Backyard chickens in Stockton, California

Yes, Stockton allows residents to keep a limited number of hen chickens (and ducks) as part of its 2020 Urban Agriculture Ordinance, codified at Stockton Municipal Code § 16.80.060 (Animal regulations). The code's stated purpose is to ensure that raising and maintenance of animals does not create an adverse impact on adjacent properties by reason of dust, noise, visual blight, odor, fumes, bright lights, or insect infestations. In residential zones (RL, RM, RH), hobby-scale poultry keeping is capped based on lot size — residents can only own four chickens if their property is at least 5,000 feet (i.e., 4 birds per 5,000 sq. ft. lot). However, roosters shall not be permitted within the corporate limits of the City under any circumstances, and swine, hogs, and other listed animals are likewise banned citywide.

All hen chickens/ducks shall be confined in a pen, coop, cage, or other enclosure when not supervised, and in addition to property line setbacks identified in Table 3-14, all hen chickens/ducks shall be kept within an enclosure that is at least 20 feet distant from the nearest neighbor's dwelling on an adjacent parcel. No hen chickens/ducks shall be slaughtered on any residentially zoned lot. No chicken-keeping permit is required for standard backyard/hobby flocks under this ordinance.

Stockton sits in California's Central Valley and experiences long, hot, dry summers (frequently 90–100°F) and cool, damp, foggy winters with occasional frost. Flock owners should prioritize shade, ventilation, and ample water in summer, and wind/rain protection in winter (tule fog is common December–January).

Stockton's mix of urban neighborhoods, waterways (the Delta), and agricultural edges supports healthy populations of raccoons, opossums, and skunks that raid unsecured coops at night, while red-tailed hawks and other raptors pose a daytime threat to free-ranging birds. Coyotes are increasingly seen in outlying and greenbelt-adjacent neighborhoods, making fully enclosed, hardware-cloth-wrapped runs important.