Can I keep backyard chickens in Yarmouth, Maine?
Yarmouth treats backyard hens as 'Farm Animals for Personal Use.' They're a permitted use in the Rural Residential and Low Density Residential districts, and in Medium Density Residential on lots of 2 acres or more. Smaller MDR lots need a special exception from the Board of Appeals, and the Resource Protection District needs a Planning Board permit. The zoning ordinance sets no flock-size limit, rooster rule, or coop setback.
| How hens are classified | Farm Animals for Personal Use (includes birds kept for personal pleasure or consumption) [1] |
| RR and LDR districts | Permitted use [2] |
| MDR, lot 2 acres or more | Permitted use [3] |
| MDR, lot under 2 acres | Special exception (General Board of Appeals) [4] |
| Resource Protection District | Planning Board permit required [5] |
| Number of hens, roosters, coop setbacks | Not specified in the Zoning Ordinance [1] |
How Yarmouth classifies backyard hens
There's no hen-specific section. Keeping birds for your own eggs or meat falls under Farm Animals for Personal Use, defined as keeping bovines, horses, birds, goats, sheep, pigs and related animals "for personal pleasure and/or consumption" [1]. Raising animals or fowl as a business is a different use, Animal Husbandry, which is a special exception in the residential districts.
By district
- Rural Residential (RR) and Low Density Residential (LDR): Farm Animals for Personal Use is a permitted use [2].
- Medium Density Residential (MDR): permitted on lots of 2 acres or more [3]. On smaller lots it's a special exception [4], heard and decided by the General Board of Appeals, which may attach conditions [6].
- Resource Protection District: needs a Planning Board permit [5]. In the Shoreland Overlay, manure can't be stored within 75 ft of water bodies or wetlands.
- Village II allows MDR permitted uses but not MDR special exceptions, so hens appear limited to lots of 2 acres or more there. Commercial districts also list farm animals for personal use. Under the ordinance, uses a district doesn't list are prohibited. Village I and other village-area lots are governed by Chapter 703, which we did not review.
What the ordinance doesn't say
We found no limit on the number of hens, no rooster rule, no coop setback, and no license requirement in the Zoning Ordinance. A coop is an accessory structure, so normal district setbacks likely apply (see the Sheds page). Yarmouth's Animal Control ordinance (Ch. 309) has no poultry rules.
State law
Since Sept. 24, 2025, Maine law bars towns from prohibiting hens on residential property. Where Yarmouth's ordinance doesn't allow farm animals, or requires a special exception that could be denied, state law may override that provision for hens (not roosters).
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Next steps
- Confirm your zoning district and lot size with Yarmouth Planning & Development (207-846-2401).
- In RR, LDR, or MDR on 2+ acres, no zoning approval is listed; ask whether a coop needs a building permit and must meet accessory setbacks.
- On an MDR lot under 2 acres, ask the town how it applies the special exception requirement to hens given the 2025 state chicken law before filing with the Board of Appeals.
- If your lot is in the Resource Protection District or Shoreland Overlay, ask about the Planning Board permit and keep manure 75+ ft from the water.
Common questions
- Can I have chickens in Yarmouth, Maine?
- It depends on your district. Yarmouth treats hens as Farm Animals for Personal Use. They're permitted in Rural Residential and Low Density Residential, and in Medium Density Residential on lots of 2 acres or more.
- Do I need a special exception for chickens in Yarmouth, Maine?
- On Medium Density Residential lots under 2 acres, yes: a special exception from the General Board of Appeals. In the Resource Protection District, a Planning Board permit is required. State law since September 24, 2025 may override these for hens.
- How many chickens can I have in Yarmouth, Maine?
- The zoning ordinance sets no limit on the number of hens. It also has no rooster rule, coop setback, or license requirement.
- Does a chicken coop need to meet setbacks in Yarmouth, Maine?
- The ordinance sets no coop setback, but a coop is an accessory structure, so normal district setbacks likely apply. Ask whether a coop needs a building permit.
Maine's backyard chicken law
Towns can't ban hens outright. Since September 24, 2025, state law (7 M.R.S. §219-D, from LD 1655) says a town or county may not adopt an ordinance that prohibits a person from keeping chickens on their own residential property.
- The law defines "chicken" as a female domesticated bird raised for meat or eggs. Fully mature roosters aren't covered, so towns can still ban or limit them.
- The law also says it does not limit a town's "home rule" authority. In practice towns appear to keep the power to regulate how hens are kept, such as how many, coop location and setbacks, and sanitation, as long as the rules don't amount to a ban. The law is new, and courts haven't yet tested how far towns can go.
- Older ordinances that ban chickens in some zones may still be on the books but conflict with this law. Ask your town how it's applying them.
Right to Farm. Maine's Right to Farm law (7 M.R.S. §151 et seq.) protects farm operations connected to the commercial production of agricultural products from nuisance claims. A small flock kept just for your own eggs likely isn't covered.
Private deed covenants or HOA rules aren't addressed by the law and may still limit chickens.
What the ordinance says
- Article I.D Definitions, Animal, Farm for Personal Use, Chapter 701 Zoning Ordinance, p. 7
Animal, Farm for Personal Use: The keeping of bovines, horses, birds, goats, sheep, pigs and other related animals for personal pleasure and/or consumption.
- Article IV.F RR Permitted Uses, Chapter 701 Zoning Ordinance, p. 112
Farm Animals for Personal Use Manufactured Housing
- Article IV.H MDR Permitted Uses, Chapter 701 Zoning Ordinance, p. 118
Farm Animals for Personal Use on lots of two Acres or more
- Article IV.H MDR Special Exception, Chapter 701 Zoning Ordinance, p. 118
Farm Animals for Personal Use on Lots of less than two (2) Acres.
- Article IV.I.2.d RPD Permitted Uses, Chapter 701 Zoning Ordinance, p. 120
d. Farm animals for personal use. (Planning Board permit required)
- Article VII.B.2.b Special Exceptions, Chapter 701 Zoning Ordinance, p. 184
To hear and decide only those special exceptions which are authorized by this Ordinance and which are specifically listed in the various zoning districts as special exceptions.