How to keep your henhouse, even after Easter!
How to keep your henhouse, even after Easter!
This Easter has given me wings and, after changing jobs, I've decided to go ahead with my old project of installing a henhouse in my little garden. Are there any special legal provisions I should be aware of?
Aurélie
If you wish to keep hens as a hobby (as opposed to, for example, breeding them or trading in their eggs), you are not in principle required to obtain specific authorisation to build a small henhouse, provided that you comply with the minimum distances from your property boundary and neighbouring buildings. However, it is advisable to contact your local authority first to announce your project and check any specific requirements that may be laid down in local byelaws.
However, be careful if you are also thinking of buying a cockerel whose crowing - especially in the morning! - could annoy your neighbours: it's best to get their consent, otherwise you could be sued for noise pollution.
Firstly, under the terms of the Ordinance on Epizootic Diseases (OFE), the keeping of hens must be registered with the cantonal coordination service: in Geneva, this is the Office cantonal de l'agriculture et de la nature (OCAN). If a disease such as avian flu breaks out, this registration enables the authorities to quickly contact anyone with a henhouse and inform them of the measures to be taken.
You will also need to find out about the conditions under which these animals are kept, which are regulated in detail in the Ordinance on the Protection of Animals (OPAn). Article 13 of this ordinance stipulates, for example, that sociable animals - such as hens - must be kept in groups, so that they can have "appropriate social contact with other animals". The minimum dimensions of a henhouse (in terms of height and surface area) are also regulated, and there are various regulations governing the layout of the henhouse, such as the obligation to provide dry, loose litter on the floor and perches (art. 66 OPAn).
You'll find lots of useful information in the Federal Office of Food Safety and Veterinary Affairs (FOSV) brochure entitled "Keeping chickens properly" and in the FOSV factsheet "Animal protection No. 10.4: keeping chickens for hobby purposes", both of which are available on the Internet.
Without wanting to give you the creeps or make you feel like you're walking on eggshells, this wonderful project needs to be well thought through and carried out in compliance with a number of rules, so it's in your best interests to get informed and, if necessary, be accompanied by specialists.
Whether you prefer these pretty hard-boiled eggs or chocolate eggs, we wish you all a very happy Easter!
