10 county-level rules, plus city-specific rules for 2 cities in Lehigh County, Pennsylvania.
Verified from official government sources
Whether you can keep chickens depends on your municipality, not the county. In Allentown it is unlawful to keep cattle, swine, sheep, goats, or fowl within the city. Rural Lehigh County townships generally allow poultry and livestock on adequately sized lots.
Allentown Codified Ordinances Ch. 163 (Animals)
It is unlawful for any person to keep or maintain any cattle, swine, sheep, goats or fowl in the City except at such places as are provided for slaughtering or laboratory purposes.
Lehigh County does not zone or run animal control; state law governs. PA's Dog Law requires every dog be confined, secured, or under a person's reasonable control at all times. In Allentown, a dog on public property must be on a leash no longer than six feet.
3 P.S. §459-305(a)
It shall be unlawful for the owner or keeper of any dog to fail to keep at all times the dog in any of the following manners: (1) confined within the premises of the owner;... or (3) under the reasonable control of some person.
No city, township, or county in Pennsylvania — including anywhere in Lehigh County — may ban or restrict a specific breed of dog. State law expressly preempts breed-specific legislation, so pit bulls and other breeds cannot be outlawed locally.
3 P.S. §459-507-A(c)
Those provisions of local ordinances relating to dangerous dogs are hereby abrogated. A local ordinance otherwise dealing with dogs may not prohibit or otherwise limit a specific breed of dog.
Beekeeping is legal across Pennsylvania, but every apiary owner must register hives with the state Department of Agriculture under the Bee Law. Local placement and setback rules, if any, come from your Lehigh County municipality, not the county itself.
3 Pa.C.S. §2105(a)
The owner of an apiary located in this Commonwealth shall register the apiary with the department.
Keeping exotic wildlife in Pennsylvania requires an Exotic Wildlife Possession Permit from the PA Game Commission. Allentown separately prohibits keeping wild or exotic animals within the city. The county sets no exotic-pet rule; check your municipality.
Pennsylvania Game Commission regulations make it unlawful to intentionally feed bear or elk anywhere in the Commonwealth, including Lehigh County. Feeding that attracts these animals can be ordered stopped. Deer feeding is restricted in disease-management areas.
58 Pa. Code §137.33
It is unlawful to... intentionally lay or place food, fruit, hay, grain, chemical, salt or other minerals anywhere in this Commonwealth for the purpose of feeding bear or elk, or to intentionally lay or place food, fruit, hay, grain, chemical, salt or other minerals that may cause bear or elk to congregate or habituate an area.
Livestock rules are municipal, not county-set. Allentown prohibits keeping cattle, swine, sheep, goats, or fowl in the city. Rural Lehigh County townships allow livestock subject to zoning acreage and setback limits, and farms in Agricultural Security Areas get Right-to-Farm protection.
Allentown Codified Ordinances Ch. 163 (Animals)
It is unlawful for any person to keep or maintain any cattle, swine, sheep, goats or fowl in the City except at such places as are provided for slaughtering or laboratory purposes.
Pennsylvania sets no numeric hoarding limit, but the state's animal-neglect law makes it a crime to keep animals without providing each one adequate food, water, clean shelter, and veterinary care. Overcrowded 'hoarding' situations are prosecuted as neglect countywide.
18 Pa.C.S. §5532(a)
A person commits an offense if the person fails to provide for the basic needs of each animal to which the person has a duty of care, including... necessary sustenance and potable water;... access to clean and sanitary shelter and protection from the weather;... necessary veterinary care.
Neither Lehigh County nor Pennsylvania sets a household pet limit. Under the state Dog Law, keeping or transferring 26 or more dogs in a calendar year makes your property a 'kennel' requiring a state kennel license. Cities may add their own limits.
3 P.S. §459-102
"Kennel." Any establishment in or through which at least 26 dogs are kept or transferred in a calendar year, or a boarding kennel as defined in this act.
Pennsylvania does not require cat licenses, but every cat over three months old must be vaccinated against rabies. Lehigh County sets no cat ordinance; Allentown regulates at-large cats and allows registered community-cat caregivers to feed and shelter free-roaming cats.
3 P.S. §455.8(a)(1)
A person owning or keeping a dog or a cat in this Commonwealth shall have the dog or cat vaccinated against rabies within four weeks after the date the dog or cat attains 12 weeks of age.
2 cities in Lehigh County have their own animal ordinances rules. Each link goes to that city's dedicated page with code citations.
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