Can you keep chickens in Hopatcong, NJ?
Yes. Hopatcong allows hens at a rate of 4 per 10,000 sq ft of lot, up to a maximum of 12. Roosters are prohibited, birds must be fenced or penned in the backyard, and the coop must sit more than 200 feet from the Lake Hopatcong high-water mark.
The rules at a glance
| Chickens allowed | Yes, with conditions |
| Hens | 4 per 10,000 sq ft (max 12) |
| Roosters | Prohibited |
| Permit | Not required |
| Coop setback | Standard accessory-structure setbacks; coop 200+ ft from the Lake Hopatcong high-water mark |
| Lot size | No minimum (count scales by lot size) |
| Ducks | Same rules as chickens |
Good to know
- Birds must be kept in the backyard, fenced or penned, clean and sanitary.
- The lot-size limit doesn't apply to land zoned or approved for agriculture.
- Grandfather clause: flocks owned as of March 1, 2024 in now-excess numbers may live out their lives but not be replaced.
What about ducks?
Ducks are treated like chickens and count toward the same limit: four birds per 10,000 square feet of lot, 12 at most, in the backyard, with the coop more than 200 feet from Lake Hopatcong's high-water mark.
§ 66-9; § 66-10D: "D. Chickens, ducks, other domesticated poultry and fowl. No more than four per 10,000-square-foot lot of such poultry and fowl shall be permitted to be harbored in the backyard of any residence at any time." Duck coops we build.
Building a coop in Hopatcong?
Triano Farms builds custom, predator-proof chicken coops on-site across Sussex County and all of New Jersey, sized to your flock and built to your town's rules.
In an HOA? The town allowing hens is not the same as your association allowing them. What an HOA can and cannot stop.
New to this? Start with how to raise chickens in NJ, or what a coop costs.
Chicken rules in nearby Sussex County towns
Compare them side by side in the Sussex County table.
Ready to keep your flock safe?
Tell us about your animals and your land. We'll design a coop built to last, on-site, just for you.