On September 18th, we discovered yet another rooster in the garden. According to my records, this was the 16th chicken that mysteriously appeared among our plants.
The latest rooster
Almost every year since 2008, one or two roosters showed up over night. Some of these roosters were young and probably only started to behave “manly”. But others were fully grown and crowed loudly all day long. Some birds looked very healthy and well-fed, others were undernourished or even injured. Most of them were fancy chickens, often miniature breeds.
Some of the chickens that were found in the garden. In 2008, we got two hens, all others were roosters.
We have no idea where all of these roosters come from and who “donates” them to us. A rooster announces himself constantly as soon as the sun is up. There is no way to hide a rooster in Manhattan. Does someone from New Jersey or Long Island sneak into the city at night and dump chickens over our fence?
Keeping roosters in New York City is prohibited (one can have hens, though). So what to do?
Fortunately, there are organizations and people in our city who assist with this odd problem. The hens went to a private farm in upstate New York. The roosters were rescued by the Empty Cages Collective and New York City Pigeon Rescue Central with the help of dedicated volunteers. Larry the birdman from Washington Square Park helped, too. Last year he caught two roosters with an improvised trap made of a milk crate, a stick and a string, some bird food and a lot of patience. All roosters went to a new home outside of the city.
Let us hope that this was the last rooster for 2016, but I am not holding my breath.