Can you keep chickens in Borough of Oaklyn, NJ?
Yes, with a borough license, but only in the R-1 single-family zone. Up to 10 hens depending on lot size (4 in your first year), no roosters, and the coop must be in the rear yard.
The rules at a glance
| Chickens allowed | Yes, with conditions |
| Hens | Up to 10 hens (3 on the smallest lots, 4 max in the first year) |
| Roosters | Prohibited |
| Permit | Required: annual license, $10 for 1-5 chickens or $20 for 6-10, plus a backyard chicken class |
| Coop setback | Rear yard; 15 ft from a neighbor's door or window; 5 ft from side and rear lot lines |
| Lot size | No minimum stated |
| Rule adopted | April 2025 |
| Ducks | Not allowed |
Good to know
- Allowed only in the R-1 Single-Family Detached Residential District (amended April 2025 by Ord. No. 08-25).
- Hen limit is 3 for the first 2,250 sq ft of lot plus 1 per extra 500 sq ft, capped at 10; coop max 100 sq ft and 7 ft tall.
- A Chicken Advisory Board reviews applications and handles complaints; eggs may be sold.
- An older Board of Health chapter (Ch. 130, 1946) still requires a Board of Health permit and a coop 100 ft from any other home, which conflicts with the newer rules.
What about ducks?
No. Oaklyn bans keeping livestock and fowl, and its code defines fowl to include ducks; only licensed backyard chickens in the R-1 zone are exempt.
§ 55-6; § 55-7; § 55-7.1: "FOWL Any chicken, turkey, geese, duck, emu, ostrich or any other fowl customarily found on a farm, and pigeons." Duck coops we build.
Building a coop in Borough of Oaklyn?
Triano Farms builds custom, predator-proof chicken coops on-site across Camden 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 Camden County towns
Compare them side by side in the Camden 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.