Auburn allows backyard hens by permit; roosters are barred. Livestock is common in rural Lee County. Alabama abolished open range: Ala. Code §3-5-2 bars letting any animal run at large and makes the owner liable.
In Auburn, urban chicken keeping is legal by permit from the Planning Department, with hen numbers scaled to lot size, roosters prohibited in residential zones, and coops confined to the rear yard set back at least 10 feet from lot lines. Opelika and adopted county beats set their own poultry and livestock rules by zoning. Across rural Lee County, cattle, goats, and hogs are ordinary farm uses. But Alabama law imposes a hard duty regardless: under Ala. Code §3-5-2 there are no open-range counties, and an owner may not negligently or wilfully let livestock run at large onto another's land or the public roads. Section 3-5-3 makes the owner liable for the damage a loose animal causes.
Letting livestock run at large violates §3-5-2 and exposes the owner to liability under §3-5-3 for crop, vehicle, and property damage, plus a lien on the animal. In Auburn, keeping a rooster or an unpermitted flock draws city enforcement.
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Lee County, AL
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Lee County, AL
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Lee County, AL
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Lee County, AL
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Lee County, AL
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Lee County, AL
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See how Lee County's chickens & livestock rules stack up against other locations.
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