At a glance
In most urban areas on the Kāpiti Coast:
- You can keep up to 12 chickens on your property
- poultry must stay within your property boundaries
- chicken coops must meet minimum setback distances
- poultry must not create excessive noise, smell, or nuisance
- you need a licence to keep a rooster, peacock, or peafowl in an urban area
- keeping a rooster in a residential zone also requires resource consent under the District Plan
These rules apply across communities including Ōtaki, Waikanae, Paraparaumu, Raumati, and Paekākāriki .
Poultry rules in urban areas
In most urban areas, you can keep up to 12 chickens on your property.
You must:
- Keep poultry within your property boundaries
- place chicken coops at least:
- 2 metres from any property boundary
- 2 metres from any building used to store human food
- 4.5 metres from your front boundary
- keep poultry in a way that does not create nuisance, smell, or excessive noise for neighbours
These rules help manage health, hygiene, animal welfare, and neighbourhood amenity across the Kāpiti Coast.
For full requirements, see the Keeping of Animals, Bees and Poultry Bylaw.
Animal welfare requirements
If you keep poultry, you must provide enough:
- Space
- shelter
- food
- water
- care
Minimum coop and housing sizes are set out in the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) Layer Hens’ Welfare Code.
Keeping roosters, peacocks, or peafowl
You need a licence from Kāpiti Coast District Council to keep:
- A rooster in an urban area
- a peacock or peafowl in an urban area
If you want to keep a rooster in a residential zone, you also need resource consent under the District Plan.
See Part 3: General Residential Zones in the District Plan for more information.
How to apply for a poultry licence
You can apply for a licence to keep animals other than dogs or bees by:
Before you apply, make sure you:
- Check the location of your coop
- understand noise and nuisance rules
- review District Plan requirements if keeping a rooster
- meet animal welfare standards