Islip considers restrictions on ownership of backyard roosters

Roosters are ruffling feathers in Islip as the town board mulls changing a law permitting ownership of the boisterous birds.

A public hearing is scheduled for the town board's Nov. 18 meeting to amend the town code that would restrict roosters to certain properties, after some residents complained the birds in residential areas were noisy and dirty.

The town code allows residents to keep up to 15 roosters per 500 square feet of rear yard space as long they are "securely enclosed" in a structure, yard or enclosure that is at least 10 feet away from a property line.

The town does not prohibit ownership of roosters or any other poultry, but the code specifies the birds cannot "make noises of such a nature as to be heard beyond the property . . . between 11 p.m. and 7 a.m."

Town Councilman Steve Flotteron said the board wants to "have a proper balance" in amending the code on roosters.

"We want people to have property rights and enjoy their animals, but when is it too close to others?" Flotteron said.

He noted that other animal noises can be mitigated. "A barking dog, you can bring into your home. But most people don't bring their . . . roosters into their bedrooms," Flotteron said.

Lake Ronkonkoma resident Louis Esteves said in an interview the town has already made it difficult for him to raise chickens and roosters, with multiple complaints from neighbors about the noise.

"This is absurd at this point," he said of the town's proposed changes. Esteves pointed out his flock of four chickens and one rooster is within the town's current code. "The rooster is to protect the flock from predators, and to mate," he said.

"If you want to boil it down to its base, it's a violation of my civil rights," Esteves said. "I live the way I wish to live, within the law you've created. If you change the law, then I'm outside the law. But until then, you have no right to say I'm breaking the code."

One of Esteves' neighbors told the Islip Town Board at a recent board meeting that the rooster crows as early as 5 a.m., waking his family.

"We are prevented from our right to quiet enjoyment of our homes," said Joe Natoli, who lives near Esteves in Lake Ronkonkoma. "Our quality of life has deteriorated." He added, "We don't live on a farm. I live with my wife and child on a residential property."

In Central Islip, residents of the College Woods neighborhood said a nearby family raised roosters, turkeys and ducks. The ensuing racket causes sleepless nights, said resident Beverly Drummond.

"You can't open your windows," Drummond said. "There are roosters crowing at all hours. They don't have a clock."

Last week, no one answered the door of the Wilson Avenue home, where several ducks could be seen resting in the backyard.

Drummond's neighbor Lisa Perry said the noise is hard to handle. "I sleep with earplugs. That's my defense," she said.

"They're entitled to enjoy their property," Drummond said of the family raising roosters. "But there's a place for everything."