Unless your rooster works in film or TV, you won't like this.
The Los Angeles City Council's Public Safety Committee has approved a draft ordinance to allow only one rooster per property citywide, it was reported Tuesday.
Roosters used for film and TV shoots would be spared the limit with a proper permit, according to The Times. Businesses for which roosters are integral, including educational facilities and animal exhibits, would also be allowed to retain more than one rooster with the proper zoning allowances.
City officials told the Los Angeles Times that the cap is necessary because of nuisance complaints, the possibility of spreading avian flu and Newcastle disease, and the illegal "blood sport" of cockfighting.
The ordinance approved by the Public Safety Committee Monday must be approved by the full council before becoming law.
The proposed law contains a rooster phase-out provision: Residents who own more than one rooster would have to get a permit, have the animals micro-chipped or fitted with a city-approved leg band, and probably would have to pay a one-time permit fee, according to The Times.
These licensed roosters would be allowed to live out their natural, and noisy, lives in the city, but no "replacement roosters" would be allowed.
Violators would be slapped with a $50 fine for the first offense, $100 for the second and $250 for the third.
