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Backyard Chicken Safety
A maximum of six (6) hens may be permitted in the City of Watertown, upon PERMIT APPROVAL by the Board of Health, following STRICT REGULATIONS, and a $50 yearly application/inspection fee. No roosters allowed. Please see the Watertown Hens and Honey Bees Regulation (PDF) to see if you meet these requirements.
Update: New Hampshire (NH), Massachusetts (MA), and Connecticut (CT) have confirmed bird flu.
In response to a steady increase in the number of families raising small poultry flocks throughout the Commonwealth, the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources (MDAR) has developed these documents to aid residential poultry producers in the methods of caring for poultry, marketing eggs and of handling the waste products.
Biosecurity is the key to keeping our nation’s poultry healthy. USDA’s Defend the Flock education program offers free tools and resources to help everyone who works with or handles poultry follow proper biosecurity practices. These practices will help keep your birds healthy and reduce the risk of avian influenza and other infectious diseases. Biosecurity is everyone’s job.
Biosecurity Basics:
- Keep visitors to a minimum. Only allow those people who take care of your poultry to come in contact with your birds, this includes family and friends. Keep track of everyone who is on your property at all times. Make sure everyone who has contact with your flock follows biosecurity principles.
- Wash your hands before and after coming in contact with live poultry. In addition to potentially spreading disease from farm to farm or bird to bird, you can also spread germs such as Salmonella that can impact human health. Wash with soap and water (always your first choice). If using a hand sanitizer, first remove manure, feathers, and other materials from your hands because disinfectants will not penetrate organic matter or caked-on dirt.
- Provide disposable boot covers (preferred) and/or disinfectant footbaths for anyone having contact with your flock. If using a footbath, be sure to remove all droppings, mud or debris from boots and shoes using a long-handled scrub brush BEFORE stepping into the disinfectant footbath, and always keep it clean.
- Change clothes before entering poultry areas and before exiting the property. Visitors should wear protective outer garments or disposable coveralls, boots, and headgear when handling birds, and shower and/or change clothes when leaving the facility.
- Clean and disinfect tools or equipment before moving them to a new poultry facility. Before allowing service vehicles, trucks, tractors, or tools and equipment—including egg flats and cases that have come in contact with birds or their droppings—to exit the property, make sure they are cleaned and disinfected to prevent contaminated equipment from transporting disease. Do not move or reuse items that cannot be cleaned and disinfected—such as cardboard egg flats.
- Look for signs of illness. Know the warning signs of infectious bird diseases.
- Report sick birds. Don’t wait. If your birds are sick or dying, call a local veterinarian, cooperative extensive service, or state veterinarian. Call USDA toll-free at 1-866-536-7593.
If you have any questions, please call 617-626-1795.
Additional Resources