Neighbours, everybody needs good neighbours...

Certainly you do...

Well, many of you know how I like to feed the wildlife that visits my garden. Many of you do so yourself.

We've lived in this property for around many, many years. Practically all the neighbours around us have been here as long or we're talking of 25-30 years plus.

Except for two sets of neighbours that moved in around 5 years ago, the most recent of these last year.
I have quite a few neighbours around here that feed the birds and keep their gardens tidy. We all talk to each other even if we don't actually mix with each other and help each other whenever we can.

I'm not one for opening the door to anyone I don't know but there was a knock this afternoon.

When I did get downstairs(too late to catch the caller before she drove away)it was someone from the council. She left a card. The environmental department...could I call them.

Can you guess what is coming?

Someone has complained about bird droppings affecting their property. Just complaints about...bird poo!

And as a complaint has been made the council has to come out and see for themselves what the situation is...the only glimmer of hope and what's in our favour is that I have been outside and can see no food lying around. And at night anything like that is cleared away as my neighbours do so no vermin is fed.

Its only in a couple of small feeders and I have looked all over to see where all the supposed droppings are in my garden or surrounding properties and I cannot see anything to speak of. And the immediate properties just have grass and the new neighbour until all their alterations are done just looks like a tip so of you have seen pictures. As you have also seen how well I keep my garden as I have a gardener who visits and sees that all is well.

But of course I am now worried that the authority is going to tell me to stop.

Another simple pleasure possibly brought to an end.

And yet, I know of at least three or four other neighbours who are feeding and have no problems. I told the neighbour who faces onto the back of my garden(and has lived there for about the same length of time and he cannot believe it either) He says that he has no intention of stopping feeding the birds that visit and say that if they are complaining about me, he should be expecting a similar call as for years he has had a bird table and three feeders.

And looking around he cannot see any evidence of all these bird droppings. He has no intention of stopping and says if they have complained about us, then he's ready to expect a card too.

Rightly or wrongly we have to believe that it is the new neighbours complaining as we are hemmed in by trees and shrubs and the other neighbours put up a kind of bracken barrier attached to the fence so no bird can even land on the fence on that side. And being so private I don't know how anyone can see what is going on in my garden except from their side. Because they took away all the natural plants and trees.

But I could be totally wrong.

And of course in the next 4-6 weeks they plan to erect their new conservatory. So its just possible(and I admit that I could be wrong)maybe the idea is that if they sort this out before they build they've taken pre-emtive strike...but again as names of complainants are kept secret, we cannot be 100% certain on this. But obviously you try to guess who has complained.

All the neighbours here get on with each other and talk to each other if I had a problem I would go and talk directly first. But I have never ever had any neighbour fall out with us in all the time that we have been here.

But to go sneaking to the council is just plain nasty.
If are told to stop feeding I do not feel like giving in. As if we do, I lose the pleasure I get from seeing my wildlife. And other neighbours are feeding them and not being told to stop.

5 minutes walking distance from here is the town centre where there are pigeons galore and people still feed them and they c*** all over the place. More like it if the council sorted that enviroinmental health hazzard, the only time it gets cleaned up is when the Prime Minister visits on official business and their c*rap is all over the ledges of the shops, on the ground and often on the railings you use to hold onto if you use the steps outside.

One thing I was told was that they council does not have an official policy on such matters and at best they sometimes just ask for feeders to be repositioned. And if they are happy, they will take no action(I hope)and they just take a middle stance.

So much for all the programmes on television telling you take care of the environment.

So we now await the official visit tomorrow at 2pm...
Wish me luck...
(An angry and unhappy)
Gildy

Sorry to hear this Gildy. It is hard. We feed our wildlife and have about 4 feeders up, but there is a lot of poo as a result and it gets on my nerves that we keep having to clean it off my son's climbing frame etc,(and washing at times) so much so that we're easing back on the feeding a tad, sadly.
I suspect that the council may just ask you to reposition the feeders, moving them away from fences perhaps, don't know, but I doubt they will ask you to remove them all.
hope it goes well.
Ailsa x

Unbelievable Gildy!!!!

If they want to see real bird poo, they ought to take a visit to my neck of the woods in Springtime, when all the blooming crows are nesting in all the big lime trees in the close that runs alongside our property!! I'm an avid bird fan as you know, and all my feeders and table, water etc. is all at the side of my property on a spare bit of waste garden that we haven't quite got around to finishing off yet, so although the hedge is full of it from my little visitors, no-one has complained as the side of our property runs half way up this close (we're on a corner). I do have a concern when these crows are pooping in ernest though, coz our cars get covered in it, whether they're on the drive or in the road outside, there's no getting away from it, but to complain about bird poo from a few little ordinary garden birds is just being plain petty to me. Like you, we have lived here over 20 years now, and know all of our neighbours up the Close who also feed the birds, so I have no worries. Maybe they're from the City and don't understand that our little feathered friends were here first and they have every right to visit our cafe's and poo where they damn well like!!! Honestly!! As soon as we get a good old downpour it'll all be washed away anyway.

I did have cause to complain to our old neighbours who kept chickens, as we all ended up with rats, big ones at that, and my rat man said it was because they were feeding all the scraps off the plates and leaving it on the ground. Us bird people know better than to do that don't we!! I have 2 little mice that come and feed off the table at dusk, and I watch them out of my kitchen window every night. My husband wants to do away with that as they're living in his workshop, but I won't have it, they're not harming his tools in there are they, and they couldn't possibly get into the house, but of course, I will keep an eye on things there - I don't want the rats back!!

I know you can't say for sure it is them, but the finger certainly points in that direction to me. I think if we get some much needed rain, the evidence will be destroyed anyway, but I still can't believe that somebody has actually complained about bird poop Maybe they want them to wear nappies or something when they fly over their property! You can't stop birds flying over anybody's garden no matter where the feeders are can you!

Stuff them - don't you dare stop having your enjoyment from your little feathered friends just because of some snotty nosed neighbours. Like you say, they ought to see the Towns and Cities where the pigeons are, and the Councils don't bother cleaning that up much do they!! Our nearby Town is full of seagulls c*apping everywhere too as it's on the seafront.

You wait till Ashlady sees this, she'll come storming up there to sort them out!!!!

Thanks Ailsa,
Yes, if it was a problem I would not hesitate and would take precautions but I have looked at the hosues that surround mine even going quite a way up the street and there is not any bird droppings to speak of so I'm at a loss but we'll see how it goes tomorrow.

The worst time was when a hosue martin built a nest above the front porch...now that was aproblem but only for us. And was one year in about 40 years only.

This time of year there are fewer birds around anyhow...

Thanks...

Wood/Feral Pigeon, Collared Dove feaces can cause damage and do carry a lot of disease, it can also strip paint off a car! I can understand a complaint if its these types of birds, their droppings are HUGE and stain too, but not song birds, we should be encouraging those as much as we can. Hope you get things sorted.
Dawn.

ahhhh...they are the ones we have trouble with Dawn, the wood pigeons, pigeons and collared doves, they sit on top of his climbing frame and plop away all bloomin day!!!! Eughhhhh. We don't even feed them! Mind you they do eat any food that falls to the floor from the other feeders...
I like the wood pigeons, but not the others. Yuk.

Gildy, I do hope it's sorted easily for you, it shouldn't happen in the first place. I don't think the council are going to do much to be honest. Try ( she says) not to worry...
Ailsa x

Helena, Dawn and Ailsa,
Thanks so much for the support. Most of the time we get sparrows, finches, blue tits and blackbirds. Occasionally, doves but not many to speak of but they don't hang around anywhere in this area and if anything disappear back into trees where there is no building or gardening equipment below.

My area though in the centre of town is near to a kind of nature trail so many live in that anyhow and all the gardens around here until the new neighbour took all the trees out and put in a brick wall at the front and now says they are to erect a conservatory at the back no one has had a problem.

There a few conservatories around here and not one is soiled. I have also been looking(since the phone call)at neighbours fences and garden sheds and again, all clear.

Naturally, as they have got rid of all natural things from their garden in including a natural break that was between our properties and had been there for 40-50 years all the birds from their garden have had to move into neighbouring gardens for shelter etc...

If they had kept the hedge at the front, there would not be any bird droppings on that. You cannot stop a sparrow from landing on a wall and it might be different when the trellising is added that was going to be added and 6 weeks later still hasn't been.

If the droppings were a problem...we'd have it too. Well, I would've thought so...

And you know what the complaint has come in at a time when there are fewer birds around at this time of year.

Also, in general everyone around the country has seen an increase in Wood Pigeons, next year it could be totally different.

Roll on tomorrow afternoon...

If I suddenly disappear, sorry, my pc has had a major, major fault develop and its too complicated to explain what's happened except.

The main hard drive will not defrag and other external discs will not perform certain tasks though I am informed that I do not have a virus.

Earlier on I received messages saying something about a file record was unreadable.

I have also had to go back and do a system restore.

But I do believe that I have managed to save and print out all web address sites that I visit and e-mail addresses too. So that is something.

So if I do not manage to get back to tell you what happens tomorrow, sorry I will as soon as possible.

Thanks...what a week this has turned out to be

Good luck Gildy :smt023

Thanks Stewart...Do you think that the birds know that she is visiting.

I have not seen one in my garden all morning and yesterday numbers were down...

As to the computer problems...I have traced the person who installed it for me about 18 months ago and he's coming out this afternoon so whether it can be fixed here or has to be taken away...time will tell.

Gildy