Several cities in the US (and other countries) have rules against keeping livestock, including chickens, in backyards. Some people have had success with keeping chickens where they were not originally allowed to by working to prove that their chickens are pets and not livestock.

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Neighbours from hell is a bit of an exageration. I never notice my neighbour’s rooster crowing at dawn. But then, I’ve got thermal drapes that seem to be good accoustic barriers when the windows are open in the summertime. (I live in Canterbury so there’s no humidity to hold the heat at night so thermals aren’t a problem in summer.) I suspect if my neighbour had two roosters there would probably be a crowing contest every dawn

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I was recently talking to a guy who rescues chickens by purchasing them one by one from a battery farm. Apparently one hen is noisy as anything. But two are relatively quiet because they are social animals and need company (although probably not as much company as a battery farm affords). And yes, roosters are a different matter.

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Chickens are also friendly and quiet?! Hens maybe. But all it takes is one rooster and you’ve got the neighbours from hell.

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So what are the rules around keeping a few chooks in the backyard of the average urban section, as interpreted by your averagely zealous local body? I seem to recall that if you have more than 100 you need a formal management plan etc, but then I expect you need more than the average urban backyard for 99+ chooks.

(I suspect the challenge may lie with the large number of urban cats, less so the local council or the neighbours…)

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