends on how much, how loud and how early. I generally find if you can black out the hen house and have an automatic pop hole opener that keeps him in until 8 or later that reduces the problem considerably.  Sometimes you get one that just won't shut up in which case your neighbour may have a point. They don't usually sing in the dark so the trick is to keep them dark through the early hours.   

[devonlady]

A friend of mine had the same problem and used to put her cockerel in a box at night. The box had air holes in it and was put in a dark shed. Bless him, come the end he would hop into the box as soon as it was put on the ground! End of complaints!

[Roxy]

I used to have 100 free range hens, and therefore had various cockerels, including bantams.  My land was adjacent to one farmhouse.  Then the two barns were converted, right opposite my field.  The two barn owners never complained about the cockerels, the old man in the farmhouse complained about everything (and he still does!) including my farm dogs barking ....but strangely enough he never once in 20 years said anything about the cockerels.

To be honest, its like anything, surely you get used to it in time?  What about barking dogs?  The council will be busy going round listening to them, its constant in the village where I live.

Where I am now, the landowners on each side have cockerels too, and once one starts, its like a competition as to who can crow the loudest and goes on and on, but they are hardly likely to complain about mine, when there own are at it too.  I did try putting my bantam cockerel in a box at night, but it made no difference.  At dawn he still crowed!!

[Marches Farmer]

Whevnever a house goes on the market within half a mile of us I put up a sign on the gate saying we breed rare native breeds of sheep, pigs, turkeys and poultry.  At least they've been warned and can't say they didn't know about them before they moved in. Although we've all heard about the folks who move in next to a church and then complain about the bellringing ....

[lord flynn]

Some cocks will crow even when laying down in a box-ask me how I know! Still, removing him after dark and keeping him in a box, in a shed will help. I block out the windows in the houses but then in the summer, they will start up with the dawn chorus regardless.

I like the noise (I have three currently) although was surprised when I could hear it 3 miles away  lol. I don't have any neighbours that near and we are also near a big cattle/sheep farm which is sometimes noisy through the night. The people that lived here before us had 12 barky dogs so I think we are better neighbours..