[UPDATE] [CA] How can I get my neighbors to get rid of their noisy chickens? : legaladvice

I posted this post about three years ago, and it got very little attention, but some people did help and for that I was (and am) super grateful. Plus, I figured we all like update posts, and this situation of chicken warfare is finally resolved.

To recap: my neighbors had five chickens that would squawk at ungodly hours of the morning and night. They were actually my parents neighbors; I was crashing with them over the summer and have since moved out. We did contact the city, who came and determined that they were up to code. But the neighbors assumed it was us (my parents had been pretty vocal in the neighborhood about not liking the chickens), and they decided to retaliate.

First, they claimed that a structure on my parents' property was illegal, and my parents had to deal with a city investigation, which turned up nothing, because it was not illegal. Next, they claimed that our little patch of sidewalk front yard, which is right next to theirs, was actually infringing on their property and demanded a property survey. We actually discovered that their front garden was partially on OUR land, so that was nice. My mother e-mailed the neighbors letting them know they were going to put up a little line of stones just to keep the garden property line clear so that they could plant their side, and the neighbors went batshit. Started sending long, rambling e-mails to my parents, started calling and hanging up, started throwing trash on our side of the garden and they eventually left several dead rodents still in traps on our front porch. After that, my parents got a security camera.

Things quieted down for a while, and we soon found out it was because the neighbors were trying to sell the house. Their house is pretty nice, and we live in a high COL city in a neighborhood that has really gotten popular in the past ~10 years. Basically, if all went well the neighbors would be making 2 or 3 million dollars from the sale. They hosted several open houses, and this is where my dad decided to get petty. See, my parents deck directly faced the neighbor's backyard, which still had the chicken coop and was one of the main attractions of the open house (they were actually trying to sell it as an "urban farmhouse."). As people would wander into the backyard of the open house, my dad would stand on his deck holding a very large sign that said, "NO CHICKENS IN THIS NEIGHBORHOOD." The other side said, "THEY BRING RATS AND VERMIN INTO OUR LOVELY COMMUNITY." I was half horrified, half cracking up. I told him that it would only escalate things, but he was insistent that any new neighbors not be allowed to keep the chickens. He would periodically shout down into the neighbors yard (our houses were very close), "we will NOT allow new neighbors to keep chickens!"

My parents got many furious calls and e-mails from the realtor and the neighbors. Apparently my dad was making people hesitant to buy the home (I don't blame them, he was acting like a crazy person), offers were dwindling, and they were going to have to lower the price. My dad said he would stop his chicken protest if the coop was removed; the chickens stayed, so my dad stayed on his deck for every single open house.

To make a long story of chicken subterfuge short, the neighbors sold the house. On their last night in the house, they egged my parents entire backyard and deck. I asked my dad if he wanted to report it, and he said it would be better to be rid of them. A lovely family has since moved in, and the first thing they did was dismantle the coop.

TL;DR: petty neighborhood chicken drama results in fowl play, but new neighbors are eggcellent.