Livonia, MI Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

Section 6.34, "Keeping of Animals (Fowl, Rabbits, Horses, Cows, etc.)," is a permitted use only in the RUF District, Livonia's rural-urban farm zoning classification; it does not extend to N1, N2, NM1, NM2, or NM3 residential districts. Lot size scales directly to what is kept: fowl and rabbits may be raised and kept, for the owner's own consumption only, on a half-acre or more; two horses may be kept for the owner's own use on one acre or more; and two horses plus one cow, or three horses, may be kept for the owner's own use on two acres or more. All livestock raising must conform to the state's Generally Accepted Agricultural and Management Practices (GAAMP) for the Care of Farm Animals, incorporating Michigan's own animal husbandry standards into the local zoning rule.

A separate, larger-scale allowance exists for commercial raising: fowl and rabbits may be raised for sale, rather than personal consumption, only on parcels of five acres or more, and only if the animals are properly housed, maintained, and fenced so they do not become a nuisance or a threat to public health, safety, or welfare. That five-acre commercial threshold is ten times the half-acre minimum for a household's own fowl and rabbits, reflecting the ordinance's distinction between backyard keeping and an agricultural sale operation. There is no ordinance provision allowing chickens or livestock on standard residential lots outside the RUF District.