Can bird mites cause a rooster to crow in the middle of the night?

[wordsretainpower]

Our roosters and every rooster in the neighborhood have a crowing contest about 2:00 every night. There are probably a dozen roosters that are close enough to hear. The two o'clock chorus only lasts a few minutes. Then they all start again at first light.

Yeah there was one time I came out at 2 am and I heard a faint rooster off in the distance... I was like oooooh nooo my roooster is triggering other roosters now haha! Fortunately I only head that once lol but yeah I've seen it ugh.... lol

 

[artbykarenehaley]

One thing that might have changed that you haven't mentioned (you might have considered it though) is that there could be another rooster in a mile or so radius of you that also crows. If your guy can hear him... He will respond.
My sister has a bunch of roosters at my parents farm. They all competitively crow starting at 1 am.
There are people who put their roosters to bed in a no crow basket. Roosters generally need to be able to stand up to crow, so a basket that fits him while he is resting on his legs and belly but not while he is standing is what you are looking for. A cat carrier might be too big on its own but filled with old towels until it's the right height might work.
Personally I can't have roosters at all so when I did have one he went and lived at my parents house with my sister's flock.

 

[wordsretainpower]

Mites can definitely be a problem and drive them from their coop. But have you checked the birds to make sure that is the issue? Also diatomaceous earth has very little effect on parasites and can be very harmful if inhaled (to both you and your chickens). [Typed some of this before some other people replied and just now had a chance to post it.]

Here is a link to a thread that may help…

https://www.backyardchickens.com/threads/treatment-for-mites.1491328/#post-24870828​

Two more issues might be light and ventilation. You said you blocked off light from their coop, so they still have enough natural light inside to be able to get in and get “ready for bed” before sunset? And is there sufficient ventilation? (I think the recommendation is at least one square foot of ventilation per bird. I can’t remember who it is that usually posts all the good specs and info on that. What kind of bedding are you using?

And what age are the birds? Rising hormone levels in “teenage” birds can also contribute to a lot of things.

Tagging a few more experts for more advice. @azygous @Mrs. K @3KillerBs @Wyorp Rock @aart

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I just looked up what poultry mites look like and... now I don't think they have those I didn't realize they were so obvious looking...I only saw bird mites one time in a old birds nest that had a dead baby bird in there... I mistakenly touched...(I swear I still have ptsd from this lmao) They all swarmed my hand because they were starving I guess...within seconds my entire hand was infested with these itty bitty little things that you could barely see with your naked eye...I could feel them all biting me though... I thought if poultry mites were anything like those things that they'd be hard to see but...not from google pictures they aren't haha! Blah...Def going to check one more time just to make sure... I think ventilation is the issue!

 

[wordsretainpower]

One thing that might have changed that you haven't mentioned (you might have considered it though) is that there could be another rooster in a mile or so radius of you that also crows. If your guy can hear him... He will respond.
My sister has a bunch of roosters at my parents farm. They all competitively crow starting at 1 am.
There are people who put their roosters to bed in a no crow basket. Roosters generally need to be able to stand up to crow, so a basket that fits him while he is resting on his legs and belly but not while he is standing is what you are looking for. A cat carrier might be too big on its own but filled with old towels until it's the right height might work.
Personally I can't have roosters at all so when I did have one he went and lived at my parents house with my sister's flock.

I wish I could keep this guy...but it just might not be in our cards... Someone mentioned ventilation as a possible issue and I believe they hit the nail right on the head...Our coop has like... no ventilation just a door...so my husband and I will add vents to it hopefully tomorrow afternoon on my lunch break. This is all very helpful information!

 

[TX Chick Noob]

You definitely need ventilation. And chickens can’t see in the dark, so it need to stay light enough until sunset for them to be comfortable getting settled in, and they need daylight first thing in the morning to get off the roost and start their day.

Trying to find the link/person/drawing I see posted a lot about doing ventilation the right way. It would also help a lot for you to post your general location as climate makes a difference in the recommendations. Because whether or not it is the cause of your current issue, it will definitely be a factor in the future health/happiness off your chickens.

Edit - Found it.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/

 

[wordsretainpower]

You definitely need ventilation. And chickens can’t see in the dark, so it need to stay light enough until sunset for them to be comfortable getting settled in, and they need daylight first thing in the morning to get off the roost and start their day.

Trying to find the link/person/drawing I see posted a lot about doing ventilation the right way. It would also help a lot for you to post your general location as climate makes a difference in the recommendations

Oh so they go into the coop just fine at nightfall, they stay in the coop until maybe midnight then all of them take their happy asses and move to the roof of the coop lmao I could never figure out why...which is why I thought maybe bird mites...but from the pictures I am seeing on google...Poultry mites seem to be easily seen... and I haven't seen any...Now I am going to take the shop vac from my job and vacuum out the inside of the coop bc now I am concerned about that DE being in there without proper ventilation lol ...also didn't realize DE doesn't kill poultry mites until now...blehhhhh lol mega learning curve, We live in CT

 

[raingarden]

Yeah there was one time I came out at 2 am and I heard a faint rooster off in the distance... I was like oooooh nooo my roooster is triggering other roosters now haha! Fortunately I only head that once lol but yeah I've seen it ugh.... lol

Yeah, sometimes I feel responsible for it all too. But, there are so many wild chickens around here that they'll never catch me.

I have this theory that waves of crowing can move across the landscape where there are contiguous roosters within ear-shout of each other.

 

[TX Chick Noob]

Since they didn’t have a roost there may have been enough light outside (house, moonlight, etc) for them to find the door and leave, and to be able to get up on the coop. Hard to tell without seeing pics of your setup.

Definitely read that article on ventilation, because a lot of people don’t realize it is as important in cold weather as it is in warm weather (or you have a greater chance of frostbite). And make sure the bedding you are using is not cedar, that is also bad for chickens.

This website is a great place to learn. Everything I have said I learned from the other great people here, especially a few experts.

 

[Tamayeager]

I find it interesting that they go in the coop, and move around midnight. The ventilation, the air in the coop, will be the same at midnight as at dusk. I have had a lot of roosters that crow throughout the night. And some that don't, Unless an issue arises. So, the crowing alone, is not an indication of an issue. He simply may be a night crowed. Especially if something could wake him, like a passing car. What is an indication of an issue, is the fact that they move in the middle of the night. You stated that you go out to look for a predator. But you most likely, will not see one. Even if it were there. It hears you coming. Am I understanding correctly, that they actually leave out of the coop, go outside, and get on the roof? I bet there are either mice or rats coming into the coop at night. They will bite your chicks feet. You can place a baby monitor inside and watch. Or, place some traps. I doubt it's a large predator. Like a raccoon. Because there would be a huge commotion. And the chickens would not want to leave the coop. They would try to get up in the corners. Outside would feel more vulnerable to them. But mice oor rats, are not that kind of threat. The chickens are just moving to an area, where they do not see them. On the roof. Or in the rafters. I don't think it's ventilation issue. Yes ventilation is very important. But highly doubt you built a sealed coop. The cracks between the boards alone, is ventilation. Unless you have an ammonia build up. But they would not even go in at dusk. Nothing in the environment of the inside of the coop changes that drastically in the matter of a few hours. It is something that must be coming into the environment, to drive them out. Either rats, or mice. I suggest getting a camera, or even a baby monitor. And watch. Or place traps. So sorry you have gotten attached when you did the only thing you could do! You got birds that were supposed to be pullets. Someone isn't very good at their job! Lol good luck. I know how easy it is to fall in love with these fluffy butts.

 

[3KillerBs]

I know nothing about mites and I doubt they'd affect crowing. I suppose it's *possible* that birds who were being disturbed at night *might* make a ruckus.

Two more issues might be light and ventilation. You said you blocked off light from their coop, so they still have enough natural light inside to be able to get in and get “ready for bed” before sunset? And is there sufficient ventilation? (I think the recommendation is at least one square foot of ventilation per bird. I can’t remember who it is that usually posts all the good specs and info on that. What kind of bedding are you using?

I find that my boys do nighttime crowing mainly when the moon is shining into the coop or, back when I had the in-town flock, when car headlights hit the coop. There's more light and disturbance outside at night than we normally think there is while we're shut up inside our houses.

Edit - Found it.
https://www.backyardchickens.com/articles/repecka-illustrates-coop-ventilation.77659/

Glad you found it.

It's next to impossible to block off all light from the coop while still having appropriate ventilation -- 1 square foot per adult, standard-sized hen.