[Isabo]

My usual routine is to spend the week in Milan and weekends and holidays in the mountains. This weekend I stayed in the mountains a couple of extra days as our daughter was staying with us and my husband took a couple of days holiday to play with his latest motorcycle while the weather is clear. My daughter is also a bike nut so they were off playing on the twisties most of the time. So much for my cunning master plan to have assistants clear out the cellar. Next time I suppose.
One of my neighbours also has a routine. She keeps chickens, she lives about a kilometre away but built her chicken coop almost on our boundaries. When she thinks we're away she lets them out to roam, they inevitably find their way through the hedge and crap all over the place. Having to hose down a terrace or a drive or the paved area around the pool rapidly becomes a bore. When confronted, she maintains they sneaked out or that she left their gate open. I haven't the heart to kill them and I don't want a feud with a neighbour anyway.
This afternoon I was sitting in the conservatory when I saw the invasion of the fouling poultry. I saw red. I also saw revenge!
One of my toys is a CO2 powered repeating airpistol with reddot sight and a silencer. A quick check to make sure there were no witnesses and I got to work. Aversion training! The airpistol is very low powered and I don't think even a headshot would kill, especially at a distance. I picked my target, one that was away from the main group, I fired, it jumped and went running off with me following it with the sight and shooting as often as I could, chasing it round the garden with pellets. Reload and a new playmate! The trick is to work the stragglers so you don't frighten off the main group and give them a few minutes pause between victims so they settle down.
I was having the time of my life when I heard an outburst of laughter from my daughter and my husband swearing and pointing out all the offences I could be charged with, he can be a real fuddyduddy about stuff like this when it's not his idea! The next thing I might try is is dipping stale bread in wine and dropping it on the other side of the hedge before they come in, apparently chickens eat it and fall down drunk.
Any other ideas to keep them out? I can't fence off anymore than I already have as there are some rights of way and shared roads.