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Doug Smith

City chickens are here

In early 2023, a motivated 12-year-old resident (my daughter, Felicity) requested to Council a change in the city codes to allow for backyard chickens. The then-law restricted chickens to properties with 150 feet of space between a chicken coop to a neighboring house. Since 94% of properties in Worthington do not have this kind of space, she requested Council reduce the distance requirements.



A year and a half later, Council approved a change in the law to allow backyard chickens in practically any home in Worthington. Council piggybacked on the Columbus Public Health guidelines and permitting process to allow this.


Sure enough, my daughter was the first person to submit a permit application.

The process was painless. We submitted a permit application to Columbus Public Health (CPH) directly.


Then, the veterinarian from CPH came to our home for a mandatory site inspection. Dr. Messer gave us all the requirements and gave us advice about where to place the chicken coop so they would be fully protected from other critters. He talked to us about mitigating waste and avoiding spreading diseases.


With a conditional permit from CPH, we ordered a chicken coop kit and installed it on top of some pavers, as a condition of making sure no critters can enter the coop by digging under it.

We ordered our chickens and have been raising them, slowly introducing them to outdoor life as a backyard chicken.


At the end of Summer, Dr. Messer will come out for a final inspection and final permit good for four years.


Though not inexpensive, our family wanted chickens as both an egg source and as pets. I encourage anyone interested in backyard chickens to reach out and ask me any questions. Or, look into the new law and process at the city website.

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