Raising Chickens In The City - Chicago Police Say NO

Posted on Feb 17, 2010 under Keeping chickens |

Cities in the US usually have ordnances about keeping chickens.  As chickens are sometimes classified as non pets, this can mean that keeping them is illegal.

However, finding out what the law is in your city can be anything but straightforward. This example illustrated the point:

Is it legal keep chickens in the city of Chicago? Listen to conflicting information I receive from the police, the city clerk, and the legal department.

Duration : 0:9:52

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25 Responses to “Raising Chickens In The City - Chicago Police Say NO”

  1. langevoort Says:

    What is funny is I …
    What is funny is I spoke to a lady from my city office about this same thing and she didn’t say it wasn’t allowed, but she said someone in my vicinity had some and that they had to get rid of them because the neighbors said they were noisey and the smell was bad….so, subsequently they couldn’t enjoy their yard. So the complaint was what made them have to get rid of them - although I feel there is no ordinance….I just was being told there are “rules” to try to keep me from trying it.

  2. SrgFuery Says:

    This video is win, …
    This video is win, it also shows the major flaws in our “amazing” government bureaucracy….xD

  3. trbdave4850 Says:

    wow lol the lady in …
    wow lol the lady in the second call is not very bright. nice vid

  4. BarmaidAz Says:

    But the round robin …
    But the round robin is funny and not surprising.

  5. BarmaidAz Says:

    I don’t think the …
    I don’t think the city workers sounded suspicious or a conspiracy, or trying to avoid any issue - that seems a little paranoid to me. I think, like most city workers, they don’t have a clue one way or the other, it’s probably not come up for them and they have no answers because to them “this is just a job” - they’re not in it for love of city,

  6. smkuhner Says:

    hahaha thats …
    hahaha thats awesome!

  7. gigglingwizard Says:

    We had the opposite …
    We had the opposite problem in a township near Columbus, Ohio. Everyone told us it was okay. Then two years after I’m in business selling chicken and eggs at the farmers markets, a zoning guy comes out and shows me an ordinance prohibiting animal agriculture on lots less than five acres and ALL agriculture (other than a vegetable garden attached to a residence) on less than one acre.

  8. Wisegeorge Says:

    No one is ever …
    No one is ever willing to say: “I don’t know.” Instead they make stuff up. Power to the chickens!

  9. picatsoforfma Says:

    LOL. Austin …
    LOL. Austin embraces our backyard flocks :)

  10. Sabei0990 Says:

    I tried this and …
    I tried this and there were no answers. They sent me to at least 10 different people.

  11. drewby3440 Says:

    Hi there, I live in …
    Hi there, I live in Rocky River and called the animal warden about this. You should have heard the phone call. It was pretty funny.

  12. pgm98387 Says:

    You can have dogs …
    You can have dogs cats cockatiels, parrots, finches, hire a lawyer take it to court and fight the law…dam stupid law!

  13. RaitzeR1 Says:

    awesome :D, love …
    awesome :D, love your youtube vids too ;)!

  14. anthrax102 Says:

    1.cover your mouth …
    1.cover your mouth with your hand
    2. make a wish
    3. close your hand (fist)
    4. hold your hand at your heart for 5 seconds
    5. send this to 3 more vids
    6. tommorow will be the best day evr it actually worked
    money-you will find a wad of 200$ in cash
    love- your crush or lover will ask you out or kiss you plz do this my wish is ported

  15. Sabei0990 Says:

    I’m going to do …
    I’m going to do this for Cleveland, Ohio.

  16. jackshenhouse Says:

    ‘Seize the chickens …
    ‘Seize the chickens’, hahaha! The po-po want to steal chickens?!

    Chickens sometimes fall under the ‘noise’ ordinances and usually they say a few hens are OK, but roosters are not, due to the crowing. It was like a legion of zombies until you got to the attorney!

    Most cities simply cannot fathom chickens as pets and refuse to make the change in their thinking. These days, keeping a few hens and a garden goes a long way towards feeding your family!

  17. soffitboy Says:

    Nice!. So by your …
    Nice!. So by your standards, recording people’s lies is a bigger crime than providing false information to a citizen?

  18. simplespirit101 Says:

    NOW is the time for …
    NOW is the time for civil disobedience. It’s your property, you pay the mortgage and the taxes… do what you want to live in harmony with Mother Nature, not The Man.

  19. stainman7 Says:

    what a waist of the …
    what a waist of the cpd and your own time… im sure they have better things they sould be doing besides answering your bs call!

  20. gg320 Says:

    I am not an expert …
    I am not an expert regarding poultry in Chicago but I can tell you that recording a conversation without the knowledge of the other party is a crime in the majority of states.

    Other than the police call which they usually advise that the call is being recorded, therefore both parties are aware, anything else is a violation of the law.

  21. phactreerat Says:

    Where I live it’s …
    Where I live it’s ok to have scaredy cats, but not chickens. lol

  22. mjtracy Says:

    It’s better to ask …
    It’s better to ask forgiveness than permission.

  23. TreyNitrotoluene Says:

    If you’re not …
    If you’re not sarcastic and antagonistic then you can easily explain that they are pets. geeze.

  24. findingcontentment Says:

    Sorry, that should …
    Sorry, that should have read that the city ordinances say we can’t have “livestock,” not chickens. Chickens are not specifically mentioned.

  25. findingcontentment Says:

    It’s all in the way …
    It’s all in the way the ordinances are interpreted. Our city ordinances (not Chicago) say we can’t have chickens. But the code enforcement officer I spoke to said that he considered chickens to be birds, not livestock. Who knows how another one of the code enforcment officers would interpret it.

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