It is unlawful to keep chickens or raise them in a coop in the city of Montreal although it is legal in Westmount.

A new pilot project this summer in the Montreal borough of Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie will test community interest and acceptance towards letting everyone on the island have the ability to raise chickens in their backyards.

Source: CTV News

The city of Montreal outlawed chickens in 1966, part of the era’s trend against livestock within municipal boundaries.

While the law is still on the books, advocates are hoping a pilot project launched this summer in one borough could be the beginning of its undoing within the municipality.

“We had a lot of demand from residents, especially because it’s now allowed in other cities,” says Francois Croteau, mayor of the Rosemont-La Petite-Patrie borough.

The project announced last month means the borough will operate a hen house open to the public.

The original proposal was to permit residents to keep a few hens in their backyard if they had a large enough plot, but not everyone was in favour of the plan.

There were concerns backyard chickens would make too much noise and attract pests, such as rats.

“After one year (of considering) the regulations we found the first step would be a project that would focus on education and environment,” Croteau said of the project.