I'm confused on some PA laws?

[ChikadeeLite]

So I live in lower Swatara, I read here that you can't have birds in the county, unless agricultural and 5 acres?

I'm wondering how accurate it is, because I looked it up and all it says is you can't have nuisances and animals like horses, pigs, cows, geese, etc. No mention of chickens, just nothing bigger than a dog.

I'm getting the coop, it's going to be done soon, and I have neighbors with chickens, I'm confused though about how any of the laws work or if I'm overcomplicating it

 

[Pickensandchigs]

Chickens are food, you have a right to have food.

 

[Magda12]

Chickens are food, you have a right to have food.

Unfortunately, that's not how laws like this work. They should, but they don't.

Do you have the text of the actual local ordinance? That's really the only way to tell exactly what is meant. You should call your municipality/township/borough and ask for a copy of your local ordinances. If you don't live in one of these, then I believe you fall under county law. Most PA counties will have ordinances available online, but you may need to call.

Whichever you fall under, call and ASK before you get chickens, because of they are against local law for you to have, you can be fined and have them forcibly removed from the property. And I am going to guess they cull the birds they confiscate.

 

[nuthatched]

Chickens are food, you have a right to have food.

Unfortunately, that's not often how it works.
Op, are you zoned for agriculture and how big is your plot?

Here's the county laws:
https://ecode360.com/11637284

 

[Magda12]

Unfortunately, that's not how laws like this work. They should, but they don't.

Do you have the text of the actual local ordinance? That's really the only way to tell exactly what is meant. You should call your municipality/township/borough and ask for a copy of your local ordinances. If you don't live in one of these, then I believe you fall under county law. Most PA counties will have ordinances available online, but you may need to call.

Whichever you fall under, call and ASK before you get chickens, because of they are against local law for you to have, you can be fined and have them forcibly removed from the property. And I am going to guess they cull the birds they confiscate.

It was actually a very fast Google search. You can't have chickens unless you live on 5 acres and can maintain the minimum space requirements given https://ecode360.com/11637284

 

[Pickensandchigs]

Unfortunately, that's not how laws like this work. They should, but they don't.

Do you have the text of the actual local ordinance? That's really the only way to tell exactly what is meant. You should call your municipality/township/borough and ask for a copy of your local ordinances. If you don't live in one of these, then I believe you fall under county law. Most PA counties will have ordinances available online, but you may need to call.

Whichever you fall under, call and ASK before you get chickens, because of they are against local law for you to have, you can be fined and have them forcibly removed from the property. And I am going to guess they cull the birds they confiscate.

We have gone crazy if we accept that.

 

[Magda12]

I also found this https://ecode360.com/14926988#14926988

In this section, this part does not mention chickens in the five acre rule. It's ambiguous (most local laws are poorly written and ambiguous). I would call and see if backyard chickens count as keeping pets or raising poultry.

Also, do you have neighbors that will complain? This could make all the difference.

 

[Magda12]

We have gone crazy if we accept that.

You accept that by living in areas that have those laws.

 

[nuthatched]

We have gone crazy if we accept that.

You're 30 years too late to complain.
If those are the terms and conditions of living in a certain area, abide or move.

 

[Pickensandchigs]

You're 30 years too late to complain.

Never too late to stop being a slave.

Sometimes we just have to move forward doing what we know is right.

If they came out and said it was agaisnt the code to drink water, would you stop drinking water?

Owning a farm in a residential area is one thing, keeping enough chickens to have eggs is another.