I need temporary/maybe not temporary fencing ideas to hide my chickens

[linguini]

After 30 years of having chickens, I moved to the city. I read I could have 8 chickens but it turns out I can only have 4. The other issue is I have an 18 year old goose who is special to me and a rooster that I adopted because he was homeless. I don't mind adhering to the 4 chickens once these pass over the rainbow bridge but for now I want to keep them.

I am having a coop built but Planning and Zoning stopped the privacy fence I was building which would've hid my chickens.

Just came here in the hopes someone knows of something I haven't thought of (I know there are some pretty clever ideas that come out of this forum) that I can put around their coop area temporarily while I wait to beg them to let me keep the fence. It needs to be opaque so people can't count my chickens or see the darn rooster (although I trimmed his tail to make him look more similar to a hen LOL). I do have white poultry fencing already that you push into the ground, and I really need something like that but opaque. It needs to be around 42 inches tall, the same as my poultry fence that I bought from Premier Fence.

It's crazy but I bought a house with an empty lot and they don't allow fences in the front yard, even though this is an empty lot.

can you put a tall planter box in front of the coop? put tall plastic flowers on the box for winter. (many people use galvanized metal planter in community gardens in the city)

 

[hayley3]

Well, I can't answer that directly. It's gonna depend on the specific details of your situation. We secured the bamboo panels to an existing picket fence in one case, and to heavy dute metal stakes in another. We have very hard, clay-like soil and the panels were in a low-wind area. So you'll have to play it by ear.

My point was that these panels are very strong & provide good privacy (with an opaque lining if you expect people to get up close & try to peer through the tiny spaces between poles).

Still, if you've got roosters crowing, it'll be hard to conceal the fact that you've got birds. And hens can be almost as loud as roosters. Maybe the most important thing is to maintain a good relationship with the new neighbors, maybe offer them eggs, I dunno, because if nobody reports a chicken nuisance, you may be good long-term.

Hope some of this helps. We too are thinking about moving to a community that doesn't allow free-range chickens and have no idea what would happen to our 20 birds if we do.

It's not my neighbors I'm worried about. I live on a dead end road but because Google Maps highlights my road to the main road, EVERYONE drives past my yard. (And I tried the back way and it's horribly slow with several turns so it's not shorter but if Google Maps says it is, then everyone believes Google, I guess)

https://www.homedepot.com/b/Outdoors-Garden-Center-Garden-Fencing/Bamboo/N-5yc1vZbx6jZ1z0u6r0

Here are some options.

Thanks!

 

[hayley3]

Check out the link. It's easy to attach whatever you want to either side of the fencing. We just stapled black weatherized cloth to ours. It's not just chicken barrier for us, it's also a pretty good privacy fence for the entire yard. You can make it as strong as you like by choosing different type of posts to attach it to.

I'll have to go look at it...Stapling seems easy but other methods, like tposts would not be doable, I'm thinking.

 

[hayley3]

can you put a tall planter box in front of the coop? put tall plastic flowers on the box for winter. (many people use galvanized metal planter in community gardens in the city)

The coop is 24 feet wide...but I was thinking of using step-in posts and using shade cloth but haven't tried that yet as my coop flooded, so NOW I have to deal with that first. Always something! Flower pots are a good idea though...anything to mess with people's visual ability to count my chickens. LOL

 

[NatJ]

Flower pots are a good idea though...anything to mess with people's visual ability to count my chickens. LOL

There is a thread with lots of suggestions for making a chicken yard less bare. Maybe something there would also help:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/

 

[RebinNH]

The coop is 24 feet wide...but I was thinking of using step-in posts and using shade cloth but haven't tried that yet as my coop flooded, so NOW I have to deal with that first. Always something! Flower pots are a good idea though...anything to mess with people's visual ability to count my chickens. LOL

I like and have used fabric screening. It breathes but provides shade and you can't see through it. Comes in all different lengths and widths. Think I got mine from Amazon a couple years ago and it still looks like new.

 

[hayley3]

There is a thread with lots of suggestions for making a chicken yard less bare. Maybe something there would also help:
https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/a-cluttered-run.1323792/

Thanks!

 

[hayley3]

I like and have used fabric screening. It breathes but provides shade and you can't see through it. Comes in all different lengths and widths. Think I got mine from Amazon a couple years ago and it still looks like new.

I just bought some,haven't tried it yet. Until I get my fence, (if I get my fence), I thought I could place the shade cloth in front of the coop and then use poultry fencing to keep them from wandering from behind that so they are always hidden. It's actually sad that I have to hide them, when there are worse things to worry about in the world than my lovely chickens.

 

[hayley3]

Just to let you know...Animal Control came by and knocked on my door.... EGADS!..so they don't allow geese he said but he would talk with the city ATTY since the goose is so old and allow me to keep her as long as I don't get another. So wish me luck AND they don't allow roosters BUT the CITY had a dumped chicken and now they also took in a rooster at the city LOT. Too funny! So I'm hopeful they will let mine stay. I did tell him I only had 3 chickens, the rest were adopted, which is true.

So my chickens are in the backyard which is an alleyway..odd they would even be seen back there. So did someone turn me in, IDK.

 

[No Coop No Problem]

So my chickens are in the backyard which is an alleyway..odd they would even be seen back there. So did someone turn me in, IDK.

There are a lot of malicious rule-enforcers in the world that enjoy using the law to harm others (Karens). I would never keep a rooster where one isn't allowed because the second he crows you'll have a swarm of Karens coming after you