Kenosha, WI Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

02(B), issued only for a lot whose principal use is a single-family dwelling. The application must include a diagram showing the coop's location relative to every structure within one hundred feet and to the property lines, state the number of chickens sought, and prove the applicant applied to Wisconsin's Livestock Premises Registry. The $200 license fee funds a notice-and-hearing process: abutting property owners and adult tenants get mailed notice at least ten days ahead, and the Committee on Public Safety and Welfare holds a hearing before the Common Council decides.

Once licensed, no more than four chickens are allowed, no coop or enclosure may sit closer than twenty-five feet to a neighboring residential structure, and each bird needs at least sixteen square feet of enclosure space, three of which must be covered and watertight; the coop or enclosure cannot exceed eight feet in height or one hundred twenty square feet in area. Roosters are banned outright, chickens cannot be slaughtered on the licensed premises, electric service to coops cannot run off an extension cord, and all birds must stay in the rear yard as the Zoning Ordinance defines it.

Renewal costs $100 and requires a fresh inspection before the current license expires. 02(A) bans swine, cattle, goats, horses, sheep and other livestock everywhere in the city except the A-1 and A-2 Agricultural Zoning Districts, and even there an owner needs a Health Administrator permit that can cap animal numbers and require fencing and setbacks.