EXCLUSIVE - Crowing rooster sparks neighborly feud in Turkey

KARAMAN, Turkey

The only thing worse than an occasional loud noise when one is trying to sleep is a loud noise that is repeated over and over -- like, for instance, a rooster that crows 610 times an hour.

Such a rooster is exactly why two neighbors in the south central Turkish city of Karaman wound up in a feud. In the end police were called and even the city council got involved.

One neighbor worked nights. Naturally, when he came home, he wanted to sleep during the day. The problem: A very vocal rooster in his neighbor's back yard crowed -- about once every six seconds.

The agitated neighbor did what any person would do. He informed authorities, after repeated warnings, that he was being disturbed by the rooster’s constant crowing and he wanted it taken care of.

Municipal police responded to the scene and took reports, first on June 27. They cited the woman who owned the rooster for "disturbing the environment by raising a rooster and a dog in the backyard."

But nothing changed.

Police came again on July 14, by which time the sleepless neighbor must have been near the end of his rope, and cited the neighbor for "not removing the rooster and dog despite warnings." But the complaints continued and eventually the matter found its way to the city council.

A member of the council, Beytullah Karakas, offered a simple solution: Kill the rooster. That way, the owner could avoid punishment -- and perhaps get a good meal out of it, too.

But the woman refused.

Municipal police officer Murtaza Demiralay said they didn’t know how to resolve the situation.

But Karakas said he understood both sides.

“One says, "Don’t I have the right to raise a rooster in my own backyard?" 

But the other neighbor "has an elderly person in his house and can’t sleep in his own home because of the noise.” said Karakas.

So, what to do? The situation was resolved at last when Karakas himself bought the rooster for 100 Turkish liras ($47) and took it away.

"As a last resort," he said, "I offered to buy the rooster and take it to my farm.”

There is no word yet on the rooster's ultimate fate.

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