The owners Ricco, a Bantam rooster from Bourgoin-Jallieu in France’s Isère department, are scheduled to show up in Court following a neighbor’s complaint regarding the bird’s loud crowing.

“Difficulty concentrating, sleep deprivation, hearing fatigue,” these are just some of the symptoms cited by the plaintiff who summoned Ricco’s owners to Court in January of next year. The person, who prefers to remain anonymous, is one of the owners’ neighbors and they claim that the rooster’s crowing is unbearable both at night and during the day. However, the owners of the 5-year-old bird have always disputed these claims, insisting that the door to Ricco’s chicken coup is operated by an automated system programmed to open the door only at 8:30 am during the winter and at 9:00 am in summer. They insist that the rooster crows about fifteen times in a quarter of an hour in the morning, and then a few more times during the day.

Photo: paulo morales/Unsplash

“There is an automatic system which means that the door closes at 8 p.m. and opens at 9 a.m. in summer, 8:30 a.m. in winter,” says Franck, Ricco’s owner. When we got the rooster, we said to ourselves that in order not to disturb the neighbors, we would make sure that the door to the chicken coop opened at 8:30. We then agreed to open it at 9:00. We realized that in winter, the chickens no longer laid eggs because they need light. So in winter, we open it at 8:30, and in summer we open it at 9:00.” 

The couple moved to Bourgoin-Jallieu from the city 25 years ago to enjoy a more rustic lifestyle and they have been shocked about their neighbor’s legal action. They first tried mediation through the town hall, but that solution fell apart, and the couple’s neighbor decided to take them to Court. Franck claims that he has talked to every one of their neighbors, except the plaintiff, and none of them has a problem with Ricco’s crowing.

“We went to see all the neighbors, we know quite a few because we have lived here for 25 years,” Franck said. “We asked them if our rooster bothered them. All the ones we had told us that the rooster did not bother them. And on the contrary, they wanted to hear the rooster crow.”

On the other hand, the plaintiff, who moved to Bourgoin-Jallieu in 2021, insists that Ricco’s loud crowing has been preventing her from enjoying her garden and getting good sleep, and they want the situation to change.

The legal dispute regarding Ricco’s crowing is focused on the French law of January 29, 2021 “aimed at defining and protecting the sensory heritage of the French countryside”. On one hand, the bird’s owners believe that they live in an “environment that has always been rural”, while their neighbor believes that the Boussieu district is no longer in the countryside. A judge will have to decide on this matter early next year.

As funny as this case sounds, it is a serious matter in France. In fact, this is the third such case in recent years, following those of Caruso and Maurice, two other loud-crowing roosters. Caruso’s septuagenarian owner was given three month’s to stop the bird’s crowing, and declared: My village is losing its rural character. It is selling its soul and its land to urban construction. It is sordid…”

Luckily for Ricco, he has the backing of social media. A Facebook support page has been created for him where people encourage him to keep crowing, and invite the bird’s critics to just move away if they don’t like his “singing”.