Let People Keep Their Chickens: Backyard Hens, Food Sovereignty, and the Overreach of Local Ordinances

When a few hens behind a fence require lawyers, permits, and neighbor vetoes, we’ve lost the plot. Food sovereignty starts at home—and no city hall should stand between a family and its breakfast.

The split-screen America of backyard chickens

In 2025, you can watch two very different stories play out—often on neighboring blocks.

On one side, a Michigan judge told a suburb its anti-“farm animal” ordinance was so vague it couldn’t be used to punish a homeowner whose small flock were pets. That ruling—Hrydziusko v. Village of Beverly Hills—let the family keep their hens. It’s a reminder that when municipal code is a muddle, courts will push back.

On the other side, city councils in places like Lafayette, Indiana are cautiously legalizing hens with permits, no roosters, and a built-in sunset clause: try it for a year, track complaints, then renew or repeal. It passed in September with the mayor breaking a tie—proof that, when you treat residents like adults, the sky doesn’t fall.