Should I break the law??

[quadcam79]

I have the same problem, We're buying a home on an acre in a rural area. the property is zone OR (Open Rural) and there are very few zoning regs. The problem is when i pulled up the regs
and it says "It is intended that substantial residential, commercial, or industrial development shall not be permitted in the OR district, however agricultural uses, accessory uses and activities that support such uses are encouraged."

then it goes on to say "Permitted uses and structures. Agricultural, horticultural and forestry uses, also the keeping and raising of farm animals and poultry, provided structures for same shall not be located within one hundred (100) feet of any property line; and, further, provided that goats, sheep, or swine shall not be kept or permitted within two hundred (200) feet of any residence under different ownership.

noncommercial keeping and raising of horses and ponies is permitted; provided, however, that no more than one (1) horse or pony six (6) months of age or older shall be permitted per one-half ( 1/2) acre of land. Structures for horses or ponies shall not be located in a required front yard. No structure used for the keeping of horses or ponies shall be located closer than thirty-five (35) feet to any property line of different ownership."

Well herin lies the problem.
I want a pig or two, some chickens and maybe a pair of goats. Our property will be 105' wide and 435'long, going back to the regs ... "keeping and raising of farm animals and poultry, provided structures for same shall not be located within one hundred (100) feet of any property line; and, further, provided that goats, sheep, or swine shall not be kept or permitted within two hundred (200) feet of any residence under different ownership."

thats where i run into issues, if the property is only 105'wide, theres no way to keep a coop at least 100' from any property line.

the place is totally chain linked in and the rear of the property backs up to woods, the next door properties are exactly the same size and one of them doesnt touch thier backyard, looks like a jungle back there.

I'm just going to take my chances, theres tons of animals all over that area, the guy across the street has a couple pigs and chickens, someone down the street has a couple emu's

I figure i can bribe the neighbors with some eggs and fresh homegrown chicken and pork. The zoning is pretty stupid really (35' easement for a horse stall and 100' for everything else), my family has owned horses they dont smell any sweter than pigs or chickens

 

[buc]

Keep in mind we are the worst enablers for anyone who wants to get or get MORE chickens!!"

yes we are, I started with the idea that I would keep 4 hens and one rooster, that has grown to 18 hens and 4 roosters.

 

[chickbea]

When a tax paying American can't keep a couple of chickens in his own back yard, something has gone wrong with the world!
Go for it!

 

[buc]

When a tax paying American can't keep a couple of chickens in his own back yard, something has gone wrong with the world!"

I totally agree with you.


I live out in the county, but over the last 16 years I have seen farms sold to land developers and the nearest city attempting to make those new homes part of the existing city, with all the rules that come with it.

So far the people that moved into those homes and out into a mini-country setting have resisted.

 

[3peeps]

WELL...I say get them. I went against what I was told and got three baby pullets last June and they just started laying last weekend.

Long story short, I was incorrectly informed that I could not have chickens, when in fact we are zoned general agriculture through grandfathering.

But it is not completely without worries. Hens do make noise occasionally and I can say I stressed about that a bit when we still thought they were "illegal". And I was always concerned about having a low-profile run so that it wasn't obvious what we were doing. We do have a privacy fence, however, and the henhouse is in the garage. It's connected to the run with a little chickie door cut out of the garage wall. Inside, we became "elaborately" deceptive (Ok, maybe it was a bit accidental)...the henhouse actually looks a bit like a workbench from the road.

To this day, nobody has asked anything.

Also, to keep down smell, we used a lot of bedding. So you'll want to find a place or home for all the used bedding and manure. It does pile up. But if you do some form of chicken tractor (Eglu) this problem will be reduced.

We love having the girls and are very happy we did it. My husband is a lot more into it than I though he'd be, which makes me happy.

 

[kv]

Carla,
I hear you. But like someone said, it's only a zoning ordinance.....I am really thinking this through before I do it. I am definitely going to talk to my county representative about changing the law for 2 pet chickens. (without giving my name of course)
KV

 

[mom'sfolly]

I would recheck your county ordinances, online if you can. We've heard over and over here about people in city or county offices saying chickens aren't allowed when they are. My chickens are semi-illegal, the city allows them and the HOA is ambiguous (says no livestock for commercial purposes). Many ordinances also say livestock, and omit poultry, well written ordinances include both.

 

[seminolewind]

Quadcam79, I would put up the horse stall with the 35 ft permitted on each side, then put a coop inside it.

 

[quadcam79]

it's tempting... the zoning just cracks me up..."agriculture is encouraged in this district" and then..."but no pens within 100' ft of any property line"

plus it says it says "substantial residential, commercial, or industrial development shall not be permitted in the OR district"

well lets see they are building a new 4 lane road to go through the golf course and just up the road, building a few big expensive subdivisions up the road and about a mile up the road is a1a where they just built a lowes, home depot, mcdonalds, whataburger, starbucks etc etc...

just happens this street i'm going to be on is a dead end road, with 1-2 acre lots and mostly rural residential, doublewides, mini farms etc. we're just counting on the property value to increase alot over the next few years with it's good location....then we move to bigger and better pastures lol

 

[johnnyjack]

just remid them they dont make a pit bull chicken.not to worry about the chickens hurting anyone.