raising hens in urban environment

I am interested in having a few hens for eggs in my backyard. one problem, my HOA says no farm animals. but what is a farm animal? i have read that one is farm animal if it is being raised for profit i would be the only one eating the eggs so if that is the definition i would not consider them a farm animal. have any of you guys run into this kind of problem? and if so what did you do? i hate my HOA they have the most ridiculous rules.

No I'm pretty sure it still counts as a farm animal. If it was written in the lease they are often written kind of loosely to include things even if it isn't technically accurate like if the chicken is for profit or not. They'll still percieve it as a farm animal and it's not even something you can hide because someone will def hear or smell it lol

if you have HOA, i'm sure chickens is on their list.

That's about as farm animal as you can get. That's like saying you also want a cow, just for its milk.
Nice try tho =)

dank smoker420 said:

I am interested in having a few hens for eggs in my backyard. one problem, my HOA says no farm animals. but what is a farm animal? i have read that one is farm animal if it is being raised for profit i would be the only one eating the eggs so if that is the definition i would not consider them a farm animal. have any of you guys run into this kind of problem? and if so what did you do? i hate my HOA they have the most ridiculous rules.

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any animal that is not a pet.

brimck325 said:

if you have HOA, i'm sure chickens is on their list.

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no way man, if you have a HOA, that means there are enough tight asses to start a HOA.

check your zoning laws. HOA is not necessarily the law, but you might piss of some neighbors.

Chickens are livestock even if kept indoors for pets .. I knew people in the city who had hens legally yet in the next city another couple had to adopt out a pet chicken due to ordinances ..

RyanTheRhino said:

no way man, if you have a HOA, that means there are enough tight asses to start a HOA.

check your zoning laws. HOA is not necessarily the law, but you might piss of some neighbors.

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no way what? i'm not following you. if your saying they cant tell you what to do, well, you signed a paper giving them this right when you bought the house or were forced in to joining the HOA.

brimck325 said:

no way what? i'm not following you. if your saying they cant tell you what to do, well, you signed a paper giving them this right when you bought the house or were forced in to joining the HOA.

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yeah, i agree... they may not be laws, but they're surely rules set by the hoa, break them and see where you land up.. not in jail, but also not living in the same home / condo more than likely..

many towns and cities around me have changed their ordinances to allow for raising of hens, no roosters though. its picking up quite a cult following, and getting on many peoples nerves too. there doesn't seem to be much room in between those opinions.

funny, i've been to the fl. keys quite a bit, chickens everywhere, and no one seems to complain. along with the dog like deer there...

I have chickens. They shit every where but the eggs are great.

Trousers said:

I have chickens. They shit every where but the eggs are great.

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Four words.



Edit: Actually that's three words (~everywhere~).

racerboy71 said:

yeah, i agree... they may not be laws, but they're surely rules set by the hoa, break them and see where you land up.. not in jail, but also not living in the same home / condo more than likely..

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Well I am assuming you own a house. Not attached to another and it's not a condo

Edit: well mine says I can't have hens.

But it also say please follow these guidelines.

Some things are mandatory however
so depending on the developer I guess it can be mandatory or courtesy

If you have an HOA and you try to bring some Hens into the picture those snobby fuckers will prolly host some kind of meeting dictating that you should move and a whole bunch of other non sense.
It'll be like the episode of Duck Dynasty when Jase is burning the leaves in his yard and all the neighbours slow down to watch, then the next day hes got an HOA meeting haha.

My.mom raises hens in the city she had 4 but 1 got taken by a hawk...talk it out with ur landlord u may be able to work someting out...just have a coop for em and be sure to have a chicken run and keep part of it shaded so when they get to warm they.can kick it...i would say a 5 ft wide by 15ft long and 5 ft tall is a good sized run...if u let them roam ur back yard they will tear ur grass to shit

RyanTheRhino said:

no way man, if you have a HOA, that means there are enough tight asses to start a HOA.

check your zoning laws. HOA is not necessarily the law, but you might piss of some neighbors.

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i dont think ive ever herd from the HOA they rarely meet i think every 3 months. but they dont really take care of the place we have this park area that is shaded by trees and have a creek but they let it grow way out even, its on the side of my property within maybe 5-6 feet. it can get like a foot and a half tall of nasty looking weeds and things.
enought people dont really like me i feel but i dont like some also alot have dogs that stay outside during the day and bark. some even bark at you when your walking on the path and there is noise rule for the HOA.

You could always talk with your neighbors and see what they think. Like others stated, raising chickens is a popular activity. Without a rooster, there is less noise. I won't say "no" noise, but less. I had one hen that really liked to screech when she layed an egg. Point is, a tiny chicken ark and 4 hens is minimally invasive for your neighbors unless they are right on top of you. Offer them eggs.

I have heard of quiet chickens ... I will see if I can find the name of them