Information on noise nuisance

Noise from animals can often be considered against the requirements of statutory nuisance. From our experience noise from dog barking and from cockerels are the most common cause for animal noise related complaints. 

We always recommend (if safe to do so) to talk to the person/ owner of the animals about the issues, as they may not be aware it is affecting people in the locality. Should things not improve next you could consider mediation as an option to resolve the issue(s). Further information on mediation (its free to access for our residents) can be found via the following link Mediation Surrey.

Dogs

There are many reasons why dogs bark including loneliness, boredom, attention seeking, defending their territory and medical problems.

If you have to leave your dog for long periods:

• feed and exercise it before you go out and leave it some fresh water
• make sure its bed or basket is comfortable and its favourite toys are around
• check that the room is not too hot or too cold and that there is adequate ventilation
• leave a light on if you are not coming back until after dark

If you are a dog owner and you believe your dogs may be barking excessively (this may be happening when you are not at home) please read the advice for dog owners Constant Barking Can Be Avoided: Offering guidance to dog owners (Gov.uk website) including the Is your dog barking too much? PDF (Gov.uk) - even though the guidance is formally withdrawn it still contains helpful and useful information.

Useful information on barking and its causes can be found on the Dogs Trust website.

Cockerels

Keeping poultry in an urban environment can cause a number of problems:

• complaints about crowing 
• complaints about vermin 
• complaints about odours

If there is a cockerel, you have a duty to make sure that it does not cause a nuisance to your neighbours. Cockerels causing problems with noise or odour can be considered a statutory nuisance.

In deciding whether the noise from crowing is a statutory nuisance, we will consider some of the following:

• the nature of the area – cockerels have been a part of the English countryside for generations and to some extent form part of country life. This doesn’t stop them being considered a nuisance but an odd cockerel crowing in an isolated rural location is less likely to be considered a statutory nuisance than cockerels kept in built up residential areas such as towns and villages 
• the time of day – it’s more likely that the noise will be classed as a nuisance if the cockerel crows at unsocial hours, such as early in the morning or late in the evening 
• the duration of the crowing – if the cockerel crows for long periods this is likely to be more of a nuisance

If we believe the noise is a statutory nuisance an Abatement Notice will be served on the person responsible for the noise under section 80 of the Environmental Protection Act 1990. The Notice is a legal document and will require the noise to be stopped. If the Notice isn’t complied with the owner or person responsible for the cockerels could face an unlimited fine if convicted in the magistrate’s court. Additionally, the cockerel could be removed from the property.

How to keep crowing to a minimum

There are three ways in which crowing can be kept to a minimum to prevent nuisance from a cockerel:

• housing – keep cockerels in a coop at night. Keeping birds in a coop can limit the early morning crowing. It is important that coops have blackened windows and that they’re kept as dark as possible for reducing the amount of light and thus crowing from the bird. Cockerels should be kept in the blackened coop until a reasonable hour for example 7.30am during the week and 8.30am on a weekend. Consider putting a shelf in the coop, so the cockerel can walk around at normal height but cannot stretch its neck to make the crowing sound 
• location – it’s important to locate coops and runs as far away from neighbouring residential properties as possible 
• competition – if you have more than one cockerel or there are other cockerels in the immediate area this is likely to lead to them competing with each other. This can increase the amount of crowing considerably meaning the noise can become a nuisance to neighbour.