Who's Right?Neighbor feeding pigeons, dirty balcony: who's right?
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In short
In France, regularly attracting or feeding pigeons is banned when it makes things unsanitary, for example droppings that dirty the neighbors' balconies. So the neighbor should stop, but a calm talk is still the best first step.
Both sides
For three months, I've been finding droppings all over my balcony: on the table, on the laundry drying, on my son's toys. Bernard lives upstairs, and every morning he puts bread on his railing. About ten pigeons settle on his balcony, then on mine. I clean almost every day and I don't dare eat outside anymore. I'm not asking him to hate birds. I just want him to stop turning our building into an aviary.
I've lived alone since my wife died, and those pigeons keep me company in the morning. I only give them leftover bread, not whole bags. The pigeons were here long before me, and you can see them on every roof in the neighborhood. And I didn't like Inès sticking a note in the lobby so the whole building would know it was me, instead of just knocking on my door.
The verdict
On the main issue, Inès has the rules and common sense on her side. Putting bread on a railing every morning is exactly the kind of regular feeding the law targets when it dirties the surroundings. It doesn't matter that there were already pigeons around. The bread is what brings them in and keeps them right above her balcony.
Still, Bernard has a point about how she went about it. Posting a note in the lobby exposes an elderly neighbor in front of the whole building, when a simple conversation might have been enough. His attachment to the birds is real, and it deserves to be heard, not mocked.
So Bernard is the one who mostly needs to change his habits. But Inès would get further by asking him face to face than by blaming him in public.
The compromise
Starting tomorrow, Bernard stops putting bread on the railing. If he wants to keep feeding birds, he can put up a small caged seed feeder made for small birds like tits, which pigeons can't use. Inès takes the note down, and they clean the balcony together this weekend, with Bernard supplying the cleaning products.
What the rules say
The French Public Health Code (article R1331-54) bans systematically or regularly attracting or feeding animals, including pigeons and cats, when this makes things unsanitary. So two conditions must both be met: the feeding is regular, and it causes dirt or a hygiene problem.
On top of that, the prefect (the state's local representative) can issue an order banning the feeding of wild animals, including pigeons, in a given area and for a set period. The goal is to stop diseases from spreading. This ban often appears in the departmental health regulations, which you can read on the prefecture's website or the regional health agency's (ARS) website. The exact rules therefore depend on the department. Also check with your town hall and read your building's co-ownership rules or your lease.
If the problem continues, the authorities recommend going step by step: a letter, then a registered letter (formal notice), then trying to settle it amicably with a court conciliator, the landlord, the building manager or a local mediator. If needed, you can then have a bailiff (commissaire de justice) record the facts, or contact the town hall.
Sources:
- A-t-on le droit de nourrir les pigeons ? (service-public.gouv.fr)
- Article R1331-54 - Code de la santé publique - Légifrance (legifrance.gouv.fr)
- Troubles du voisinage : que faire en cas de nuisances ? (masecurite.interieur.gouv.fr)
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General information, not legal advice.
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Frequently asked questions
Is it legal to feed pigeons from your balcony in France?
In France, it's banned if you feed them regularly and it makes things unsanitary, for example droppings on the neighbors' balconies. Depending on the department, a prefect's order or the departmental health regulations can be stricter.
Who has to clean the droppings on my balcony?
Everyone looks after their own balcony. But if the mess clearly comes from the pigeons your neighbor feeds, you can ask them to stop, and even to help with the cleaning. If you can't agree, a court conciliator can help you find a solution.
What can I do if my neighbor keeps feeding them?
Start with a letter, then send a registered letter. Next, try to settle it amicably with a court conciliator, the building manager or the landlord. If nothing changes, you can have a bailiff record the facts or alert the town hall.
What evidence should I keep?
Keep statements from other neighbors, photos or videos taken legally, your letters, emails and texts with the neighbor, and if possible a bailiff's report. Write down the dates to show that the problem keeps happening.
Guide Disputes between neighbors: the guide
Written with the help of AI, reviewed by the Who's Right team · This is not legal advice. How Who's Right decides
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