(A) The City Manager or the City Manager's designee may license coops and/or hutches for the maintenance of chickens, ducks, and rabbits to single or two-family residences if all the following requirements are satisfied and maintained:
(1) The total number of animals shall not exceed six animals per residence;
(2) Only female chickens and female ducks shall be kept; no roosters or drakes;
(3) All animals shall be kept confined within a coop or hutch constructed in such a manner to contain the animals and exclude vermin, dogs, cats and wildlife;
(4) No adult animals shall be kept within a residence, garage, porch, or other ancillary structure not designed or intended for the keeping of chickens, ducks, or rabbits. During the juvenile stage of development of the animals, the animal may be kept within a residence, garage, or ancillary structure to satisfy warmth requirements that ensure the proper health of the animals. From time to time, the animals may be moved temporarily to a garage or ancillary structure to avoid extreme weather;
(5) A coop for chickens and/or ducks shall be of sufficient size to accommodate at least one square foot of sheltered space per animal; further a coop shall include an attached run accessible to the animals not larger than 100 square feet;
(6) A hutch for rabbits shall be constructed to provide at least three feet of sheltered space per animal;
(7) The coop or hutch shall be at least five feet from any property line and at least ten feet from a neighboring residence;
(8) No coop or hutch shall be constructed in the front yard of a residence;
(9) No coop or hutch shall be constructed in the side yard of a residence if sufficient space is available in the back yard of a residence;
(10) Feed remnants, manure, litter, and natural bedding materials shall be composted, dug into garden plots, or disposed of with residential garbage;
(11) At no time shall offensive odors be noticeable that impinge upon the enjoyment of a neighboring property or present a nuisance condition at the property keeping the chickens, ducks, or rabbits;
(12) All culled animals shall be euthanized in a humane manner and all animals falling to natural mortality shall be securely bagged and placed in a covered trash container for removal with household garbage;
(13) All feed shall be stored in metal rodent-proof containers;
(14) Litter or bedding shall be maintained in a dry manner, no infestations of maggots, weevils, beetles, or other insects shall be found;
(15) No waste eggs shall be permitted to remain in the coop and no dead animals shall be permitted to remain in the coop or hutch;
(16) The animals shall be fed and watered daily;
(17) No sales of eggs shall occur. All eggs produced shall be for personal consumption;
(18) No sales of rabbits or meat products of rabbits shall occur. All rabbits kept shall be for show, hobbyist interest or personal consumption;
(19) No diseased or sick animals shall be kept without attempt to provide veterinary or lawfully available owner administered medications, treatments, or other humane intervention;
(20) Any order issued by the Ohio Department of Agriculture to destroy animals to limit or eradicate the spread of a disease or veterinary condition shall be immediately complied with in a humane manner;
(21) In the event of the reproduction of rabbits, upon the weening of the offspring the number of rabbits shall be reduced to comply with the requirements of this section;
(22) Any person renting, leasing, or otherwise occupying a single family or two-family residence shall first obtain the written permission of the landlord of the residence and provide evidence of said permission to the satisfaction of the City Manager or the City Manager's designee when applying for a coop or hutch license;
(23) The yard containing the coop or hutch shall be free of all code violations; no trash, refuse, household appliances, or randomly stored materials shall be present;
(24) A complete coop or hutch application for license shall be submitted to the City Manager or the City Manager's designee and a license fee of $20 shall be paid; and
(25) Whoever violates any provision of this section is guilty of a minor misdemeanor.
(B) The City Manager or the City Manager's designee shall create and maintain a coop and/or hutch license form and shall prescribe the contents of said form to affect the requirements of this section.
(C) The City Manger or the City Manager's designee may revoke a coop or hutch license for failure to satisfy or maintain the conditions of animal husbandry prescribed by this section, failure to maintain the limitations upon the population of animals prescribed by this section, or misrepresentation/falsification of the information presented by the keeper on their coop/hutch license application.
(D) The keeper shall permit the City Manager or City Manager's designee reasonable access to inspect a licensed coop or hutch to determine compliance with this section.
(E) Upon the City Manager or the City Manager's designee revocation of a coop or hutch license, the keeper of the animals shall remove the animals within seven days upon receipt of notification and shall remove the coop or hutch within 30 days upon receipt of notification. The area formally occupied by the coop or hutch shall be returned to lawn, a landscaped condition or vegetable production. No unsightly, muddy or nuisance condition shall exist after the removal of the coop or hutch.
(F) No coop or hutch license shall be issued to another member of a revoked keeper's household for the purpose of circumventing a revocation of license.
(G) The City Manager or the City Manager's designee may permit the animal population limitations of this section to be temporarily exceeded to accommodate a 4H project associated with the Fayette County Fair.
(H) A person may appeal the rejection of a coop or hutch license or the revocation of a coop or hutch license by the City Manager or the City Manager's designee to the Board of Zoning Appeals. The Board of Zoning Appeals shall hear the appeal at the convenience of the Board of Zoning Appeals and render a decision on the application or revocation. No other administrative appeal shall exist.
(I) No swine, horses, cattle, sheep or goats shall be kept or feed within the corporate limits of the City of Washington Court House.
(Ord. 2-2023, passed 4-12-23)
Penalty, see § 90.99