Youngstown, OH Animal Ordinances: Chickens & Livestock (2026)

Youngstown Codified Ordinances § 505.17 governs backyard poultry and livestock through the same section that bans wild animals. Subsection (b) defines 'livestock' to include horses, ponies, sheep, bees, bulls, cows, mules, goats, swine and other domesticated farm animals, while subsection (c) defines 'poultry' as all domesticated fowl and legally held game birds, covering backyard chickens directly. Subsection (d) makes it unlawful to keep or maintain livestock or poultry, inside or outside a structure, anywhere in the City, except for the listed carve-outs: temporary events like fairs, licensed pet stores, confined aquatic animals, and immunized non-farm pets.

A resident who wants to keep chickens or other livestock outside those exceptions must ask the Health Commissioner to inspect the property; the Commissioner issues a report recommending whether animals should be kept, which specific animals and how many, on which parcel, and under what conditions. The applicant then submits that report to the City Planning Commission, which may recommend a permit only if the property is zoned for farming or agricultural purposes, the animals are intended for farming or agricultural use, and the permit will not harm community health and safety or create a nuisance for neighbors.

City Council must consent to the permit by ordinance, the Planning and Zoning Department issues and enforces it, and that department can revoke the permit for noncompliance. Keeping poultry or livestock strictly within a valid permit's terms is not a violation.