Topic: maximum number of poultry

[superdupa]

On our site there is a quite a few plots where they keep hens ,the trouble is this year we are overrun with rats.Its so bad that they have demolished a lot of spuds and turnips.The committee ( of which I am vice chair ) are thinking of introducing a rule about the number of hens per plot, has anyone else had a cap on the number of hens and does this work.Cheers

[Melbourne12]

I've no experience of such a rule, but I think that you would be better to insist on some basic husbandry standards.

If you're overrun with rats, they must be getting a substantial amount of food from somewhere.  Provided the sacks of chicken feed are secure, and the chickens are fed from properly designed feeders, there shouldn't be much in the way of gleanings for rats.  And no poultry keeper wants rats in his nestboxes, eating his eggs.

[Unwashed]

What Melbourne12 said.  It sounds like you have a problem with husbandry standards, not stocking density.  It's not unreasonable to mandate approved feed containers and feeders as well as other reasonable husbandry standards, and that's perfectly compatible with the statutory right to keep hens under S.10 Allotments Act 1950.

[Aden Roller]

It's very straight forward on our allotment site: Chickens = 0

We are also advised not to feed "wild life" of any sort including birds!

The fox populations appears to have reduced the rats to no sightings at all this year so far.  :)

[cornykev]

Do they stand you in the corner if your naughty.   :o :P

[Aden Roller]

Do they stand you in the corner if your naughty.   :o :P

Nope... just send you a little letter.  ::)

[lavenderlux]

I think that under 'allotment legislation' there is a limit on the number of chickens which can be kept on a plot - I am not sure what this is but think its six hens on a 10 rod plot - cockerels not allowed at all
Rabbits are also allowed under allotment legislation, I think at the same rate but its to a total of six, eg three rabbits and three hens

[Unwashed]

I think that under 'allotment legislation' there is a limit on the number of chickens which can be kept on a plot - I am not sure what this is but think its six hens on a 10 rod plot - cockerels not allowed at all
Rabbits are also allowed under allotment legislation, I think at the same rate but its to a total of six, eg three rabbits and three hens

No, there is no limit, for either chickens or rabbits.  See S.12 Allotments Act 1950 (and sorry, I said S.10 earlier, and it's actually S.12).

S.12 just creates a right to keep rabbits and hens (which doesn't include cockerels).  There is no other right to keep any other livestock, but neither is there any positive prohibition on keeping any other livestock such as cockerels.  Pigs and horses have traditionally been kept on allotments and I think it's a shame rule-mongers tend to prohibit everything else just because they can.

[ceres]

The NSALG view is that it would be difficult to argue that a large number of hens producing a large number of eggs were being kept for any other reason than running a trade or business which brings them under different legislation.

Furthermore, a flock of 50 or more birds has to be registered with DEFRA.

It's also the NSALG view that cockerels could be prohibited in an urban environment under the Control of Pollution nAct 1974.

[Unwashed]

Spot-on with the second two points Ceres, but I don't entirely agree with the NSALG's view on the first point:

It's not unreasonable for a chicken fancier to keep quite a large flock, and S.12 of the Allotments Act 1950 gives the fancier the right to keep those chickens on her allotment.  Also, while it's only reasonable to keep a handful of layers it's not unreasonable to stock initially with a large number of table birds, and again the allotmenteer has this right under the Act.  Any rule that imposes a reasonable limit on the number of birds is susceptible to a challenge of fairness because of these legitimate non-commercial reasons for having a large flock.

There's also no prohibition on keeping chickens commercially on an allotment and so I'd argue that as long as the plot was being used mainly for the production of fruit and veg for the allotmenteer and her family that she should be left alone to do whatever else she wants with her plot if it is in keeping with the allotment tradition and not causing a nuisance.

It's not the number of chickens that's the problem here, it's the conditions in which they're being kept.  It's good practice to set some reasonable minimum standards of husbandry, and that certainly involves stocking density, but trying to limit the number of birds isn't a robust way of doing this.

[colt]

We have had problems on our site this year with the rats taking over.  The main thing thats helped is for the owners to remove all feed trays during the night and to clean up any other form of scraps at the end of the day. This measure is working and the sightings of rats is down 90%, I mean we had the rats just walking around during the day time thinking it was their land lol.

[digmore]

Hi supa,

Has anyone tried a local ferret and dog man ?

We have a chap on our site, who every so often wanders round with his ferret and Jack Russell. He sometimes clears a few rats from under sheds and muck heaps. Sometimes they disturb the odd rabbit and his dinner is sorted.

Digmore