Council adopts ordinance permitting residents to keep up to six ducks

At its January 10, 2022 meeting, Borough Council approved an ordinance permitting residents to keep up to six ducks and setting out rules to govern how they are kept. The measure carried on a 5–1 roll-call vote.

What the ordinance allows

The ordinance establishes a defined allowance — up to six ducks per resident — rather than leaving the question to be decided case by case. Alongside that allowance, it sets rules meant to keep duck-keeping orderly and neighborly, the kind of standards a municipality typically attaches to keeping fowl: how and where the birds may be housed, and the upkeep expected of owners. Residents considering ducks should keep their setup consistent with those requirements once the ordinance takes effect.

A note on the ordinance number

Readers comparing this article against the official minutes should be aware of a clerical inconsistency in that record. The heading of the minutes refers to “Ordinance No. 1548,” while the motion that Council actually voted on reads “Ordinance No. 1458.” The number tied to the adopting motion — 1458 — is the one carried here. The Borough Office can confirm the controlling text and number for anyone who needs it.

Where the rules live

Local rules on keeping animals in the Borough fall under the animals chapter of the Tyrone Borough Code. As the new provisions are codified, that chapter is where residents will find the duck allowance and its accompanying standards. You can browse it through the Borough’s online code at Chapter 61, Animals.

On file: the full text of Ordinance No. 1458 is available from the Borough Office, 1100 Logan Avenue. Once codified, its provisions appear in Chapter 61, Animals of the Tyrone Borough Code, online at ecode360.com/TY1357.