Norfolk, VA Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

1-7 makes it unlawful to keep any livestock or poultry other than chickens anywhere in the city, and even chickens require a permit from the department of public health before the first bird arrives. Applicants must submit their name and address, the physical address where the birds will be housed, written consent from the property owner, coop design drawings, and a nonrefundable application fee set by the health director. The department will not issue a permit for property improved with a two-family or multifamily use, a manufactured home, or a licensed day care facility, or for a lot smaller than 5,000 square feet.

Property within 50 feet of the mean high-water line of a waterway needs an even greater setback if the Chesapeake Bay Preservation Act requires one. Permit holders may keep no more than six hens and no rooster or capon, and residential permit holders may not sell eggs or chicken meat from the property. Chickens must stay at least 15 feet from any property line or occupied building and 20 feet from a city drainage easement, and must be kept where they are not visible from any improved public right-of-way.

Each bird gets a leg or wing identification band issued with the permit. Coops must be predator-proof, ventilated, easy to clean, human-accessible, and provide at least six square feet per bird, half of it enclosed weatherproof space, with any electrical wiring meeting building code and no extension cords. Permits run only through December 31 of the year issued and must be renewed and displayed on site for inspection by police, the fire marshal, the health director, or the state veterinarian.