I've used them in the past for the sake of my neighbors. For those that don't know the mechanics: when a rooster crows, they first fill a balloon-like air sac in their throat and then force the air out to produce the crow. The collar, when used correctly, is supposed to prevent that sac from inflating. My daughter who is in theatre likened it to wearing a corset. She could still breath just fine and even dance and sing. She just couldn't take as deep a breath.
With that background I noticed:
1) The feathers around the neck break and become damaged.
2) The roos are really, really good at getting out of them.
3) It doesn't stop crowing, it just makes it quieter.
Done right, they work, and they are a tool. Like any tool, there are right ways and wrong ways to use it. I disagree with people who call them inhumane. I suppose if you put them on humans, it would be inhumane but chickens are not humans. For some people, quieting the crow can be a better alternative than putting the bird into a stew pot. On my little farm, after the roos got out of the collar, I never replaced it. When I got some new roos, I kept "forgetting" to order new collars. Now, if I've got a roo that is just a little noisier than the neighborhood can handle, I'll silence it some other way, but none of the roos are really pets to me. Now the hens... I love my hens
D
P.S. On a personal note, I love to hear crowing. Maybe if I can find a roo that'll sit on my shoulder or lap the way my hens will...
D
