Sound of Silence 6am - No More Crowing

[My Hens and Roo]

I did use it and it did work the best of all my contraptions.
I don't have a picture, and I wont... I am finished with rooster collars. I am in no way saying the thought and design, etc., is cruel nor does it even remotely touch on animal abuse. For many people, it works and has been a Godsend. I have a huge admiration for any guy called rooster! I love my roo to pieces and respect him even more! This is a personal decision that in the end has nothing to do with me. It's about him. My roo just doesn't tolerate the collar(s) well. It's seems to be of an emotional/behavioral issue more than a physical issue. Physical though, being he is a bantam...bearded with a short and stocky neck making it difficult for him not being swallowed up by something that is wrapped around his neck.
His mate would "take it off" within an hour regardless, I think because she knowing he didn't want the thing around his neck, and because she could sense his anxiety, would just "take care of that for you honey" type of a thing. But that's only one of a few reasons I'm/He's done. Main reason is the personality change, for lack of a better description. I am pretty sure it's more "Him" than anything. Whenever the collar(s) are adjusted tight enough to quiet him to an acceptable level the backwards walking (backing out attempt) increases, at that point he just walks off to be alone. He hides off in corners, doesn't call his girls over for treats, doesn't try to Fake them out with non-existent treats which is a funny personality trait of a roosters' attempt at foreplay, and in all it's awkwardness I find it both, hysterical and amusing!
A big problem I suspect is that he is so consumed by a feeling of choking that he stops making warning sounds...his mark for predators is off, he is off! The rooster is gone! It crushes my heart to see this! I took the collar off him for the last time last Thursday after I read a post somewhere on this site that hit me in a big way as if the writer was reading my mind at that particular moment . The writer so eloquently wrote... It goes like this:
"To take away the voice from an animal that was designed specifically for that purpose is disgusting and sacrilege." Again, this is only my opinion in "this" particular situation. Might it be a different rooster, another time, I might feel very differently about this.

I have been court ordered to re-home my rooster, and I will during the time it takes to walk through the appeal process. Note; there is no chicken/rooster ordinance in my small town/city. The city officials broke the law in an attempt to deny us our right to Due Process and they also broke the law regarding the FOIA by refusing to furnish us with records pertaining to this case regarding police calls police reports & notes (only one person on my street of 18 homes has complained but has repeatedly) while also lying by saying the officers didn't take notes (as they refer to their notes when we were at trial!! WOW).
An acquaintance who has recently retired to their 100 acre ranch in the Willamette Valley, here in Oregon has reached out to us and is gracious enough to foster my roo and his mate. I am so grateful for this act of kindness and feel a little better knowing they will be housed and loved the same as we would. Still, this is really hard and we are very sad.
For this reason I urge you to stick with this as long as you are comfortable with the process. I swear that chickens have souls...they wrap theirs around ours and before you know it, both chicken and human have ridden out a fine friendship for nearly 8000 years in the making!
.
I wish you well! I really do.

 

[tofupup]

Well, that is great that you found someone to foster him while you fight the city. And I'm super stoked to hear that you are fighting the rooster-hating ********. I hate your neighbor, and I hope to hear an update someday in the future that you were victorious.

I was just wondering about your method, because I get about 80 requests a week from people asking me to take in roosters, and I was looking at this site http://nocrowroostercollars.com/ and was wondering if that could potentially save a lot of roosters from being killed. I know it's not cool to deprive a rooster of his natural behavior, but it seems less cruel that killing him.

 

[My Hens and Roo]

You are a gem in my book to give your heart to these beautiful animals!
Roosters have got to be the most misunderstood creatures on this planet! I love Love LOVE their character and devotion!
Since you're are a keeper of roosters, here is my story of how I came to love and respect them as much as I do...

My first rooster was a 'chick' my husband chose at our local feed store, a black australorp who he called "Sweetie Pie", I chose a Buff Orp chick that day and named her Gertrude aka Gert. They grew up together and loved each other to pieces. Well, Sweetie Pie grew...and grew and grew!! She became a he. The australorp wasn't an australorp at all! He was a Jersey Giant. All 19 pounds of his glorious self!! We gave him the name, Emu!
He was big and fierce as they come!!! And he WAS... when he needed to be.
Everyone seemed to fear Emu...Everyone who didn't know him!
One day I was really sad and I was out back where the chickens live. I was having myself a good cry. Well, next thing I know, that rooster was watching me. Staring at me. He slowly walked to me and sat down right by my side. Just sat with me. I turned my head towards him, he was so big we were eyeball to eyeball when sitting, those big black eyes of his looked right back at me. He started going through my hair with his beak...same as he often did with his hens as a gesture of care. When he stopped, he laid his head over on my shoulder. A Chicken!! He stayed that way until he was satisfied that I was alright, and went along his way!

When Gert was about to lay her first egg she ran around the yard all day looking for the spot she wanted. She even came into the house and up the stairs at one point looking. That crazy chicken finally decided her place was at the back of the yard where my husband kinda stored his scrap wood, chicken wire, and what not. There was a piece of hardware cloth about 15x25", it was rolled but cockeyed, if you know what I mean and Gert was having some difficulty with stability. That dang rooster was frantically trying to unroll that piece of hardware cloth with his beak where the frayed wire held it together. I went over there and helped him with that and he runs to the hay pile and looks at me like "can you help me with this s#*t? All the while, Gert is squawlking at the top of her lungs!
Long story longer, we get her all situated.
I'm not lying! I stood and watched as that big bad rooster gingerly craned his neck around the corner, legs and feathers shaking with anticipation, as if waiting for the birth of his first child!
TRUTH!! And I will be forever amazed by the thing we call Rooster!
They fascinate me!
We painfully re-homed Emu to a farm just an hour away, where he happily resides with 8 Jersey Girls like himself. He was just too much for our girls. We visit with him and he is one happy camper. BTW, out of all those big girls, his favorite...the one he loves most, is a little red hen! Like Gert.

Emu with his little redhead wife

Gert suddenly died one day, we think of an overdose of termites she scored. A protein rush which likely caused kidney failure.
Sorry so wordy. Thanks for listening.
Here's a pic of Muu in our kitchen. The RIR, under the table is of standard size as Emu towers over the table.

 

[tofupup]

Well, that was educational. First, I did not know a hen can die from a protein rush-- unfortunate, since my hens go bonkers over maggot caches they find every so often.

Second, I now know why I have a giant hen that someone gave me -- she must be a Jersey Giant! I thought she was just a freak all this time. I guess I never paid much attention to chicken breeds since I just get the homeless ones.

Emu sounds much nicer than my roosters. Mine mostly snub me or charge me in a fury. It's okay; I love them anyway. And I don't know why people get so irate over roosters crowing. Your neighbor sounds like a bigger ***** than mine. I am so lucky that right after I moved here, the county changed the zoning ordinances to allow roosters here. My neighbor hit the roof when I adopted the first rooster from the shelter. That was a year ago. Now there are ten roosters, haha.
.

 

[Faraday40]

To my Hens & Roo:

Your "Emu" sounds like my Brownie. He was my daughter's fav chick, so of course turned out to be a roo. As we tried to rehome him, winter set in & the neighborhood went into hibernation. The coop was so well insulated, no one could hear him unless outside. If they were outside & already awake, they never cared if he crowed. I promised my daughter that we'd find him a good home (not a stew pot). Meanwhile, she spent her hours after school hours reading to him, daily snuggles with homework, playing dress up, and even a weekly chicken movie night. My daughter could do anything to that rooster; he remained her baby. Have you ever seen a rooster perched on the handlebars of a bike with the wind blowing through his hackle feathers? Or, sitting on a little girl's lap while swinging or going down the slide? He was also the only boy in our coop, so when the girls started laying, he would pace back & forth like an expectant father. He even jumped into a nest box to show them how it's done. Then jumped out to sing the egg song. Because of his amazing gentle nature, he was always with me when I did any "chicken-themed" lessons at school. He never flogged anyone, and from what others have said, his temperament was extremely rare. I saw him chase after a low flying hawk, so he wasn't a wimp either.

When the winter tarps came off the run, Brownie's crow could be heard 4-5 blocks away. Knowing that we had to get rid of him (village noise ordinance) I promised my daughter that she could pick out a FEMALE chick of Brownie's. When spring came, we used his fertile eggs for her 4H poultry science project. I reminded the neighbors that he was temporary, but they all told me they enjoyed hearing him. (Not an exaggeration - they said "enjoyed." Definitely not the word I would have used.) I tried the collar, but knowing that at least my closest neighbors were OK, I left it off. The adjustments were time consuming & I never felt right leaving it on 24/7.

We found him a new home, a few days before his birthday. I sent 2 of his hens along to ease the transition. Sadly it's too far to visit, but hopefully, the man is honest enough to keep his word & keep Brownie alive. He's been gone for 3 months. We still cry. Several neighbors have called in concern b/c they no longer hear him. Frequent crowing was his main drawback. (He crowed in the am & anytime he saw a member of the family. We spend much time outside....) The other issue was his constant mating with the girls. They all had rooster damage to the back & wings that hasn't grown back yet. He never asked permission, just chased & jumped on. He now has 10 hens & 4 acres to roam.

Here comes our new dilemma: We hatched a beautiful Lavender Orpington, named Tank, this spring. He's no Brownie. I made sure we did not hold him or get too attached. Although he does not come running to us for snuggles, he's not aggressive. We have several hawks around and the protection would be nice. At 20 weeks, he did not crow! The older hens made sure to let him know that he's not a big boy yet. Poor Tank is so hen-pecked (literally). Finally at 21 weeks, he's starting to crow. I was hoping he would be much quieter. I am a science teacher & actually use my chickens for educational purposes as well as my daughter's 4H. Knowing that the neighbors do not mind, I'm tempted to keep him. Of course, more likely, a stranger walking by would hear him & complain. If I get rid of him, we'll be wide open for hawk attacks and not have a supply of fertile eggs for future projects (& local classroom incubators). If I do get rid of him, I won't have to worry about noise & getting into a village battle. A rooster is like a neon sign shouting to everyone that you own chickens.

As you can see, there's a big debate going on inside of me. My DH said it's up to me. The neighbors say to keep him. The law is not perfectly clear. I believe the intent is to prohibit noisy animals like outdoor dogs that bark all night. It does not specifically state roosters, but that may be implied. Tank is mostly English Orp & should grow to be about 10-14lbs. Not going to be able to hide a chicken that big!

For now, I'm waiting to see how loud he gets. I apologize for being wordy (I think I have you beat!), but who other than chicken owners would understand my loss & current dilemma.

 

[My Hens and Roo]

To my Hens & Roo:

Your "Emu" sounds like my Brownie. He was my daughter's fav chick, so of course turned out to be a roo. As we tried to rehome him, winter set in & the neighborhood went into hibernation. The coop was so well insulated, no one could hear him unless outside. If they were outside & already awake, they never cared if he crowed. I promised my daughter that we'd find him a good home (not a stew pot). Meanwhile, she spent her hours after school hours reading to him, daily snuggles with homework, playing dress up, and even a weekly chicken movie night. My daughter could do anything to that rooster; he remained her baby. Have you ever seen a rooster perched on the handlebars of a bike with the wind blowing through his hackle feathers? Or, sitting on a little girl's lap while swinging or going down the slide? He was also the only boy in our coop, so when the girls started laying, he would pace back & forth like an expectant father. He even jumped into a nest box to show them how it's done. Then jumped out to sing the egg song. Because of his amazing gentle nature, he was always with me when I did any "chicken-themed" lessons at school. He never flogged anyone, and from what others have said, his temperament was extremely rare. I saw him chase after a low flying hawk, so he wasn't a wimp either.

When the winter tarps came off the run, Brownie's crow could be heard 4-5 blocks away. Knowing that we had to get rid of him (village noise ordinance) I promised my daughter that she could pick out a FEMALE chick of Brownie's. When spring came, we used his fertile eggs for her 4H poultry science project. I reminded the neighbors that he was temporary, but they all told me they enjoyed hearing him. (Not an exaggeration - they said "enjoyed." Definitely not the word I would have used.) I tried the collar, but knowing that at least my closest neighbors were OK, I left it off. The adjustments were time consuming & I never felt right leaving it on 24/7.

We found him a new home, a few days before his birthday. I sent 2 of his hens along to ease the transition. Sadly it's too far to visit, but hopefully, the man is honest enough to keep his word & keep Brownie alive. He's been gone for 3 months. We still cry. Several neighbors have called in concern b/c they no longer hear him. Frequent crowing was his main drawback. (He crowed in the am & anytime he saw a member of the family. We spend much time outside....) The other issue was his constant mating with the girls. They all had rooster damage to the back & wings that hasn't grown back yet. He never asked permission, just chased & jumped on. He now has 10 hens & 4 acres to roam.

Here comes our new dilemma: We hatched a beautiful Lavender Orpington, named Tank, this spring. He's no Brownie. I made sure we did not hold him or get too attached. Although he does not come running to us for snuggles, he's not aggressive. We have several hawks around and the protection would be nice. At 20 weeks, he did not crow! The older hens made sure to let him know that he's not a big boy yet. Poor Tank is so hen-pecked (literally). Finally at 21 weeks, he's starting to crow. I was hoping he would be much quieter. I am a science teacher & actually use my chickens for educational purposes as well as my daughter's 4H. Knowing that the neighbors do not mind, I'm tempted to keep him. Of course, more likely, a stranger walking by would hear him & complain. If I get rid of him, we'll be wide open for hawk attacks and not have a supply of fertile eggs for future projects (& local classroom incubators). If I do get rid of him, I won't have to worry about noise & getting into a village battle. A rooster is like a neon sign shouting to everyone that you own chickens.

As you can see, there's a big debate going on inside of me. My DH said it's up to me. The neighbors say to keep him. The law is not perfectly clear. I believe the intent is to prohibit noisy animals like outdoor dogs that bark all night. It does not specifically state roosters, but that may be implied. Tank is mostly English Orp & should grow to be about 10-14lbs. Not going to be able to hide a chicken that big!

For now, I'm waiting to see how loud he gets. I apologize for being wordy (I think I have you beat!), but who other than chicken owners would understand my loss & current dilemma.

I enjoyed your story very much indeed! I wish you would have kept Brownie!! Such a special guy.
They steal our hearts they do!!
We lost in court and our pair of sultan's go to a small farm only 30 minutes from here and to a friend. She will be fostering them for now........
......I have taken the plunge. A big plunge and have decided to appeal the courts decision. I seriously don't enjoy being the center of attention. and this thing has the potential (maybe) to cause attention. I am asking for legal representation from the FTCLDF. During this ordeal, the police chief of this small town had an order delivered to us demanding we remove our little sultan roo within 7 days. Problem with this is, we had entered a plea of not guilty just 3 days prior, we hadn't even recieved our trial date. Technically...or blatantly, which ever way you might look at it...He has violated our right to due process as stated in the 14th amendment of our constitution. Secondly, they refused to furnish me with the documents pertaining to this, ie; police calls, reports, notes, etc....a violation of the FOIA, freedom of information act. The reason this could blow up is because our city police department was just replaced by the county sheriff dept. just this last July because of scandle within the department. Last year there was unrest because of an illegal firing of the city manager...You see what I mean? They are short of money this city is and can you imagine if the straw that breaks the camels back boils down to......A Chicken? What if this city is no longer, because of My Rooster?! I both dread it while at the same time laugh out loud at the thought.
Ooeey vey!
BTW, I cry also...over a chicken...alot!

 

[LindaB220]

I enjoyed your story very much indeed! I wish you would have kept Brownie!! Such a special guy.
They steal our hearts they do!!
We lost in court and our pair of sultan's go to a small farm only 30 minutes from here and to a friend. She will be fostering them for now........
......I have taken the plunge. A big plunge and have decided to appeal the courts decision. I seriously don't enjoy being the center of attention. and this thing has the potential (maybe) to cause attention. I am asking for legal representation from the FTCLDF. During this ordeal, the police chief of this small town had an order delivered to us demanding we remove our little sultan roo within 7 days. Problem with this is, we had entered a plea of not guilty just 3 days prior, we hadn't even recieved our trial date. Technically...or blatantly, which ever way you might look at it...He has violated our right to due process as stated in the 14th amendment of our constitution. Secondly, they refused to furnish me with the documents pertaining to this, ie; police calls, reports, notes, etc....a violation of the FOIA, freedom of information act. The reason this could blow up is because our city police department was just replaced by the county sheriff dept. just this last July because of scandle within the department. Last year there was unrest because of an illegal firing of the city manager...You see what I mean? They are short of money this city is and can you imagine if the straw that breaks the camels back boils down to......A Chicken? What if this city is no longer, because of My Rooster?! I both dread it while at the same time laugh out loud at the thought.
Ooeey vey!
BTW, I cry also...over a chicken...alot!

Stick by you guns, the law needs to be taken as read. If it's not there, then , by God, you make sure that anybody in town can keep their roosters. Set a precedent.

 

[Faraday40]

I enjoyed your story very much indeed! I wish you would have kept Brownie!! Such a special guy.
They steal our hearts they do!!
We lost in court and our pair of sultan's go to a small farm only 30 minutes from here and to a friend. She will be fostering them for now........
......I have taken the plunge. A big plunge and have decided to appeal the courts decision. I seriously don't enjoy being the center of attention. and this thing has the potential (maybe) to cause attention. I am asking for legal representation from the FTCLDF. During this ordeal, the police chief of this small town had an order delivered to us demanding we remove our little sultan roo within 7 days. Problem with this is, we had entered a plea of not guilty just 3 days prior, we hadn't even recieved our trial date. Technically...or blatantly, which ever way you might look at it...He has violated our right to due process as stated in the 14th amendment of our constitution. Secondly, they refused to furnish me with the documents pertaining to this, ie; police calls, reports, notes, etc....a violation of the FOIA, freedom of information act. The reason this could blow up is because our city police department was just replaced by the county sheriff dept. just this last July because of scandle within the department. Last year there was unrest because of an illegal firing of the city manager...You see what I mean? They are short of money this city is and can you imagine if the straw that breaks the camels back boils down to......A Chicken? What if this city is no longer, because of My Rooster?! I both dread it while at the same time laugh out loud at the thought.
Ooeey vey!
BTW, I cry also...over a chicken...alot!

Stick by you guns, the law needs to be taken as read. If it's not there, then , by God, you make sure that anybody in town can keep their roosters. Set a precedent.

I agree. You no longer have the rooster, so the worst has already happened. It doesn't hurt to appeal if you have the financial backing. You may win. At a minimum, the town must review & rewrite the laws. If not, the vagueness & omissions will get costly for the town as more & more people raise chickens. It's so easy to "violate" a law that is not found anywhere in the record. Are hens legal in your town?

In a rush to make backyard chickens legal, our village has several ordinances about the placement of a coop, rat-proof feeders, distance from public walkways, etc. Like your town, there is a noise ordinance about nuisance animals as an implied no roosters law. When a friend happened to get a cockerel in her batch of pullets, they killed her roo (animal control) & told her chickens were illegal via a letter (from the village code enforcement office). They used an obscure rule (from 1972) in the building code section that said no secondary structure (like a shed, playhouse, etc) could be used for the purpose of housing pigeons, poultry, or rabbits. The letter gave her 3 weeks to get rid of all the chickens or pay fines up to $700 per day. She spoke with the mayor & asked how a chicken coop could be illegal when there are 5 different laws regarding the set up & maintenance of a backyard flock. The next day a new letter was sent which states that her chickens must be confined to the coop/run and not "at large." I believe she could argue that her fenced in yard prevents the hens from being "at large," but court was avoided for both sides. She is planning on getting a privacy fence. If she calls it a run & keeps it 50 ft from the sidewalk, perhaps she can free range in her yard again.

The mayor agreed that conflicting laws exist & said they will work on it. One thing they may add is max number of 4 per property. I can understand if the lot is a tiny 1/4 acre, but we have the space & share extra eggs/compost with many families. The mayor also asked if she could possibly keep the chickens inside. Are you kidding???? That's unsanitary & completely opposite of her goal to provide healthy organic food for her family. Isn't it comforting to know that such knowledgeable people are making decisions that directly affect us?

We live in the suburbs, but it's far easier to own chickens in the city of Chicago than here. (Roosters are legal or at least more common there.) I'm so blessed to have wonderful neighbors.

 

[My Hens and Roo]

I agree. You no longer have the rooster, so the worst has already happened. It doesn't hurt to appeal if you have the financial backing. You may win. At a minimum, the town must review & rewrite the laws. If not, the vagueness & omissions will get costly for the town as more & more people raise chickens. It's so easy to "violate" a law that is not found anywhere in the record. Are hens legal in your town?

In a rush to make backyard chickens legal, our village has several ordinances about the placement of a coop, rat-proof feeders, distance from public walkways, etc. Like your town, there is a noise ordinance about nuisance animals as an implied no roosters law. When a friend happened to get a cockerel in her batch of pullets, they killed her roo (animal control) & told her chickens were illegal via a letter (from the village code enforcement office). They used an obscure rule (from 1972) in the building code section that said no secondary structure (like a shed, playhouse, etc) could be used for the purpose of housing pigeons, poultry, or rabbits. The letter gave her 3 weeks to get rid of all the chickens or pay fines up to $700 per day. She spoke with the mayor & asked how a chicken coop could be illegal when there are 5 different laws regarding the set up & maintenance of a backyard flock. The next day a new letter was sent which states that her chickens must be confined to the coop/run and not "at large." I believe she could argue that her fenced in yard prevents the hens from being "at large," but court was avoided for both sides. She is planning on getting a privacy fence. If she calls it a run & keeps it 50 ft from the sidewalk, perhaps she can free range in her yard again.

The mayor agreed that conflicting laws exist & said they will work on it. One thing they may add is max number of 4 per property. I can understand if the lot is a tiny 1/4 acre, but we have the space & share extra eggs/compost with many families. The mayor also asked if she could possibly keep the chickens inside. Are you kidding???? That's unsanitary & completely opposite of her goal to provide healthy organic food for her family. Isn't it comforting to know that such knowledgeable people are making decisions that directly affect us?

We live in the suburbs, but it's far easier to own chickens in the city of Chicago than here. (Roosters are legal or at least more common there.) I'm so blessed to have wonderful neighbors.

Thank you for such encouragement. All of you!
There is absolutely zero ordinances with the word(s) chicken or rooster in them in this city. None!
Only a noise ordinance regarding animals in general but it is still very vague.
I might add, if the city would have released the records to me as they are obligated by law to do, I could have proven then and there that the neighbor lied under oath. It wasn't until this trial that dates of the times she called were revealed. On June 6th she called the police at 2pm stating the rooster had been crowing non stop since 5am. Funny, the rooster and his mate left my property with my daughter and my grandchildren at 7:40am. They spent all day at Love Farms attending a day long tutorial with The Loves, on the handling and keeping of small variety fowl for children age 6 to 12 years. They returned home at 4:15 pm.
They, the city is just tired of spending resources on all these calls. I don't blame them. However, as a gentleman on this forum has brought to my attention. In administrative court, you are being tried by the same people who cited you. There is really no chance of a fair trial there.
Where else in this world is the opportunity to stand up and speak on behalf of a rooster? Though it is voice I must defend. I feel that I need to take advantage of the chance to do so.
Another said, "to take away the voice from an animal that was designed specifically for that purpose, is disgusting and sacrilege"!

 

[UrbanMamaHen]

Well, I got a kid's tube sock and put it on my just-started-to-crow BLRW rooster. I haven't heard from him yet this morning. The tube sock is not tight at all so he should be able to crow still if he wants to. I think he is distracted with the new thing on his neck and therefore hasn't crowed. We'll see how long he remains distracted.