poollounger

How do other people cope with the charms of countryside noise??? As someone who abhors traffic noise and congestion, I was surprised at how noisy the countryside can be. I have managed to make friends with the Spanish neighbours yapping dogs.. the 'Good friend' biscuits I took when we went over for dinner seemed to do the trick, but they still go crazy when we have visitors. And the dusk chorus I can tolerate...the nightly barking across the lanes and fields. The large cock that crows not once but twice, often starting at 0330 makes me and my visitors reach for the earplugs...cheap enough at the local pharmacist, but please remember to ask for 'tapones' for your ears and not a word that sounds very similar or you may get some strange looks.
I seem to remember someone mentioning the possibility of an electronic deterrent that emits a sound inaudible to humans but that pacifies dogs. Does this work on cockerels too ?? And where does one get them?? My local hardware store in England sells something similar to deter rats, but haven't seen any for dogs...or are they on the same wavelength ?? And is a sneaky Coq au Vin on the menu ??

pete_l

The thing about dogs at night seems to be widespread across
southern europe. I suppose it's due to the warmer weather: peoples
dogs live outside, not in the house.

I really can't see how these ultrasonic devices work - certainly I doubt they're
powerful enough to work across the distances we get dogs barking at night.
On a related point, I'm not sure I buy the idea that you can stop a dog
barking by subjecting it to a loud noise. One of my work colleague had a
nutter neighbour "try" one out on his (normally docile) dog. It just drove it
crazy.

Pete

mikelincs

It's not only country noises, although we are on a quiet urbanisation, we still get the dofs yapping as a dawn chorus, better now that the two dogs left in the yard of a house which is being sold have been taken away, they wre being fed by someone, but barked all night for a couple of nights, so they were reported and have now gone. The crickets and cicadas are the noisiest things round here, having one on the wall of the house opposite, or on your wall singing for several hours is no joke, not bad during the day, but at night.......

maryg

We've got the ussual cicadas and crickets, cockrels and the occaisional yapping dog, but I think the worse noise we have is a gang of siamese cats (they are like a gang of thugs, if they were human they'd been mugging all night instaed of sh****ing)......the most arrogant, nasty creatures you could meet on a dark night........you hiss at them to scat and they look at you with the most insolent look possible, and saunter off into the night wailing as they go...
Mary

mikelincs

Hey leave the siamese alone , mine is lovely, he is only 6 months and cost a huge €30 from Pets World. Yes they don't miaow like normal cats, but he is sweet, but then again he is a house cat, and won't be going out on the streets, I mean have you seen the size of some of the street cats :scared: They should do a 'Big Cats Diary' round here Worse we have had recently is the yobbos in the pool at 2am, coming into the community and scaling the fence round the pool, then wrecking the lifebelt.

karunia

Hey I'm glad someone defends Siamese cats as I love them, even though I have no business being on the Spanish forum, except to say that yes, barking dogs at night drive me wild too... even through DOUBLED earplugs... I've tried the foam ones, the wax ones, now I stick with the wax ones but I need 2 stuck together for more effectiveness...
And talking about noises, I am surprised nobody has mentioned mopeds and scooters... the local police here seems to have done a purge, but periodically they start all over again...

karunia

Hey I'm glad someone defends Siamese cats as I love them, even though I have no business being on the Spanish forum, except to say that yes, barking dogs at night drive me wild too... even through DOUBLED earplugs... I've tried the foam ones, the wax ones, now I stick with the wax ones but I need 2 stuck together for more effectiveness...
And talking about noises, I am surprised nobody has mentioned mopeds and scooters... the local police here seems to have done a purge, but periodically they start all over again...
As an early-to-bed, early-to-rise type, the only solution I have found is... to sleep less, much less, and to catch up on sleep with the afternoon siesta - all windows and shutters closed anyway because of the heat. Otherwise, the best bedroom would have to be an underground, soundproofed bunker....

pete_l

Yes, I've found that too. Try putting some olive oil on them and they won't
stick so much

Pete

mikelincs

I've an even easier solution. I wear hearing aids, and take them out at night, result, I can't hear anything from the outside!!!!

Chiclanagir

I love Siamese too, having had fifteen in the last thirty years and have never had a nasty one.

I love the country noises, much better than traffic and drunken hordes coming out of the pub! I don´t even notice the cockerell now and the grasshoppers (can´t spell the other word) are soothing. But saying that I do sleep with my hands over my ears, a legacy from when the kids were little and crying, and now I can´t sleep any other way until I get cramp in my arms!

poollounger

Glynis you cruel person... ignoring the cries of your little ones but heaping sympathy on Siamese cats !!!!!! The chorus of dogs I quite enjoy....I like the way they seem to be chatting to each other across fences and fields...the cicadas I find restful, and they conjure up a tropical atmosphere....but that damned cockerel....twice a night???? yes one does get used to him after a while, and enough vino helps to get through the night. I found the little silicone earplugs were the best. Do CAPONS crow as well??? Mr Cockerel had better watch out!!!!

Mercedes

Hi I also live in the country, when I first brought my house I thought I was in animal farm, the cock, dogs, donkey baying, horses neighing etc. I find having a fan on in the bedroom drowns out most of the noise, and I've got used to some of it now also. I've also currently got an illegal disco now, by me, (hopefully it will be closed soon as my neigbours have connections to the local and guardia civil) The fan worked for me anyway, or even having the radio on for a while. I found that noise wasn't so irritating.