Keeping hens · State rules

Can you keep backyard chickens in Arkansas?

Arkansas registers poultry feeding operations (2,500 or more poultry on any one day in the preceding twelve months). Whether smaller flocks must register, or who sets keeping rules, wasn't established.

Read from 4 official sources22 passages quotedChecked October 25, 2026

At a glance

Registering your flock

Not established

State keeping rule

Not established

Bird-flu housing orders

Status needs rechecking

Welfare rules

Not established

A sourced reading of Arkansas's state law, not legal advice. Local ordinances and zoning, HOA rules, and any local rooster or coop limits aren't covered here yet: check your local code before you get hens.

Keeping your flock

These findings cover the national or state scope stated below. They do not determine whether chickens are allowed at a particular home. City zoning, property restrictions and other local rules are outside this research.

Registering as a poultry keeper

Not established from the sources checked

Jurisdiction: Arkansas

Applies to: The Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s Poultry Feeding Operation Registration Program (15 CAR 45-101 and 45-102), read in the official Code of Arkansas Rules on 25 October 2026.

Outside this finding's scope

  • No registration rule for flocks smaller than a poultry feeding operation was found in the Arkansas rules read (15 CAR 45-101 and 45-102; 2 CAR 151-101, 151-104 and 163-102). Other sections of the program rule (15 CAR Part 45) were not read, so this is not proof that no other duty exists.
  • The Arkansas Code itself was not read for this research.

What the checked sources say

  • Arkansas registers poultry feeding operations to locate litter sources and estimate how much litter is produced. A poultry feeding operation is any lot or facility where 2,500 or more poultry (chickens, turkeys, ducks, geese or any other domesticated birds) are housed or confined and fed or kept on any one day in the preceding twelve months.

Thresholds

  • Poultry feeding operation: 2,500 or more poultry on any one day in the preceding twelve months.

Authority: Not established from the sources checked.

Fee: Not established from the sources checked.

The official wording

  • (a) This part governs the Department of Agriculture’s Poultry Feeding Operation Registration Program.

    15 CAR 45-101(a) · Checked

  • (b) Poultry feeding operations are registered to: (1) Locate litter sources; and (2) Estimate the amount of litter produced.

    15 CAR 45-101(b) · Checked

  • The following definitions shall apply to this part:

    15 CAR 45-102, opening · Checked

  • (9) "Poultry" means:

    15 CAR 45-102(9), opening · Checked

  • (A) Chickens; (B) Turkeys; (C) Ducks; (D) Geese; and (E) Any other domesticated birds;

    15 CAR 45-102(9)(A)-(E) · Checked

  • (10)(A) "Poultry feeding operation" means any lot or facility where two thousand five hundred (2,500) or more poultry are housed or confined and fed or maintained on any one (1) day in the preceding twelve­month period.

    15 CAR 45-102(10)(A) (source text has a soft hyphen in "twelve-month") · Checked

Bird-flu housing orders

Current status needs rechecking

An official current-status link has not been established.

Orders can change between checks. A missed check or an expired order does not establish that no order applies.

Housing-order finding as checked on 2026-10-25

The scope and conditions below are a dated record, not confirmation of today's position.

Conditions apply to this finding

Uses housing orders in this scope: Yes, according to the checked evidence, within the limits listed under “Outside this finding’s scope” below.

Jurisdiction: Arkansas

Applies to: Arkansas’s avian influenza rule, 2 CAR 151-104 (Department of Agriculture, made under Ark. Code 2-33-107), which may be put into effect during an avian influenza outbreak that the Department decides threatens poultry production or sales.

Outside this finding's scope

  • This finding does not establish that the rule is being implemented anywhere now. No official status page could be read for this research, so none is linked.
  • The Code of Arkansas Rules says it is updated weekly and may not reflect recent rulemaking.

What the checked sources say

  • When the rule is implemented during an outbreak of avian influenza that the Department of Agriculture determines threatens production or sales of poultry and poultry products, all free range and backyard poultry inside an affected area, whether kept commercially or not, must be confined under cover or inside structures to keep infected migratory birds from contaminating them. An affected area is an area the Department sets of about 25 miles around a flock with confirmed highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI).
  • While the rule is implemented, it is also prohibited inside an affected area to exhibit poultry or domestic waterfowl, to move them from or within the area (poultry tested for avian influenza by PCR or antigen capture within five days of the event are exempt), or to sell, barter, trade, auction or give them away at fairs, swap meets, auctions, flea markets and similar events (chicks and ducklings three weeks old or younger from an NPIP certified flock are exempt).
  • While the rule is implemented, poultry identified or suspected of having avian influenza anywhere in Arkansas will be quarantined immediately and the State Veterinarian notified. In this rule, poultry means chickens, turkeys, guinea fowl, pigeons, ostrich, emus, pheasants or other birds raised commercially or domestically for meat, eggs and feathers.
  • Current mandatory housing status remains unconfirmed; check with the Arkansas Department of Agriculture.
Checked
Recheck due

Historical evidence, as checked

These quotations record what was checked on the dates shown. They do not confirm an order's current status.

  • (a) The provisions of the section may be implemented in the event of an outbreak of avian influenza which in the determination of the Department of Agriculture threatens production or sales of poultry and poultry products.

    2 CAR 151-104(a) · Checked

  • (b) It is prohibited to:

    2 CAR 151-104(b), opening · Checked

  • (1) Exhibit poultry and domestic waterfowl within the affected area;

    2 CAR 151-104(b)(1) · Checked

  • (2)(A) Move poultry or domestic waterfowl from or within an affected area.

    2 CAR 151-104(b)(2)(A) · Checked

  • (B) Poultry with premovement avian influenza testing by polymerase chain reaction (PCR) or antigen capture within five (5) days of event are exempt from subdivision (b)(2)(A) of this section;

    2 CAR 151-104(b)(2)(B) · Checked

  • (3)(A) Sell, barter, trade, auction, or give away, poultry or domestic waterfowl at fairs, swap meets, auctions, flea markets, and similar events and locations within an affected area.

    2 CAR 151-104(b)(3)(A) · Checked

  • (B) Chicks and ducklings three (3) weeks of age or less originating from a NPIP certified flock are exempt from subdivision (b)(3)(A) of this section.

    2 CAR 151-104(b)(3)(B) · Checked

  • (c) All free range and backyard poultry within an affected area, whether intended for commercial or noncommercial use, must be confined under cover or inside structures to prevent contamination from infected migratory birds.

    2 CAR 151-104(c) · Checked

  • (k) All poultry identified or suspected of having avian influenza virus infection in the state will be quarantined immediately and the State Veterinarian notified for final disposition.

    2 CAR 151-104(k) · Checked

  • Arkansas Code § 2-33-107

    2 CAR 151-104, Authority · Checked

  • This online searchable database constitutes the official version of the Code of Arkansas Rules and became effective on January 1, 2025.

    Code of Arkansas Rules page footer · Checked

  • It is updated on a weekly basis and may not reflect recent rulemaking.

    Code of Arkansas Rules page footer · Checked

  • Last Updated: 10/19/2026 9:03:10 AM

    Code of Arkansas Rules page footer · Checked

  • As used in this rule:

    2 CAR 151-101, opening · Checked

  • (1) “Affected area” means an area determined by the Arkansas Department of Agriculture of approximately twenty-five (25) miles surrounding a flock with a confirmed case of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI);

    2 CAR 151-101(1) · Checked

  • (13) “Poultry” means chickens, turkeys, guinea fowl, pigeons, ostrich, emus, pheasants, or other birds raised commercially or domestically for meat, eggs, and feathers;

    2 CAR 151-101(13) · Checked

Small-flock welfare minimums

Not established from the sources checked

Jurisdiction: Arkansas

Applies to: Arkansas animal welfare law for small flocks; the animal cruelty statutes in Arkansas Code Title 5, Chapter 62 were not read.

Outside this finding's scope

  • The Arkansas Code itself was not read for this research. The Code of Arkansas Rules sections read for this research (15 CAR 45-101 and 45-102; 2 CAR 151-101, 151-104 and 163-102) are not welfare rules and set no care standards for small flocks; the rest of the Code of Arkansas Rules was not read for this point. This is an open question, not an answer that no duty exists.

National or state rules on keeping poultry

Not established from the sources checked

Jurisdiction: Arkansas

Applies to: Arkansas state law on keeping chickens and the zoning and animal-control powers of Arkansas cities and counties (Arkansas Code Title 14), which were not read.

Outside this finding's scope

  • The Arkansas Code itself was not read for this research, so it is not established whether Arkansas sets any statewide keeping rule or leaves the question to cities and counties.

Bird flu right now? PoultryPal's bird-flu tracker for Arkansas has the latest we've checked.

Selling eggs in Arkansas? →License, small-flock line, markets and cartons, on their own page.Selling: License: depends

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Common questions

Do I have to register backyard chickens in Arkansas?
Registration: not established. The finding covers: The Arkansas Department of Agriculture’s Poultry Feeding Operation Registration Program (15 CAR 45-101 and 45-102), read in the official Code of Arkansas Rules on 25 October 2026. Poultry feeding operation: 2,500 or more poultry on any one day in the preceding twelve months. Outside this finding's scope: No registration rule for flocks smaller than a poultry feeding operation was found in the Arkansas rules read (15 CAR 45-101 and 45-102; 2 CAR 151-101, 151-104 and 163-102). Other sections of the program rule (15 CAR Part 45) were not read, so this is not proof that no other duty exists. The Arkansas Code itself was not read for this research.
Can I keep chickens in my backyard in Arkansas?
The state sources we read don't settle it, and we haven't identified who decides. Check your local rules before you get hens.
Do I have to keep my hens indoors for bird flu in Arkansas?
Housing orders come and go, so we never show one as current. We haven't confirmed an official current-status page for it. PoultryPal's bird-flu tracker page for Arkansas has the latest we've checked.

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