Noisy animals
Noise from barking dogs and crowing cockerels is a common disturbance. If you are being disturbed by noise from a neighbour you can:
- First, approach your neighbour and explain politely that you are being troubled by noise. They will often not realise they are disturbing you and will be glad to do what they can to reduce the noise. However, approach the matter carefully if you think your neighbour might react angrily to a complaint.
- If the problem continues contact the Environmental Protection Team for advice or to make a complaint.
Information for animal owners
If you have received a complaint about your animal then try and talk to your neighbours. Stay calm and try and see it from their point of view; perhaps they are working shifts or have small children. Keep your neighbours informed of what you are trying to do to resolve the problem.
Further advice can be found by clicking the links below:
If you don’t take steps to solve the problem, and your local authority receives complaints about the noise your dog is making, the authority will investigate the complaint. If the local authority is satisfied that the noise amounts to a statutory nuisance, it will serve you with an abatement notice requiring the noise to be reduced to an acceptable level.
If you fail to comply with an abatement notice, you could face prosecution and, if convicted, a fine of up to £5000 (and possibly further daily fines of up to £500 for each day on which the offence continues after conviction).