Laeken residents divided over noisy rooster

Residents in the Brussels neighbourhood of Laeken are divided over the case of a noisy rooster in the area that has been crowing in the early hours this summer.

The noise begins as early as 5.30 and users on the neighbourhood’s Facebook group say it lasts for quite a while.

"He doesn't crow just once, but for more than an hour at a time," one such user wrote. "It's really disturbing, on top of everything else.

"I, too, am often charmed when I hear a rooster crow when I'm on holiday in the countryside. Here, in the middle of the city and every morning, the rooster crowing is very loud, early and long. It's annoying.”

Animal welfare lawyer Anthony Godfroid said that while owning a rooster in Brussels is technically legal, much depends on the type of rooster and how often it crows.

“A lot of case law has developed around animal noises,” Godfroid told Bruzz, noting that a resident is entitled to turn to the courts if they feel their life is being seriously disrupted by barking dogs or a crowing rooster.

"A certain inconvenience has to be accepted," he added. "Once or twice a day you should be able to tolerate as a neighbour, but 35 or 40 times is too much.

"If a case does go to court, the judge will first try to reconcile the parties. If that fails, a judgement will follow with possible civil sanctions that could include, for example, a request to get rid of the rooster with a penalty of €25 per day that the rooster stays."

The Brussels rooster appears to be located somewhere within the De Wand neighbourhood, which lies on the outskirts of the region where the population is less dense. Case law indicates that people are more likely to accept nuisance in rural areas than in densely populated cities.

“As a judge, I would be very careful with this,” said Godfroid, who sees several similar cases pass annually.