Rooster crowing in urban area

[Hsbsbhsjd]

Hello,
I am raising a few chicks right now and at least one of them are guaranteed to be roosters. They are still young and haven’t started to crow yet, and I live in an urban area. When they do grow up, I would like to try keep them as they can help protect my other chickens from predators. Are there any way that I can prepare or do to decrease their crowing or crowing volume when they grow up?
Thanks.

 

[21hens-incharge]

While it is often said that roosters protect the hens they aren't likely to sacrifice themselves taking on determined predators. It is also common to read threads where a rooster has become human aggressive. They can cause serious injury to children and adults.

Roosters crow. It's what they do. There are "no crow collars" which come with risks to the rooster and do not eliminate crowing.

In the absence of a rooster a dominant hen will keep watch and sound the alarm just as well.

If you are legal to keep a rooster then it shouldn't be an issue. If not then it's best for your peace of mind and the neighbors to rehome them.

 

[nuthatched]

Your girls can protect themselves without a rooster, they don't really need one, especially in an urban area. If he's illegal, you can't keep him no matter what.

 

[BDutch]

I would ask the neighbours how they feel about having a rooster in the neighborhood. If they say they don’t mind the noise, chances are small that they will report you and that you have to give up the rooster immediately.

If they do mind, I would start searching for another home for your cockerel. Unless you feel comfortable to cull and eat him as he starts crowing.

I wanted to buy a no crow collars for a cockerel I had once. But didn’t after reading the roosters often get into trouble with them and the collars are not a rooster friendly solution.

Now I have a nice hen only flock. Hens are friendlier towards the owner without a rooster.

 

[DickMidnight]

very simple. just look up the local laws and ordinances with regards to keeping chickens.

if you’re legally allowed to keep a rooster, then you’re all good. let him crow his heart out so long as you can stand it.

if you’re not allowed, get rid of him.

 

[Ruffled Feathers]

I’m not urban but don’t see how well roosters and close neighbors will work. Freezer camp or rehoming may be something to consider.

Will your urban chickens be free range? If not do you really need a protective rooster?

 

[SouthofFla]

First, check your ordinances. If you have a neighborhood jerk, remember that anyone within a couple of blocks can become a pain at any moment for any reason, and there's no reason to give them a clear violation to aim at. I would also seriously consider the advice of the person who said to check with your closest neighbors even if roosters are legal, as they might come under the noise/nuisance ordinance (and as good relations with good neighbors are more important than an individual bird could be). I rehomed a lovely trio of laying banties once when the rooster that came with them decided to do his crowing on my next door neighbor's bedroom window sill. I have other stories as well, but they'd be redundant.

 

[BDutch]

First, check your ordinances. If you have a neighborhood jerk, remember that anyone within a couple of blocks can become a pain at any moment for any reason, and there's no reason to give them a clear violation to aim at. I would also seriously consider the advice of the person who said to check with your closest neighbors even if roosters are legal, as they might come under the noise/nuisance ordinance (and as good relations with good neighbors are more important than an individual bird could be). I rehomed a lovely trio of laying banties once when the rooster that came with them decided to do his crowing on my next door neighbor's bedroom window sill. I have other stories as well, but they'd be redundant.

Wow.
That’s not how it works in my town at the other side of the Atlantic.
If neighbours complain ~ Within a urban setting ~ You have to rehome the rooster. If a jerk who can hardly hear the rooster crow, complains, the police (assistance) says it’s not up to him to complain.

They look at the intention of the rule (it’s not a law here, but a municipality rule). The intention of the rule is that people can live a normal life without disturbance.

Some people in urban settings love the cry of a rooster. One of my neighbours does like the sound rooster . Another neighbor and her daughter wake up too early to be amused. They don’t mind the crowing during the day. Only in spring/summer when the the cookeridoo alarm goes off too early.

 

[Hsbsbhsjd]

Thanks to everyone for the advice. There is an animal management license that I can buy here where I live that can allow me to keep roosters. I am considering to purchase it. Most of my neighbours should be fine with rooster crows, but I would still like to try keep it down anyways for the neighbours. I will probably send letters to close neighbours asking if they are fine with it.
Thanks again for all the replies and advice!

 

[3KillerBs]

There's no stopping a rooster from crowing.

If you are legal to keep a rooster then it shouldn't be an issue. If not then it's best for your peace of mind and the neighbors to rehome them.

if you’re legally allowed to keep a rooster, then you’re all good. let him crow his heart out so long as you can stand it.

if you’re not allowed, get rid of him.

I agree 100% with these statements.

If your rooster is legal then he's legal. If he's not, then you can't keep him.

I personally would not go asking neighbors for permission to engage in legal activities on my own property. I also would not assume that they'd object.

I had a perfectly legal in-town rooster -- where the town's ordinances said that noise and sanitation complaints would be evaluated the same as if for any other potential disturbance, such as barking dogs, loud motorcycles, etc.

My neighbor in back figured that if we didn't mind their muscle car then they didn't mind our rooster. My neighbor on the side had grown up on a farm, enjoyed the crowing and brought his grandchildren to see real chickens.

Other neighbors were too far away to be realistically disturbed -- the rooster was no louder at that point than the traffic noise, etc.

Now I did take some measures to mitigate sound issue in the location of the chicken coop. It was close to the back neighbor than the side neighbor because that allowed us to put it closer to a nearly-windowless wall and to make use of white noise masking by locating the coop on a direct line between our heat pump and the neighbor's heat pump.

Occasional eggs and the opportunity for children/grandchildren to visit the chickens (and even get an egg out of the nest), go a long way.