---
title: Port Moody backyard chickens, bees and livestock rules
question: "Can I keep chickens, bees, or other livestock?"
place: Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada
place_path: ca/bc/port-moody
category: Pets, animals and wildlife
owner: municipal
owner_body: City of Port Moody
sources_read: 2026-11-05
review: machine_checked
canonical: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/backyard-chickens/"
json: "https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/backyard-chickens.json"
---

# Port Moody backyard chickens, bees and livestock rules

**Question:** Can I keep chickens, bees, or other livestock?

**Short answer:** No. The City of Port Moody's Animal Control Bylaw bans livestock and all poultry, including hens and roosters, on any residentially zoned property. Bees are allowed under City guidelines: up to two hives per lot, registered with the Province.

**Who handles it:** Municipal (City of Port Moody, https://www.portmoody.ca)  
**Cost:** No City fee found for hens (they are not allowed). Beehive registration is with the provincial Ministry of Agriculture.  
**Where:**
- Phone: Bylaw Enforcement, 604-469-4697

## Key facts

- **Hens allowed:** No. The Animal Control Bylaw says no person shall keep livestock or poultry on any residentially zoned property. Poultry includes domestic fowl, waterfowl, pigeons and peafowl.
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 2024, No. 3343, s. 16.1; s. 3.1 (Poultry)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683)
  - Official wording: "No person shall keep Livestock or Poultry on or in any residentially zoned property." … "includes a domestic fowl, waterfowl, pigeons, and peafowl"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Most hens:** None set. Port Moody bans hens, so its bylaw has no hen number or coop rule.
- **Roosters:** No. The ban covers all poultry, which includes domestic fowl, on residentially zoned property.
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 2024, No. 3343, s. 16.1; s. 3.1 (Poultry)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683)
  - Official wording: "No person shall keep Livestock or Poultry on or in any residentially zoned property." … "includes a domestic fowl, waterfowl, pigeons, and peafowl"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Coop rules:** None set. Port Moody bans hens, so its bylaw has no hen number or coop rule.
- **Permit or registration:** None set. No permit, exception or pilot programme for hens appears in Port Moody's bylaw.
- **Bees:** Allowed, with City guidelines: register with the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture; no more than two hives per lot; hives in the backyard; hobby beekeeping limited to Single Detached Residential Zones or a site with a community garden; manage bees to prevent swarming; hives 2.4 m above ground, or entrance facing away with a 1.8 m solid fence or hedge, or 7.6 m from property lines.
  - Source: [Urban Agriculture, Beekeeping](https://www.portmoody.ca/home-and-property/urban-agriculture/)
  - Official wording: "you need to register through the British Columbia Ministry of Agriculture" … "keep a maximum of two beehives per lot" … "place your beehives in the backyard" … "limit hobby beekeeping to Single Detached Residential Zones or a site containing a community garden" … "place your beehive a minimum of 7.6 m away from all property lines."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Other livestock:** Not allowed on residentially zoned property: livestock (cattle, goats, horses, sheep, swine, llamas, alpacas, ostriches and game) and poultry (including ducks and other waterfowl, pigeons and peafowl).
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 2024, No. 3343, s. 16.1; s. 3.1 (Livestock, Poultry)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683)
  - Official wording: "No person shall keep Livestock or Poultry on or in any residentially zoned property." … "means cattle, goats, horses, sheep, swine, llamas, alpacas, ostriches" … "includes a domestic fowl, waterfowl, pigeons, and peafowl"
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06
- **Bylaw:** City of Port Moody Animal Control Bylaw, 2024, No. 3343 (beekeeping: City guidelines only; provincial registration)
  - Source: [Animal Control Bylaw, 2024, No. 3343, s. 1.1](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683)
  - Official wording: "This Bylaw may be cited as “City of Port Moody Animal Control Bylaw, 2024 No. 3343”."
  - Check: wording matched the official text retrieved 2026-11-06

## How it works

Section 16.1 of the [Animal Control Bylaw](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683) says no person shall keep livestock or poultry on any residentially zoned property. Poultry includes domestic fowl, waterfowl, pigeons and peafowl, so hens, roosters and ducks are all out. Livestock includes cattle, goats, horses, sheep, swine, llamas, alpacas, ostriches and game. No permit, exception or pilot programme for hens appears in the bylaw, so there is no number of hens or coop rule.

## Bees

The City's Urban Agriculture page sets these guidelines for hobby beekeeping:

1. Register with the B.C. Ministry of Agriculture.
2. No more than two hives per lot, in the backyard.
3. Hobby beekeeping is limited to Single Detached Residential Zones or a site with a community garden.
4. Manage your bees to prevent swarming.
5. Keep hives 2.4 m above ground, or with the entrance facing away and a 1.8 m solid fence or hedge, or 7.6 m from property lines.

## Good to know

- The City calls the bee rules "guidelines"; we did not find a bylaw provision on bees.
- Rabbits and other small animals are not covered by the livestock or poultry definitions. Ask Bylaw Enforcement at 604-469-4697 if unsure.

## Official forms and pages

- [Urban Agriculture, City of Port Moody](https://www.portmoody.ca/home-and-property/urban-agriculture/)
- [Animal Control Bylaw No. 3343 (PDF)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683)

## Related questions

- [How many dogs or cats you can keep in Port Moody](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/how-many-pets.md)

## The same question elsewhere

- [Backyard chicken rules in British Columbia, by municipality](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/backyard-chickens.md)
- [Belcarra](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/belcarra/backyard-chickens.md)
- [Anmore](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/anmore/backyard-chickens.md)
- [Port Coquitlam](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-coquitlam/backyard-chickens.md)
- [Burnaby](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/burnaby/backyard-chickens.md)
- [North Vancouver](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/north-vancouver/backyard-chickens.md)
- [District of North Vancouver](https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/north-vancouver-district/backyard-chickens.md)

## Sources

- [Animal Control Bylaw, 2024, No. 3343 (PDF)](https://www.portmoody.ca/eDocs/Get?docnumber=631683) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Urban Agriculture, City of Port Moody](https://www.portmoody.ca/home-and-property/urban-agriculture/) (read 2026-11-05)
- [Bylaw Enforcement, City of Port Moody](https://www.portmoody.ca/city-government/bylaws-and-policies/bylaw-enforcement/) (read 2026-11-05)

_Checked by script, not yet by a person: the official wording behind 5 of 8 facts was matched to the official text; 3 are recorded as not set. Gov Handbook is an independent guide, not affiliated with City of Port Moody. How answers are checked: https://govhandbook.com/methods/ · Canonical page: https://govhandbook.com/ca/bc/port-moody/backyard-chickens/_