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Parksville backyard chickens, bees and livestock rules

Can I keep chickens, bees, or other livestock?

Parksville, British ColumbiaChecked against official textSources read 2026-11-05

Short answer

In the City of Parksville you may keep up to four hens (no roosters) on a single-family parcel of at least 1,000 square metres, in a registered coop. Bees are allowed; the old ban was repealed in 2017. Livestock is allowed only in the A-1 zone, and swine and fur-bearing animals are banned citywide.

Key facts

Hens allowedYes, as an accessory use of a single family dwelling, on a parcel with one single family dwelling (plus at most one carriage house or one secondary suite) and a parcel area of at least 1,000 m².Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 350, s. 351 (1) to (3) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
Must be accessory to a permitted Single Family Dwelling use;
Shall only occur on a parcel of land containing one (1) Single Family Dwelling or
Shall only occur on a parcel of land with a minimum parcel area of 1000 m2 or
Most hensFour hens per parcel, and only hens over six months old.Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 350, s. 351 (4) and (5) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
not exceed four (4) hens per parcel;
Shall be limited to the keeping of hens over six (6) months in age only;
RoostersNo. Roosters are not permitted.Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 350, s. 351 (6) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
No roosters shall be permitted;
Coop rulesOne fully roofed coop, behind the house, at most 2.0 m high, floor area at least 1.5 m² per hen up to 10 m². Setbacks: 10.5 m front, 4.5 m rear, 7.5 m exterior side, 4.5 m interior side. At least 3.0 m from your dwelling and 10.0 m from a neighbour's dwelling. Hens must be kept in the coop or its enclosed run.Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 350, s. 351 (7) to (9), (20) to (23) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
The accessory building for housing an Accessory Household Hen Keeping use
must be fully roofed;
Maximum Height not to exceed 2.0 m;
Must be sited to the rear of the principal Single Family Dwelling;
10.5 m 4.5 m 7.5 m 4.5 m
must be a minimum of 3.0 m as measured horizontally from the closest point of each
must be a minimum of 10.0 m as measured horizontally from the closest point of
Permit or registrationThe coop must be registered with the City on its registration form. No fee found.Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 350, s. 351 (19) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
must be registered with the City on a registration form provided by the City for
BeesThe Animal Control Bylaw's former ban on keeping bees (outside the Agricultural Land Reserve) was repealed by Bylaw 1524.1 on October 16, 2017. No current residential beekeeping rule found.Animal Control Bylaw No. 1524, 2016 (consolidated to 1524.1), s. 1 and Part I · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
Bylaw 1524.1 adopted October 16, 2017, repealed section 4, under Part I in its
Bylaw 1524.1 adopted October 16, 2017, repealed the definition of "BEE" in its
Other livestockNo residential zone lists livestock or agriculture as a use. Keeping swine or fur-bearing animals is prohibited. Agriculture, which includes housing livestock, is permitted in the A-1 zone (minimum lot 4 ha). The zoning definition of household animal excludes livestock, poultry, ducks, geese and bees.Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 600, s. 604(d); Div. 100 "household animal"; Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 200, s. 202.1 (RS-1 permitted uses) · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
an agricultural use involving mushroom growing, or the keeping of swine, or fur bearing animals;
excludes livestock, guinea fowl, poultry, pigeons, geese, ducks, or bees, and no horse,
agricultural use means the producing, growing, rearing, or harvesting of agricultural products, including the growing of crops, grazing, fruit and berry production, growing trees and shrubs, housing livestock, poultry
The minimum lot size shall be no less than 4.0 hectares.
Permitted Use Maximum Number of Dwelling Units (DU) Single Family Dwellings 4 dwelling units per lot Duplex 4 dwelling units per lot
Multiple Family Residential Accessory Uses: Secondary Suites (a) Home Based Business (b) (a) Secondary Suites must be in accordance with Section 613 of this Bylaw.
BylawZoning and Development Bylaw, 1994, No. 2000, Division 350 (Accessory Household Hen Keeping)Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000, Div. 350; Animal Control Bylaw No. 1524, 2016 (consolidated to 1524.1), s. 2 · Wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
Official wording
ACCESSORY HOUSEHOLD HEN KEEPING
except for the keeping of household hens which shall be subject to the

How it works

Hens are allowed as an accessory use of a single-family dwelling under Division 350 of the Zoning and Development Bylaw. The parcel must have one single-family dwelling (plus at most one carriage house or one secondary suite) and be at least 1,000 square metres. The bylaw does not list zones, so whether your zone permits a single-family dwelling decides it.

Steps

  1. Check that your parcel qualifies (see above).
  2. Build one fully roofed coop behind the house, at most 2.0 m high, with at least 1.5 square metres of floor per hen, up to 10 square metres.
  3. Register the coop with the City on its registration form. No fee was found.
  4. Keep no more than four hens, each over six months old, in the coop or its enclosed run.

Good to know

  • No roosters.
  • Setbacks: 10.5 m front, 4.5 m rear, 7.5 m exterior side, 4.5 m interior side. The coop must be at least 3.0 m from your dwelling and 10.0 m from a neighbour's dwelling.
  • Hens are for personal use only: eggs for the household, no slaughtering, and no sale of eggs, meat or manure. Manure is limited to 0.05 cubic metres in a secured bin.
  • Bees: the Animal Control Bylaw's ban on keeping bees was repealed in 2017. No other residential beekeeping rule was found, so confirm with Bylaw Compliance.
  • Other livestock: no residential zone lists livestock or agriculture as a use. Agriculture, which includes housing livestock, is permitted in the A-1 zone (minimum lot 4 ha). Swine and fur-bearing animals are prohibited.
  • Zoning questions: Planning, 250-954-4697.

Official forms and pages

The same question in other places

Qualicum Beach · Lantzville · Nanaimo · Port Alberni · Sechelt · Ladysmith

Backyard chicken rules in British Columbia, by municipality →

Sources

  1. Zoning and Development Bylaw No. 2000 (PDF) (read 2026-11-05)
  2. Animal Control Bylaw No. 1524, 2016 (consolidated to 1524.1) (read 2026-11-05)
  3. Community Planning, City of Parksville (read 2026-11-05)

Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 8 of 8 facts was matched to the official text. How answers are checked.