Haverford, PA Animal Ordinances: Coyote Management (2026)

Haverford Township handles coyotes and deer through Chapter 49 (Animal Control) rather than through a culling or hazing program. The operative rule is § 49-11. Subsection (A) says no owner or person shall feed, harbor or shelter feral cats and wild animals. Subsection (B) says no owner or person shall place any type of food or water unattended on their property which may attract feral cats or wild animals, with one exception for people attempting to comply with Chapter 95, Article IV, § 95-19, the requirements for trash containers. Subsection (C) states that bird baths, feeders and houses are permitted.

The definition in § 49-1 decides who counts. A wild animal is any animal born outside domestic captivity, unsocialized to humans, exhibiting a fear of humans, or resistant to contact with humans, or an animal born in captivity that has strayed and become unsocialized over time. That covers coyotes and deer. The same section defines an owner as anyone with the right of proprietorship who keeps or harbors an animal, with an animal deemed harbored if it is fed or sheltered or permitted to remain on or about the premises, and a person who harbors a wild animal can be treated as its owner.

Section 49-8, amended by Ord. No. 2700 on August 12, 2013, adds the second tool: it prohibits keeping coyotes (Canis latrans) and deer (Cervidae), including all members of the deer family such as white-tailed deer, elk, antelopes and moose. For a resident, the practical consequences are concrete. Pet food, water bowls and food scraps left outside unattended fall under § 49-11(B), and deliberately feeding deer or coyotes falls under § 49-11(A).

The Animal Control Officer, a sworn officer appointed by the Haverford Township Manager and supervised by the Police Department, enforces Chapter 49.