Perrysburg City Council restricted backyard chickens through a 2017 ordinance and a follow-up grandfather-rights decision. Existing owners as of the adoption date may keep their hens within currently allowed zones, but no new chickens are permitted within city limits. Code Section 618.22 (Restricted Animal Species) handles enforcement. Roosters are prohibited.
Perrysburg (pop. 25,041, Wood County) is a Toledo suburb that contentiously regulated backyard chickens through Council action in 2017 and 2022. The 2017 ordinance (passed 4-3) created a microchip-and-permit system for up to 6 hens, but the corresponding general-offense code section was never adopted. After ongoing debate in 2022, Council clarified that current owners may keep their hens within currently allowed zones, but no new chickens will be allowed in the city. The relevant code provisions are in Title XV, Chapter 618 (Animals), specifically Section 618.22 Restricted Animal Species (https://codelibrary.amlegal.com/codes/perrysburg/latest/perrysburg_oh/0-0-0-27261). Existing-owner exceptions are administered case-by-case; new applicants are denied. Roosters are prohibited citywide regardless of grandfather status. Properties zoned A-1 (Agricultural), where they exist on the city fringe, may keep poultry subject to the area, setback, and humane-treatment requirements of the zoning chapter.
New chickens kept in violation of the restriction are subject to citation under Section 618.99 (penalty) — typically a minor misdemeanor first offense punishable by up to $150, second offense a misdemeanor of the fourth degree up to $250, third offense a misdemeanor of the third degree up to $500. The City may order removal of the birds.
See how Perrysburg's chickens & livestock rules stack up against other locations.
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