Can I keep backyard chickens in Wayland, Massachusetts?
Yes, with an annual Board of Health animal-keeping permit. Lots under 1 acre may keep up to 6 chickens and lots of 1 acre or more up to 12. Roosters are not allowed, and the flock must be kept at least 150 feet from a neighbor's house and 25 feet from property and street lines.
| Permit | Written Board of Health permit, renewed every year by July 1 [1] |
| Max chickens (lot under 1 acre) | 6 [2] |
| Max chickens (lot 1 acre or larger) | 12 [2] |
| Roosters | Not allowed [3] |
| Setback from adjacent dwelling | 150 feet [4] |
| Setback from property line and street line | 25 feet [5] |
| Setback from any pond or water body | 100 feet [6] |
| Fine per violation | $100 per day [8] |
Permit required
Wayland's Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (adopted May 20, 2024) require a written permit from the Board of Health for anyone keeping live fowl that need a coop or other shelter apart from the house. The permit must be renewed each year by July 1, can be revoked for good cause, and is not transferable [1]. The fee is set by the Board and posted at the Health Department.
How many birds
Up to 12 chickens are allowed on lots of 1 acre or more, and up to 6 on lots under 1 acre [2]. "Live fowl" covers chickens, ducks, turkeys, geese and other domesticated birds, and roosters are not allowed [3]. Your application must state the exact number of birds, and you can't keep more than the number approved.
Where the coop can go
Birds can't be kept within 150 feet of an adjacent dwelling [4], within 25 feet of a property line or street right-of-way line [5], or within 100 feet of any pond or water body [6]. The 150-foot rule is hard to meet on small lots; requests to vary the distance to neighboring houses go to the full Board at a regular meeting, while the Health Agent can approve lot-size variances.
The application process
Submit the Health Department form with a plan showing the coop, fencing, waste storage, and the distances to all abutting dwellings [7]. After the Health Agent reviews it, you notify abutters by certified mail at least 10 days before a site visit. You also need an Integrated Pest Management plan, a covered, watertight manure container, and daily manure removal from the coop. You are responsible for any building permit the coop itself needs.
Penalties
The Board can fine $100 for each violation, and each day counts as a separate offense [8].
Wayland's zoning bylaw may also address animal keeping, but we couldn't get its text.
See how Wayland compares with 8+ other Massachusetts towns on backyard chickens →
Next steps
- Download the Animal Keeping Application and "to do list" from the Wayland Health Department website (wayland.ma.us/health-department).
- Draw a plan (Town GIS printout is often accepted) showing the coop, fencing, manure storage, and distances to every abutting dwelling, property line, street line and water body; include an Integrated Pest Management plan.
- Submit to the Health Department; after the Health Agent's review, send the sample abutter letter by certified mail at least 10 days before the site inspection (schedule via health@wayland.ma.us).
- If you can't meet the 150-foot dwelling setback or lot-size rule, request a variance in the application.
- Ask the Building Department whether your coop needs a building permit, and renew the Board of Health permit every year by July 1.
Common questions
- Can I keep chickens in Wayland, Massachusetts?
- Yes, with an annual Board of Health animal-keeping permit, renewed every year by July 1.
- How many chickens can I have in Wayland, Massachusetts?
- Lots under 1 acre may keep up to 6 chickens, and lots of 1 acre or more up to 12.
- Can I have a rooster in Wayland, Massachusetts?
- No. Roosters are not allowed.
- How far must a chicken coop be from my neighbor in Wayland, Massachusetts?
- At least 150 feet from a neighbor's house and 25 feet from property and street lines. The page also lists 100 feet from any pond or water body.
Massachusetts state rules on backyard poultry
Massachusetts has no statewide right to keep backyard hens. Whether you can keep chickens, how many, and where the coop goes are set locally, through your town's zoning bylaw and Board of Health regulations.
- Board of Health power: under M.G.L. c. 111, §31, local boards of health may adopt "reasonable health regulations", and many use this power to require a permit to keep poultry. Violations can bring fines of up to $1,000. In towns with an agricultural commission, the board must send that commission any proposed rule affecting the non-commercial keeping of poultry, livestock or bees for a 45-day review.
- Agricultural zoning protection is for farms, not most backyards: c. 40A, §3 stops zoning from banning or requiring a special permit for commercial agriculture. Towns may limit that protection to parcels of 5 acres or more, or 2 acres or more if the land produces at least $1,000 per acre a year in sales. A typical backyard flock doesn't qualify.
- Annual barn inspections: your town's animal inspector, working under the state Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR), does annual barn inspections and a census of livestock and poultry. Backyard flock owners may be contacted.
- Nuisance rules still apply: a board of health may also regulate or prohibit an activity that causes a nuisance or offensive odors (c. 111, §143).
What the bylaw says
- Section I.1, Permit to Keep Animals and/or Live Fowl, Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 1
Any owner or other person or persons who maintain any domestic or wild animal (except dogs, which are regulated under other town regulations and By-Laws, and domestic cats) and/or live fowl which require a building, shelter, or other structure other than the main house occupying the lot, must obtain a written permit from the BoH. Any such permit shall require annual renewal by July 1 and may be revoked by the BoH at any time for reasonable or good cause.
- Section II.B.1, Location and Setback Restrictions, Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 2
No animal and/or live fowl covered by these regulations shall be kept on any lot less than one acre, except that for 1 acre or larger lots, up to 12 chickens are permitted, and for lots less than 1 acre, up to 6 chickens are permitted.
- Section II.A.2, Definitions (Live Fowl), Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 1
Live Fowl – domesticated birds, including, but not limited to, chickens, pigeons, capons, hens, turkeys, pheasants, guinea fowl, ducks and geese, peacocks, peafowl and other than wild or domestic live fowl species. Roosters are not allowed.
- Section II.B.2, Location and Setback Restrictions, Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 2
No animal and/or live fowl covered by these regulations shall be kept within 150 feet of an adjacent dwelling.
- Section II.B.2 (second), Location and Setback Restrictions, Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 2
No animal and/or live fowl covered by these regulations shall be kept within 25 feet of property line and street right of way line.
- Section II.B.3, Location and Setback Restrictions, Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 2
No animal and/or live fowl covered by these regulations shall be kept within 100 feet of any pond or water body.
- Section II.D.1, Application Process (Form), Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 2
Applications for a permit to keep animals and/or live fowl shall be submitted on a form supplied by the Health Department and shall be accompanied by a plan (or plot plan if required) showing the property to be used, the name, addresses and distance measurements of all dwellings and structures of all abutters, the proposed or existing location of the structure to house animals, location of fencing, location of any animal and/or live fowl waste storage, and any other information which the Health agent or BoH may require.
- Section IV.2, Enforcement, Board of Health Animal Keeping Regulations (revised, adopted May 2024), p. 4
Nothing herein shall limit or prevent the BoH and/or its designee from issuing a fine, pursuant to General Laws Chapter 111, Section 31, in the amount of $100, for any violation of these regulations. Each day the violation continues shall be considered a separate offense.