Dade City, FL Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

Section 530.25 of the Land Development Code, adopted by Board of County Commissioners Ordinance No. 25-44 (filed with the State November 13, 2025; effective November 12, 2025), authorizes the keeping of backyard chickens 'exclusively hens' for egg production within residential districts, excluding the multifamily MF-1, MF-2, and MF-3 districts. The Estate-Residential (E-R) and ER-2 districts already permit chickens by right under LDC Sections 509 and 510 and are not subject to Chapter 14's added conditions. The operational rules are incorporated by reference into Chapter 14 of the Code of Ordinances and, per Pasco County Code Compliance, allow up to four hens per household, prohibit roosters (a chick that matures into a rooster must be removed before it begins crowing), require a minimum of 4 square feet of coop space per hen with a maximum coop size of 100 square feet and maximum height of 8 feet, and require coops/runs to be located in side or rear yards only. No registration or permit is required. Private deed restrictions and HOA covenants may still prohibit chickens; Section 530.25 expressly does not supersede any covenant or restriction of record. Larger livestock (cattle, horses, goats, swine) are limited to agricultural and large-lot residential zoning under LDC Sections 504-506, where livestock for the occupant's use is generally capped at roughly three grazing animals per acre and one swine per acre.