This is Joshie, a bantam Cochin, and he is the sweetest rooster I have ever known. He doesn't crow much at all but he is getting on my neighbor's nerves and we will have to get rid of him unless it stops. I would really like to hang onto him whatever it takes. He crows for attention, so if I pick him up and snuggle him for a bit, he will usually stop. I am trying to diaper train him so that it will not be such a hassle to get him to stop but until then, I really need to work on getting him to crow less. It is always easy to tell why he is crowing (attention, light on, light off, etc.), but the problem is that he crows at inconvenient times, namely the morning. This would be tolerable if my step-father did not get up early for work and therefore savor days when he could sleep in. So we need a way to keep him from crowing. We are considering muzzling him or lowering the ceiling (so that he can't stretch out his neck) but any advice would be appreciated. The most sensible option would probably be to get rid of him but I am quite attached, not to mention he isn't used to the cold and winter has been especially harsh this year, so we won't be able to take him outside for a month at least, and I don't know if the neighbors can put up with him until then.
It sounds like he is indoors. Put him in a dark room or drape his cage so that he doesn't think its morning until later in the day, similar to what people do with their parakeets & other domestic birds.
I have a Silkie roo and a similar situation, except it is our nerves that his constant crowing grates on! He was a late fall chick and never made it outside before the miserable cold set in so were are just waiting for warm weather. In the meantime, I keep a tote with a hinged lid next to his pen and when he gets really obnoxious (generally in the morning) he gets a "time out". So far it works pretty well. He can still crow in the box but it is muffled and he doesn't do it as much. The tote is dark green and doesn't let much light in, I think that helps. I usually get up when he starts crowing and put him in the "Dolly Box" (his name is Dolly ) and then take him out when we are ready to leave for the day so about an hour and a half. If you know your neighbor's schedule, perhaps you can keep your little guy in box when your step-dad anticipates sleeping in and/or when your neighbor is most bothered by the crowing. I hope this helps and you can find a solution so you can keep your roo.
