Please help me understand why it's OK for a rooster to crow....

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

I'd love to take the radios out of all the cars sitting around playing what I call the mating call of the illiterate loon, boom, boom, boom, boom,, but guess what? I can't, and I can't shoot them either.

VERY good post writerofwords! I totally agree with you on the BOOM BOOM of teens cars...but we can't do anything about that either. I would MUCH rather hear a rooster crow.

It SO SAD now a days that people are turning so far away from nature or letting animals live the natural way....the way god intended them...I know our great grandparents prob all had chickens/roosters and at 5am they were up for the day. Go to bed earlier and then you wake up to LOVE that sound. It's just sad. I love the roosters crows.​

 

[summerwindsfarm]

Quote:
Amen..we live in the country on 50 acres because we have no wish to have neighbors telling us what to do or how to do it on *our* land. My closest neighbor is about a mile away...and i have really great neighbors at the moment..but from time to time we get city folk move in and every so often we get one that doesnt like the noise from our roosters, the sounds of our sheep, esp at feeding time..the smell of our cows. My attitude is always..sorry but this IS country life.. maybe your just more suited to the city.

Most ppl that move out here last less than 6 months anyways. Its not easy living in the boonies with no pizza delivery..spotty electric service..well water..when the electrics on..and miles of country roads before you hit highway. Oh ..and roosters that crow at 5 am.. i currently have about 10 of those..sometimes i have 50 or so <grin>.

That said..if you live in town and your neighbor is an arms reach from you.. it seems only courteous to stick with hens..and not guinea hens either lol.

Cheryl
http://www.summerwindsfoxtrotterfarm.com
http://www.homesteadblogger.com/summerwinds/
http://tech.groups.yahoo.com/group/oklahomahomesteading/

 

[ravenfeathers]

i think it's pretty silly to say that because i like the sound of a rooster crowing, my neighbours should, too. that's just wrongheaded, selfish thinking. maybe i like a good, sound punch in the head, too, but would i be justified in treating you to the same? roosters are loud and not everyone wants loud, especially at 4 or 5 in the morning. when you live on an acre lot with neighbours and legal limits on your land use, you ought to be a good neighbour.

this, btw, is the reason i live as far out as humanly possible and have no neighbours close by. my dog can bark, my kid can play her trumpet to the hills, my goats can blat, my horses can kick up a fuss, and my chicken can let a big, hairy squawk and there's no one to complain.

 

[LittleChickenRacingTeam]

Cock-a-doodle-DON'T :

I'm posting here because when I confronted my neighbor about her noisy birds (for which there is an ordinance) she gave me an earful and sighted many of the same nonsense excuses I've read on this board (excepting the occasional voice of reason) and rudely told me where to go.

I would take my complaint right to the city officials if I were you. Your neighbour deserves it.

 

[Cock-a-doodle-DON'T]

Wow loads of replies and more supportive than I'd expected!

I really have no problem with her keeping the birds, it's just the non-stop crowing is driving me up the wall!

For the record I do understand nature. You need to understand that the birds in question are an individual's property. They are not wild animals who just happend to be passing through the area. They are fed and housed there 24/7/365. This is the arguement my neighbor tried when I talked to her. She said, "You quiet the (wild) finches, and I'lll take care of the rooster."

Cause that's almost the same

 

[Lunachick]

I'm sorry you're having trouble with your neighbor. Unfortuneately I CAN'T have a rooster - very close neighbors - my chickens can make a racket in the a.m. and sometimes I cringe thinking that they are too noisy. I ask them if they need fresh eggs, which they gladly accept. So far so good.

But my neighbors have grandchildren that come down almost every weekend and SCREAM and CRY all day long in their swimming pool.

So I think we're even in that respect.

Edited to say I ask my NEIGHBORS if they need fresh eggs, not my chickens, they already have fresh eggs.

 

[Barnyard]

Well I am "SO" glad that I don't have fussy neighbors. I have 2 grown rooster's that crow all day and then I have the little guy's that are learning how to crow and they chim in with the big guy's, lol. My neighbor's are wonderfull,(so far). I have neighbor's on all side's of me and they haven't came beating on my door. I would have to agree with several on here that has said that it is a rooster's nature to crow. Why would you want to stop it? I personally love walking outside and hearing them . I like it even better when they are being just as quiet and then they see me or hear my van pull up and they just crow, crow, crow, as if they are welcoming me home. (yes mine do this). I would much rather hear a rooster than a loud dog barking at all hours of the night. I have to say though, that I am a total animal lover, so there you go......


Goodluck to you and your neighbor. I hope this can be resolved with no hard feelings!!


edited to add: I live on "the circle" where there are houses everywhere, and the police chief is 4 houses down from me.......so far so good, lol!

 

[Krysstyllanthrox]

The simple fact of the matter is that EVERYONE has a right to enjoy their property. If your neighbor's activities infringe on that you have the right to complain and seek recourse. If that means that her rooster is waking you up early and there is a noise ordinance then you are perfectly within your rights to call the city and complain.

I see a lot of people on this board decrying about their property rights, their right to keep animals, etc. What about when your rights infringe upon my rights? (Bear in mind, I like chickens and will get some as soon as I can afford to build a coop.)

An example: My husband suffers from Sleep Deprivation Seizures. They are genetic, his mother has them as well. If he does not get 9 hours of sleep each night he gets sick. If he goes for a few days without enough sleep he gets very sick (needing a hospital type of sick) and would eventually have a Grand Mal seizure. His mother nearly died from just such an episode thanks to a seizure while driving.

If I had a neighbor keeping a rooster that crowed at 5 in the morning, which would wake up my husband and keep him from getting his 9 hours of sleep I would be FURIOUS if the neighbor did not do anything to meet me halfway.

Every property owner has the right to enjoy their property. But when one property owner infringes on the other they lose the right to continue that infringement, whatever it may be.

 

[Cock-a-doodle-DON'T]

I would prefer not to hear horns and engines too, but replacing that with a rooster crowing is no better.
Do I make noise? Of course but I do so during daylight hours and it's not all day every day. An individual running a lawn mower for an hour or so on saturday afternoon is not a disturbance.

I do not fault the roosters for crowing, I fault the owner for allowing it to become a disturbance.

For the record here is the ordinance in my town:

4-3.1 Prohibited Noises.
It shall be unlawful for any person to make, continue or cause to be made or continued any loud, unnecessary or unusual noise or any noise which annoys or is likely to annoy or disturb the peace, quiet or safety of others. (1982 Code §126-1; Ord. #401)

And...

3.2 Partial Enumeration of Prohibited Noises.
4. Animals; Birds. The keeping of any animal or bird which, by causing frequent or long-continued noise, disturbs the comfort or repose of any person in the vicinity

I do not want to have to get her fined or get her birds taken, I know she really enjoys them. However after reading these posts it seems that is the direction to go.​

 

[Hangin Wit My Peeps]

The simple fact of the matter is that EVERYONE has a right to enjoy their property. If your neighbor's activities infringe on that you have the right to complain and seek recourse. If that means that her rooster is waking you up early and there is a noise ordinance then you are perfectly within your rights to call the city and complain.

Very good point. I know when I was in the city I just didn't even think about getting chickens because well...our neighbors I KNOW would have complained and for another we love cook outs with our neighbors and we strive to be friends with them. YOU NEVER KNOW WHEN YOU MAY NEED THEIR HELP. And I missed that there WAS an ordinance against having chickens in the post. In that case then I think the neighbor is in the wrong and should remove the rooster. Heck if my neighbor was "OK" with me having chickens where they are not suppose to be in the first place then I wouldn't push it!

I went right over to my neighbors and told them that we were getting chickens and a rooster and told them right out that IF they bother them to please let us know and we will do something about it. We dont want our rooster waking them up at 4am. We plan on keeping our locked up till at least 7am. I think 7am is reasonable. They have a farm with MANY mooing cows and I love that sound. Plus every spring there is the AWFUL smell from the fertilizer but we do realize it's something that comes with country living.​