Bantams can be kept in just about every city, if you keep the feathers picked up.

[DanielHoover]

Many people keep bantams in wooden hen houses
without neighbors noticing them. The wooden walls
and roof absorbs most the crowing and squaking
sounds.

 

[LarryPQ]

Folks, please check your local municipal laws and zoning ordinances before getting chickens, as the laws can vary heavily from city to city.

If you cannot keep chickens in your area, there are avenues you can follow to get the laws changed. Telling folks it is ok to break the law is (in general) not a good idea.

 

[DanielHoover]

Most cities will not give you a fine for having chickens. Instead they give you a few weeks to get rid of them.

 

[Judy]

I can think of several reasons for not wanting neighbors to notice, even when they are perfectly legal. For example, some neighbors might try to have them made illegal. Also, sometimes the law is not clear, as many here know.

That said, members do agree not to post anything illegal when they join BYC, and of course it is always a good idea to check local laws before getting chickens.

 

[mrsbrcant]

I can think of several reasons for not wanting neighbors to notice, even when they are perfectly legal. For example, some neighbors might try to have them made illegal. Also, sometimes the law is not clear, as many here know.

Agreed, it may not be clear if it is legal or it may be legal but the enforcers think it is not legal. We had our battle with code enforcement sort of end in a stale mate. We removed most of our chickens but never conceded that they were illegal and the code enforcement officer closed our case and said to just make sure they don't make any noise which sounded to me like he was telling us to make sure the neighbors didn't notice. If we were to pursue changing the non existent anti chicken law we might end up making them really illegal which in the end would hurt other chicken keepers trying to stay within the law. We finally solved our problem by moving to a location that clearly allows chickens but not everyone can do that. So legal or not, it is best to stay on the good side of your neighbors if you can. Also our birds were all bantams and we tried the bantam argument but they said bantams are still chickens and not birds.

 

[kbob]

My cousins had a very similar episode.
A neighbor just recently noticed their chickens and was shocked more that disturbed.
But the police office helped broker a deal, that if they continued to bother the neighbor they (the chickens) would have to move out to the country.
A few free cartons of eggs later, and my cousins still have their chickens in a big metropolitan area!

 

[HEChicken]

Agreed, it may not be clear if it is legal or it may be legal but the enforcers think it is not legal.

Agreed. It is legal to keep chickens where I am. In fact, we can keep 5 without a permit and up to 12 with a permit. I have the permit. Nevertheless, I've had Animal Control called on me several times due to the incessant "crowing" (I only have hens - the sound they were hearing was the egg song). AC comes in, does a walk-around, agrees they are being well cared for, jots down my permit number and that is that - because I am legal. If I were not, it would be a very different story.

 

[DanielHoover]

My sister keeps a trio of Dutch Bantams in a 40 gallon aquarium on her coffee table
in Manhattan NY. None of her apartment friends seem to mind.

 

[ll]

That is very interesting DanielHoover ~ does she eat the eggs?

My sister keeps a trio of Dutch Bantams in a 40 gallon aquarium on her coffee table
in Manhattan NY. None of her apartment friends seem to mind.