Neighbor problems..what a day..

chris30523 · #1 05/15/08, 06:52 AM

My farm is the only one left close to the developed areas of our city.I have a poultry operation which has been here for almost 20 years now. I had some one place their home within a stones throw of the hen houses last year(it is closer than mine).In fact their house is like 50 feet from my pasture fence.My horses stand in their back yard.I knew this would be trouble.Well I was right.First thing the Ag agent shows up. Say's they have had a fly complaint.
Duh!! Chickens+Horses+goats=manure which=flies.That is why my house is not close to the chickens. Well said Ag agent looks around and say's I don't have a fly problem in fact this is the neatest farm he has been to in a while no manure piles or garbage etc..and gives me the paper work to say I am in compliance with all laws plus being a good neighbor.I don't know for a fact it was those people who called but in the 6 yrs I have owned the place that is the first complaint.Then about noon Animal control shows up... I figure they have taken a different route of complaints but no it is not my dogs but a loose pit bull terrorizing the neighborhood behind me and he keeps running twards my place.In fact he ate one of the little dogs belonging to the house that I think complained about my flies.HMMM Can they put a trap on my property? Well sure I am a good neighbor...

AngieM2 · #2 05/15/08, 07:06 AM

I'm glad the "offiicials' cleared you. I worry about the new subdivisions here complaining about the local drag strip that's been here since mid 60's. It's rather dumb to move next to something you don't like, and then complain.

Hope things keep working out for you, and the complainers get over it, or move.

Angie

mullersthreeacresfarm · #3 05/15/08, 07:28 AM

Farm Owners big or small are a fading breed. But the time is coming where we will be the ones that people like this will come to for help with food and etc. I am in a similar situation. But we know that we will make it through. People like that complain about things they don't understand or that is different.

Ninn · #4 05/15/08, 08:25 AM

Angie, that sounds just like the guy down the road! He bought a home and several acres across the road from our local dirt track. Being well informed that the track was grandfathered in under the new rules and will remain in operation as long as it is owned by a member of the original family or some such thing. After the first Friday night, he was up in front of the boro council, DEMANDING that it be shut down. It's loud and it's dirty and it kept him awake and his truck was covered in dirt! So sorry for him. Half the council members own cars that run on that track!!!!!!!!!!!!!! He's done nothing but complain ever since. I told him I'd give him $500 bux for the property if it was that bad. I could rent it out to a driver in a new york minute!

Common Tator · #5 05/15/08, 09:10 AM

There is a disturbing trend that has caused many farms to be sued or fined out of existence. The farms have been there for decades (or centuries) and civilization moves in around it. Soon the newcomers are complaining about the smell, noise, flies, etc. They sue or complain to the city or county and before you know it the farmer is forced out.

This trend is one of the reasons of the loss of family farms. Legislators finally woke up to this problem and enacted "right to farm" laws. Here is an article about Georgia's http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pu...%20Farm%20Laws

Shepherd · #6 05/15/08, 09:31 AM

And that's why I love the fact that we found a place with 40 acres and the house & barn built in the middle of them!

What makes it even better is the property is bordered with heavy forrest. We can't even SEE another house.

chris30523 · #7 05/15/08, 10:04 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Common Tator

There is a disturbing trend that has caused many farms to be sued or fined out of existence. The farms have been there for decades (or centuries) and civilization moves in around it. Soon the newcomers are complaining about the smell, noise, flies, etc. They sue or complain to the city or county and before you know it the farmer is forced out.

This trend is one of the reasons of the loss of family farms. Legislators finally woke up to this problem and enacted "right to farm" laws. Here is an article about Georgia's http://pubs.caes.uga.edu/caespubs/pu...%20Farm%20Laws

Thanks for the link.I had read this a while back. Thankfully the person checking these operations is still sympathetic to the farmer if they get a bureaucrat(sp) in his shoes we could be in trouble.Life goes on.If that happens I'll just sell to a developer and they won't have the flies but also the only view they will have is of other people.

Old Vet · #8 05/15/08, 11:23 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chris30523

My farm is the only one left close to the developed areas of our city.I have a poultry operation which has been here for almost 20 years now. I had some one place their home within a stones throw of the hen houses last year(it is closer than mine).In fact their house is like 50 feet from my pasture fence.My horses stand in their back yard.I knew this would be trouble.Well I was right.First thing the Ag agent shows up. Say's they have had a fly complaint.
Duh!! Chickens+Horses+goats=manure which=flies.That is why my house is not close to the chickens. Well said Ag agent looks around and say's I don't have a fly problem in fact this is the neatest farm he has been to in a while no manure piles or garbage etc..and gives me the paper work to say I am in compliance with all laws plus being a good neighbor.I don't know for a fact it was those people who called but in the 6 yrs I have owned the place that is the first complaint.Then about noon Animal control shows up... I figure they have taken a different route of complaints but no it is not my dogs but a loose pit bull terrorizing the neighborhood behind me and he keeps running twards my place.In fact he ate one of the little dogs belonging to the house that I think complained about my flies.HMMM Can they put a trap on my property? Well sure I am a good neighbor...

What I would have done is to make the Ag agent find out where the flies are coming from and correct the situation. It may be that the flies are coming from the neighbor. If he canot then he must file a complaint against the neighbor for filing a false report.

chris30523 · #9 05/15/08, 12:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Old Vet

What I would have done is to make the Ag agent find out where the flies are coming from and correct the situation. It may be that the flies are coming from the neighbor. If he canot then he must file a complaint against the neighbor for filing a false report.

Oh there are flies. Just not enough to be called a problem. It is a bad fly year.Drought last year and cool moist spring has brought them out in droves.We cannot be held accountable if we are doing all of the right things.Which we are and then some because I don't like flies either. They just think a few flies are a problem.They don't understand what a fly problem really is and I hope we never find out. If they give it a few weeks the flys will be all but gone.I doesn't help that the neighbor with pit bulls also has a dog lot and someone over there is raising pigs.People don't ,for the most part like poultry farms.Easy to complain about. If they want to pay me what I am making I will be glad to shut them down.I would rather be a goat farmer..

knight88 · #10 05/15/08, 06:35 PM

Isn't it amazing how some people think they can FORCE everyone to change and meet their ideals? Idiots...

chris30523 · #11 05/16/08, 07:05 AM

The amazing thing to me is these are the people who have 10 cars(I kid you not)and 6 little dogs living inside.When they let the dogs out they come straight to the chicken houses (cause basically I am in their back yard) and poop. I have not spread fly bait as hard as I should to keep from killing their dogs.

madness · #12 05/16/08, 09:44 AM

Chris, nearly the exact same thing is happening to me right now. But I've only had my little homestead for just over a year. But some folks built a house practically on top of my chicken coop. They built a fancy place and are planning on selling it now and they are worried about the "hillbilly" next door (aka me!). I've had the city code inspector, the sanitation department and animal control at my house. But they all declared that I'm not doing anything illegal. Then I get a letter in the mail about two weeks ago and the neighbor is threatening to sue for "loss of profit" when he sells the house because of the chickens. Basically, he wants to sue for any difference between the amount he lists the house for and what they are actually going to get for it. In this market? And he wants $450,000!

I have a friend who is a lawyer (actually a district judge) and he helped set the neighbor straight! I agreed to plant a tall stand of bamboo between the coop and their house. Which I was planning on doing anyway because their second story windows stare directly into my once private yard!

I hope things work out as well for you. Sounds like the officials are on your side, so you don't have anything to worry about.

Isn't it annoying?

JGex · #13 05/16/08, 11:42 AM

Hey Chris,

This same thing is happening all over this area.... all the folks moving out of Atlanta to live in "the country," but they don't have a clue about working farms. Then they want to complain AFTER they build.

We don't have livestock right now, but the flies are bad here, too. I thought it might have been because our studio is in a recently closed slaughterhouse, but I'm hearing it from a lot of different people.

The pictures of your farm are beautiful.

chris30523 · #14 05/16/08, 12:35 PM

Thanks JGEX it is one of the nicer pieces of property in this area.If you are in NE Ga you know property comes at a premium (another problem caused by Atlanta people).We have our local festival starting tonite and since I live about a mile and 1/2 outside the city I will be sharing my flies with everyone

starjj · #15 05/16/08, 02:43 PM

Happens everywhere. Everyone wants to move to the country as long as they don't have to be real country. Lots just want a few horses as lawn ornaments so they can "pretend" they really live in the country. Chickens, goats, cattle OMG NO.

Chickengirl · #16 05/17/08, 06:44 AM

same problem, different location...

over here, down in Sydney there is a theme park called Luna Park, right under the Sydney Harbour Bridge. It has been there forever. It was closed for a while, and eventually apartment buildings went up around it, although when this happened the park was being redeveloped, and the apartments were sold with the understanding that the park was going to be re-opened, and that it would be soon....

but the people who bought there still complained about the noise, and the people, and the traffic....

fancy buying next to a theme park, and then being shocked at the noise??

People will complain about anything if they think they can get away with it or make a dollar.