Roosters being sold for hundreds, sometimes thousands of dollars might sound like a joke to you, but in many parts of Indonesia it’s very serious business.
They look like ordinary cocks, but it’s only when they start crowing that people realize just how special they really are. Instead of the normal “cock-a-doodle-do”, these birds make a sound similar to human laughter, which earned them the name “laughing cocks“. Trained and raised to make this special sounds, laughing cocks are source of pride for their owners, who feed them only the best foods, and pamper them with large, ornate cages. This breed of chicken originated in South Sulawesi, where it was known as ayam raja (king chicken), because only Burgis kings were allowed to breed them.
Nowadays, anyone who can afford is allowed to breed laughing cocks, and while they are very valuable, they’re also extremely sensitive. They have to be fed properly and their big cages have to be cleaned twice a day, because these birds tend to become ill very easily. But the high maintenance cost is easily covered by the profit of selling laughing cocks or winning regional laughing contests. A day old chick sells for Rp 100,000 ($12), while a 3-month old bird goes for Rp 300,000 ($36) to Rp 500,000 ($59). But it’s the mature laughing roosters that bring the most profit, as the price of a 9-month bird ranges between Rp 3 million ($354) and Rp 5 million ($590).
There are two types of laughing cocks bred in Indonesia, differentiated by the tempo of their laughter. The slow type crows with a drawn-out staccato of four to twelve guffaws at a time, while the dangut laughs in a machine gun-like way. The dangut is usually more expensive. The most talented laughing cocks compete in regional laughing contests, where their laughs are analyzed and scored by a group of judges. Winning roosters can apparently be sold for tens of thousands of dollars.
Well, I guess if the Joker was a chicken he’d sound just like one of these guys…
Sources: Jakarta Globe and Faded Tribune
