Selfsufficientish.com

Reeeally want chickens, but the deeds to our house say no pets other than dogs and cats and specifies no poultry. I am sure the neighbours wouldn't mind (or notice) but could I get into trouble? Also can I cope with the work and the fact that our garden is only about 20 foot by 25 foot ish?

technically yes you can get into trouble if someone complains. If your house is mortgaged then you could get a warning off them or even in an extreme have your mortgage called in but that is an extreme. probably you would get a few £50 letters first just so they could make some money.

If rented then the same but with eviction. My deeds say I can run no businesses from home unless I'm a dentist, lawyer or barrister....!! I ran my candle making biz from there for a few years until 40ft trailers reversing down a hill into a blind cul de sac became an issue with the neighbours.

Having said that you should go for at least 3 chickens as they are a flocking bird and if you only have a 20 x 25ft garden they will soon tear that up and I mean within days. I don't like the smaller "rabbit hutch" type plastic coups and runs but you could got for one of those at a push. They are exspensive and take up about 3ft x 10ft but I doubt it is worth it really. How about an allotment? I can't remember if you have one but if you do they are an ideal place but you have to go around there twice every day. If you don't have a lotty howabout sharing with a current owner? You share eggs and they share veggies?

Thinking back ot my biz from home, if my neighbours knew of the deeds covenant they would of reported me and that was just the good ones who like me... If it's in your deeds then it may well be in others in the area and if people have recently moved into the area they will be aware of the covenants so is it worth it for a few eggs and a lot of work?

Anyway, in answer to the Question, I wouldn't keep chickens in your garden at present.

HTH

SFB

If you should decide to get some,...Bantam SIlkie hens are cute, quiet, and make lovely pets. Of course you have to use twice the eggs in whatever you are cooking, and they go broody a lot (make great mothers too), but they are sweet, docile, and beautiful.

You could always try and get it annulled under human rights legislation.

Who would they report it to? Unless the original organisation that included the condition in the contract are still in existance, or are bothered, then there is no one to enforce it. Was it the housebuilder that included it? - if so, might be worth a search at companies house to see if they are still in existance. If neighbours have a similar condition in their deeds, just say that you wrote to the 'organisation' and they said that it was okay. Either way it is very difficult to enforce and if, in the unlikely event, it did look like legal action was going to be taken, you could just get rid of them.

I'd just go ahead and get a few.(no cockerel mind) If anyone kicks off,swap the hens for a couple of pigs!

I don't know the answer to your question Helen, but if you have limited space remember to think about where your fast-growing baby is going to play when he's a bit older. There's nothing more satisfying than watching a little one enjoying the great outdoors, and nothing more frustrating than watching a little one wanting to enjoy the great outdoors but being unable to do so. You can't take them out to parks and things all the time and having a garden is a great way for them to get fresh air and sunshine while you get on with cooking their dinner. That said, chickens are a great way for kids to learn about nature, especially when they go in the chicken run, their shoe falls off and they stand in poo - while you're cooking dinner

I'm not sure I would take the risk. Unless you can get that clause officially rescinded, you could be in for a lot of stress and potential expense if a present or future neighbour takes exception. It would certainly be worth considering other options. For example, we've decided not to keep chickens because we haven't got anyone nearby who could look after them when we go away. If a local friend was also interested by was stopped by a ban such as yours or by not having enough space, we might be tempted to share the costs, the work and the fruits of all that labour by becoming hosts to two or three birds.

Wulf

We have a mortgage so it wouldn't be an eviction, but not sure how the prohibition could be enforced if someone objected.
I do have an allotment but it is a good four miles away so not great if i have to go there every day. Hmmmmm things to think about. Good point Rosendula about DS running in poop!

Such covenants in deeds can be enforced.

On a much larger scale than mere chickens and many years ago now -- a developer wanted to buy my parents house to knock it down for an access road to land behind the house. The deeds (only dating back to the early 1950's) included a convenant that the land could only be used for a dwelling house. Although he did buy the house (my parents were wanting to move anyway) he was unable to overturn the covenant - and so had to re-design the proposed development to build the access from another part of the site. The original builder of my parents house was long gone -- but the covenant was registered at the Land Registry.

You might get away with keeping your chickens --but you could also be in for a legal battle if soemone objects

Is your land leasehold? I don't understand how such a covenant could be enforced if it's freehold. If it's a condition of the leasehold could you investigate buying it - would this then allow you to overturn it?

Just a thought.

How well do you get on with your neighbours? If you are friendly with them, why not ask what they think? That way you can gauge whether they are likely to shop you or not. If you get a positive vibe, go ahead but be prepared to give them away if you get some complaints.

Zoe

Marmalady wrote:Such covenants in deeds can be enforced.

They sure can as I found much to my dismay. Not on the chicken front, but with my bus.. she only weighs 2.2ton empty and I found out after a few letters there is a covenant on weights limiting vechicles over 1.5 tons where I live. (and I didn't see it either as it wasn't in the pack with my paperwork when I purchased the house)

Yet every tom, dick and harry on the estate who has caravans, boats, commerical vechicles and are parking where the deeds say they can't get away with it.. yet I get hammered. Very one sided world for those who want a greenier self suffiencent life, and yet those who are jealous of ones green ideals drop one in it.

Can't wait to sell and move out. and starts in my bus!

I think the rules on parking buses are there to protect people from early morning starts, it costs allot to park a bus commercially as there are planning restrictions, so it definately isn't personal or jealousy in more general terms.

Covenants apply to freeholds as much as they do to leaseholds, so it's really not worth going there.

Allot of the freeholds in the centre of Plymouth are sold with odd covenants resticting use for things like alcohol and dancing, as the land originally was owned by Lady Astor who was rather methodist in her views, and wanted to ensure that the houses wouldn't all be Pubs and knocking shops.

We kept chickens in tha back of a Georgian Terrace house in the City and did get complaints from the neighbours about the cockeral, but the council didn't support the complaint, and so we were fine, not fined.

Our house is freehold.

Funnily enough I asked the neighbours a few years ago if they minded me getting chickens, they said they did mind because they were too noisy. I swore I would get some once they moved. We have new neighbours now on both sides, we get on fairly well with both, though one side are a bit chavvy. The replaced the trellis that separated our two gardens with 6 foot fencing which upset me not just because it meant less light to our garden but because it meant that they obviously didn't want to be neighbourly and wanted to pretend we didn't exist so they didn't have to say hello if we were both out at the same time.
Interestingly our deeds also say that front gardens have to be kept as lawn and neither have, although it was already like that when they moved in.
Sorry, rambling now.
Out of interest, exactly how loud are chickens? (no cockerel)