Fort Collins, CO Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

City Code Sec. 4-117 lets residents keep chicken or duck hens (no roosters or drakes) in zone districts where farm animals are not otherwise allowed. Flock caps scale with lot size: up to eight birds on lots under half an acre, twelve on lots between half an acre and one acre, and six more per additional half acre above that, with written notice to abutting owners once the flock tops twelve. Every keeper must first get a permit from the Larimer Humane Society, which conducts a site inspection before issuing it, and if the lot holds more than one dwelling unit all adult residents and owners must consent in writing.

The poultry house must give at least four square feet per bird, be predator-resistant and ventilated, and neither the house nor the outdoor run may sit closer than fifteen feet to an abutting property line unless neighbors consent in writing to a closer spot. Birds must be confined to the house from dusk to dawn and kept from contact with wild waterfowl or their droppings. Separately, Sec. 4-121 permits two pygmy or dwarf goats (plus offspring under twelve weeks) on any lot where farm animals are otherwise barred; a single goat alone is prohibited and only female or altered male Nigerian Dwarf or African Pygmy breeds qualify.

Goat keepers need the same Humane Society permit and site inspection, must confine the animals to the rear fifty percent of the lot, provide at least 150 square feet of fenced outdoor run per goat, and keep the same fifteen-foot setback from property lines absent written neighbor consent. Goats twelve weeks and older must be vaccinated against rabies on the schedule a veterinarian sets.