The world expects roosters to begin crowing at dawn. Ours always have. But the truth is, roosters crow whenever they feel like it. With the advent of backyard chickens in urban and suburban settings, this doesn’t sit too well with neighbors. A crowing rooster at first light is quaint; one who crows the livelong day can be an annoyance.
So if a rooster crows incessantly, is his circadian rhythm out of whack? Not necessarily. Here are five pretty sound reasons why from the perspective of the rooster himself.
First light – Morning has broken!
An impending threat – Psssssttt, ladies, wily coyote approaching from the east
Unabashed pride – An egg has been laid!
Dominance – Look, Mack, I rule this roost
Just because – Another rooster is crowing; I’m hungry; I’m bored; You’re in my space
Watch this short video of our own Louis in crowing action. You’ll hear my feeble attempt to get him ruffled.
For unbiased information about crowing, read the fascinating research recently published in Nat Geo.
Chicken Tenders 
This made me laugh. My family also raises chickens and they crow all the time. It’s great to get some additional information on why! Do you have any of these problems yourself? Or are your roosters a little less vocal than others?
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We currently have a vocal rooster. His name is Louis. He crows when I crow. He crows when there is danger. He crows when the sun rises and sets. I think he is asserting himself. He once shared the chicken yard with another rooster, Ari. It wasn’t until Ari’s untimely death that Louis began his crowing, interestingly. Ari may have been stifling him. Or his vocal cords had yet to mature. Not sure.
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