Sound of Silence 6am - No More Crowing

[tofupup]

I went ahead and bought one of these rooster collars http://nocrowroostercollars.com/ , just to test it, to see if I could recommend it to people in urban areas with roosters.

Of course the rooster I tried it on freaked out for a few hours. Then about a day later he crowed, but it was muffled. He crowed maybe once a day for the next week, and then I took it off. I want to note that I did NOT make it tight at all, so it was probably more of a psychological impact that stifled his crowing than a physical one.

I haven't gotten around to trying it again, tightened, yet.

 

[Faraday40]

We have a new roo, named Tank - about 24 weeks now. He didn't crow until 21 weeks, so we're still deciding if we want to keep him or not. I made another collar. (This time about 2" wide using ribbon & Velcro.) It muffled but not silenced the crow. I asked all the neighbors (who were accustomed to my former, loud & frequent crower) & they said they rarely hear Tank. Of course my other roo could wake the dead & makes this new guy seem like a cream puff. The older hens still rule the coop & make sure Tank doesn't sleep on the upper roost. He now mates with them, but they shake in disgust afterwards, then SMACK! they peck his head. I'm guessing he took so long to crow b/c he's so hen-pecked (literally).

I hear all the other noises he makes, but he seems to crow less often with the collar, so I'm keeping it on. Like you, I didn't bother to tighten it. This way if he does crow more than once, I'll know there's something going on. The sound also doesn't travel as far - which was my main concern. My close neighbors enjoy watching & hearing the chickens, but I don't want to disturb someone 4 blocks away.

Here's our young Tank. He's wearing the collar in these pics, but it can't be seen b/c I made sure to hide it under his hackle feathers.

 

[Gingerweavers]

Any update? We said we'd foster a rooster who "has a weak crow." LIARS! This is a manly man. Tried my 4yo's sock around the neck but still crowing. Maybe it's not low enough. Just wondering if you had any other tips. Thanks!

 

[lizgarf]

Any update? We said we'd foster a rooster who "has a weak crow." LIARS! This is a manly man. Tried my 4yo's sock around the neck but still crowing. Maybe it's not low enough. Just wondering if you had any other tips. Thanks!

Who are you asking directly? There are lots of posts in this thread now from many people, including myself, who have tried various collars made with velcro, with varying success. The sock does not seem to have worked for anyone, since it's stretchy and the rooster can still crow. I recommend perusing the thread for ideas and giving some different collars a try, but understand it's not a solution for every rooster.

 

[Faraday40]

I made a rooster collar. Basically I bought a small roll of self-adhesive Velcro - maybe 3/4" to 1" wide - and stuck it to a piece of wide ribbon (about 1.5" to 2" wide). I placed 2 strips of the softer part right next to each other to make the collar's width the same size as my ribbon. I only used a little bit of the rough hookie part of the Velcro on the end. Before I started, I measured my roos neck with a piece of string, so I knew how long to make my collar. For the ribbon, I chose the type that can be melted on the edges to prevent fraying. I simply cannot sew.

To put it on, I laid the roo on his side in my lap. (Makes him calmer) Then I parted his hackle feathers to push them up & out of the way as I wrapped the collar around his neck. I made it tight and he freaked out at first. Running backwards & such for 3-4 min. so I made sure he was not near anything dangerous. I kept checking on him throughout the day to make sure he was OK, eating, drinking, socializing, etc. He tried crowing in the late afternoon & it was muffled. I decided not to make it tighter b/c the volume isn't bad and he's not a frequent crower to begin with.

My former roo was LOUD & frequent. He had the best temperament ever, but the collar didn't work as well with him. The sock did nothing but make him look funny. The first collar I made for my former roo allowed him to crow but made the pitch higher and the crow longer. it wasn't tight enough & a definite fail. My second test collar was too narrow. It either didn't work or it was too tight. My 3rd attempt worked well, but the material I used frayed too easily. We ended up giving our beloved roo away. No one ever complained, but I didn't want to push our luck. I still miss him.

Our current boy is around because he's fairly quiet. The collar works well enough for him, but it's not "silence."

Other options: I read about costly & risky surgeries, but that plan wasn't for us. Other people have had success with bringing the rooster inside each night or building a roo a small dark sleeping box. I've never heard of anyone "training" a roo not to crow I think its just what they do.

 

[Gingerweavers]

So weird. When I first posted this, other messages weren't loading. Lots of great ideas here. We are trying a double sided strip of velcro as a collar. It seems to have helped, but it's too early to tell.

 

[UrbanMamaHen]

Any update?  We said we'd foster a rooster who "has a weak crow."  LIARS!  This is a manly man.  Tried my 4yo's sock around the neck but still crowing.  Maybe it's not low enough.  Just wondering if you had any other tips.  Thanks!

I tried to use a kid's sock as well, it didn't work. It was too loose. If you can slip the sock through the roo's head, the sock is too big. So, I tightened the collar by pinching up the sock until it snugly fitted around the roo's neck and securing the tighter fit with two safety pins. The roo is eating fine, and the only sound I have heard from him today is a very short one-second attempt of a crow. I think the tightness is important. And that is why a Velcro design works well because the tightness can be adjusted easily and is easy to put on. My roo didn't like having the sock pulled over his head. And it was a two person operation, one to hold the chicken and the other to put the sock on. I think my tightening of the sock collar is working.

 

[lizgarf]

I tried to use a kid's sock as well, it didn't work. It was too loose. If you can slip the sock through the roo's head, the sock is too big. So, I tightened the collar by pinching up the sock until it snugly fitted around the roo's neck and securing the tighter fit with two safety pins. The roo is eating fine, and the only sound I have heard from him today is a very short one-second attempt of a crow. I think the tightness is important. And that is why a Velcro design works well because the tightness can be adjusted easily and is easy to put on. My roo didn't like having the sock pulled over his head. And it was a two person operation, one to hold the chicken and the other to put the sock on. I think my tightening of the sock collar is working.

I would be worried about putting safety-pins on him. In my flock, one of the hens would peck at it and potentially open it up. Why not try velcro instead?

 

[UrbanMamaHen]

Quote:
I used the kind that is for baby diapers so they are pretty safe. The sock idea isn't working for me. As the cockerel pecks at it, he loosens it and his crow is back to normal by the second day. I may have to buy one of those velcro collars.

 

[Ruby13]

Any update on this method? Just found out we have a rooster that I would love to keep but my neighbors are bothered by the crowing.