He’s a cock-a-doodle-doofus.
A Manhattan tenant is allegedly tormenting his Inwood neighbors with a noisy makeshift farm he started during the bird flu — harboring 24 chickens, a flock of roosters, turtles and a loud-mouthed parrot.
The man plucked five large white chicken eggs Tuesday from the dirty dog cages he keeps his birds in outside the 40 Arden St. building as at least some of the roosters crowed so loudly they could be heard from the street.
A Manhattan tenant with one of his roosters. James Keivom“This is a breed from Indonesia,” said the man, who refused to give his name, to The Post, holding the eggs.
“They have black meat,” he said of the chickens.
“Yes, you can eat them. They’re very good.”
The makeshift urban farmer explained that he keeps the birds outside all year round, even through the biting winter.
“No, the cold doesn’t bother them. They can be here all winter. It’s a special breed from Indonesia,” he said of his roosters.
The man, 39, said he has lived in the Inwood building his entire life but only started his feathery collection over the summer in response to the bird flu and skyrocketing egg prices — plus, he wanted “to have fun.
“I wanted to do an experiment where if I fed them organic food, not cage them, you know, with no air, how healthy could they be. It worked out. I learned how to raise chickens,” said the man, explaining he is currently unemployed over health issues.
He said he started with three chickens in July, but the population quickly boomed.
“I have 24 now, but some people stole some. I have two chickens who can go for walks around the neighborhood and come back. They’re really smart — they look both ways when they cross the street.”
One of the roosters is seen in a tree. James Keivom
The man’s neighbors say they have been tormented by his flock of roosters and other animals. James KeivomHe said he added some roosters and a parrot to his menagerie, as well as two turtles in a masonry pan full of water with a barbecue grate over the top of it.
He keeps the birds in the dog cages strewn about the front yard — a common space for the entire, massive building — which is littered with lettuce, parsley and cucumber scraps.
He sells a dozen eggs from his birds for $25 — a hefty price even amid the bird flu crisis.
But his good eats come at a cost to the rest of his neighbors, including one who is taking him to court, a battle he described as a “little drama thing.”
He claimed the “rude neighbor” is the only one in the building who hates the chickens, saying that teachers from nearby schools have asked if he could bring them to classrooms, and some neighbors say the birds reminded them of living in the Dominican Republic.
Neighbors in Upper Manhattan are upset over the man’s menagerie. Kevin Sheehan / NY Post
The man told The Post that his chickens are a breed from Indonesia that are good for eating. James KeivomBut the woman allegedly “making [his] life miserable” called her neighbor “delusional.”
“It feels so infuriating and crazy-making that we all pay our rent in this building and we’re all doing what we need to do as tenants and yet this one person thinks they’re above the law and they’re ruining it for everybody,” said Micky Chormy, 35, a business and professional development coach who has lived on the first floor of the building for six years.
“This man thinks he owns the neighborhood! And people don’t confront him. They don’t stop him.”
The Post spoke with several others who hate the flock — including one who shouted down the staircase that living in the building is like “living in hell every day.”
Residents say they are tormented day and night by the birds. Kevin Sheehan / NY Post“The super, the building owner, they haven’t done anything about this. We’ve all complained. It’s just too many! It’s extremely noisy. It’s all day and all night. Can’t get to sleep! Nobody can sleep. It’s much worse at night,” another neighbor, from the third floor, griped to The Post.
“You expect this in the Caribbean, but not here!”
Another neighbor claimed she’s made numerous 311 calls on the property — which has more than 50 complaints lodged against it ranging from noise to rodents and illegal encampments and unsanitary conditions.
According to the city heath code, it is legal to keep as many hens as wanted, though roosters are not allowed in the five boroughs, presumably because of the noise.
“He’s been expanding now he’s adding more and more and now he just started putting them on the other side. This is ridiculous. We can’t live like this,” the first-floor resident said.
“I’ve been living here 35 years, and this is just crazy! It has to be illegal!”
The rowdy roosters make a ruckus in Upper Manhattan. Kevin Sheehan / NY Post
One of the chickens seen on the sidewalk near the Inwood building. James KeivomThe city Health Department told ABC in a statement, “Having roosters or any other wild or illegal animal is a violation of the Health Code and can result in a summons.
“The Health Department is aware of the issue at this residence and we’re investigating,” it added.
The bird man indicated that he’s open to the idea of passing his flock to a new owner who has more space than he does in his Inwood yard, but not to cater to his neighbor’s complaints. He’d only consider the move in order to give his birds more freedom.
When it comes to the noise complaints, the urban farmer had just one response.
“You live in the city. What do you expect? You don’t want noise you should live in the country.”






