Roosters might be banned inside Decorah city limits in the future!

The City of Decorah's municipal code says, "It is a misdemeanor to keep within the city such bothersome animals as barking dogs, cattle, horses, swine, and sheep which tend to disrupt the peace and good order of the community."

One animal which isn't listed in that part of city ordinances is the rooster, but that could be changing.  City Administrator Chad Bird says City Hall has been getting complaints lately about roosters crowing early in the morning in some locations in Decorah.  "They've created a noise problem," Bird has told city council members.

City ordinances do say "It is unlawful for an owner of a dog to allow or permit such dog to cause serious annoyance or disturbance to any person or persons by frequent and habitual howling, yelping, barking, or other," so the city council would have model language to use in banning roosters.

By the way, do you know why roosters crow?  According to the website www.thehappychickencoop.com, "The dominant rooster will crow first and subordinates must wait until he has done the 'official announcement', then they can crow. If they don't, this may be seen as a challenge to the head rooster's authority and a fight may ensue."