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COLUMBIA — The Peace Park rooster has been captured.
The rooster, who had been living in the park since May, was caught Sunday morning and transferred to a hobby chicken farm outside city limits. Fans of the bantam rooster had worried about how the critter would survive the snow and ice of winter in Columbia.
- This rooster has been a feature of Peace Park for several months. Some people have named him and provide him with food and water.
Summer Allen, a retired psychologist who had been feeding the rooster daily, helped organize the rescue mission. She said it took six adults and three children — armed with a net and two blankets — more than an hour to capture him. Eventually, Gordon Christensen, whose wife is a friend of Allen's, caught the rooster with his hands.
"I think he was exhausted. He was very quiet," Christensen said. "But he'd been running all over Peace Park. It was kind of ludicrous."
Karla Rumpf and her children helped catch the rooster Sunday and said it was a "merry chase."
Rumpf said she was worried that the rooster would succumb to either bad weather or other rogue animals in the park.
"He didn't have anyone," Rumpf said. "There really wasn't anyone who could take care of him all the time."
Christina and Rod Dablemont, who are friends of Rumpf, agreed to take in the rooster last week. They have a "hobby" chicken farm just south of Rock Bridge Memorial State Park with a flock of 12 hens and two roosters.
Rod Dablemont said it's obvious Bob Dylan, as they've come to call the chicken, wants to be a part of the flock. When Bob Dylan sees the other chickens, "he'll stand a little taller, he'll lift his head a little high and he gets very vocal and animated."
Bob Dylan has his own enclosed coop right now, complete with a 100-watt heat lamp, straw for padding and a personal supply of chicken feed. Dablemont plans to integrate Bob Dylan into his flock by slowly introducing him to the other chickens, one or two at a time.
So far, so good. Dablemont said he's let his other chickens wander around Bob Dylan's coop, and they seem to accept him. One rooster did give him a sort of "competitive look," bowing his head and ruffling his feathers a bit. Still, Dablemont anticipates Bob Dylan will fit in well with the flock.
Allen said she'll miss seeing the Peace Park rooster on her morning runs, but she's happy he's gone to a warmer place.
"I think he liked being independent, but he was going to freeze to death."
Show Me the Errors 
Comments
Made a comment here yesterday, where did it go?
I would have thought a bomb scare at the court house would have gotten at least a headline!!!!!!!!!!!
Hope he enjoys his new home!
@Gerald — how odd. Our comment log doesn't show any comments from you that aren't showing up. Maybe a glitch. Sorry about that.
Joy Mayer
Columbia Missourian
The rooster would have been fine if left in the park. Plenty of people were caring for it anyway. Of course he'll be fine at his new home, too. Rooster doesn't give a... crow.
I do find it a bit ironic that a group of people terrorized it to the point of total exhaustion because they felt sorry for the poor bird and wanted to help it. I might vindictively hope they all get to experience the other side of a "means justifies the end" intervention, for perspective.
I, for one, will miss my Peace Park Rooster Overlord.
Derrick: The rooster is lucky hawks and owls consider Peace Park rather barren as a food outlet.
Besides, capturing the bird saved college students the trauma of finding a few scattered bantam feathers in lieu of a crowing bird. Chickens being the social type, I'm confident the bantam's experiences were more frequently stressful than free and peaceful, anthropomorphism on the part of "human friends" notwithstanding.
Gerald Shelnut - I've written great posts then been unable to find them online. Seems when in haste I can do every thing necessary except press the post comment button before moving on.
I'm an old man, however, you would probably never create that kind of a problem for yourself.
Frank: I just might be older then you. As far as great posts I hope one day to write a great one. The one that disappeared was making fun because it took 9 people an hour to catch one little rooster but I grew up on a farm where we knew how to catch chickens.
No problem Joy it was not earth shattering.
I never chased a rooster before. Had one chase me a few times on grandpa's farm while my sister gathered the eggs...
Hmmm... protecting something from predators... where have I heard that idea before?!? Why not insist that the rooster should have taken full responsibility for it's own status and life outcome?
Actually, it's all the fault of those bleeding heart liberals that kept feeding and helping the rooster. You know he would have gone off and gotten a legitimate crowing job by himself if he people hadn't kept giving him all those handouts.