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Prepare for keeping chickens
If you are interested in getting chickens, it is important that you learn about the requirements for their welfare, both in terms of care and housing. There are also legal requirements for keeping chickens, as they are classified as farm animals.
Before setting up a chicken enclosure for the summer, it is a good idea to discuss the plan with your neighbours: Roosters are noisy animals, and introducing them into densely populated urban areas should be carefully considered. Chicken coops can attract pests, which need to be controlled, e.g. by putting up sufficiently dense netting around their enclosure and storing their feed properly.
Registration by keepers of summer chickens
Keepers of summer chickens in Helsinki must submit a notification to the Finnish Food Authority, which also registers the place where the animals are kept. You must submit any primary production notifications and notifications about keeping chickens in an outdoor enclosure during the prohibited period for outdoor housing to the Food Safety Unit of the City of Helsinki’s Environmental Services.
Register as an animal keeper and register the location where animals are kept
Keepers of chickens in the summer season must register as animal keepers and register the place where the animals are kept. You can find the registration forms on the Finnish Food Authority’s website(Link leads to external service). You can send the completed forms by post to the Porvoo office of the Eastern Uusimaa Rural Administration (Itä-Uudenmaan maaseutuhallinto), Piispankatu 38 A, 06100 Porvoo, or by e-mail to maaseututoimi@loviisa.fi(Link opens default mail program). For more information, please call +358 440 555 824 or +358 44 405 5525.
Submit a primary production notification
If you are selling or supplying eggs for use elsewhere than in your own household, you must submit a primary production notification to the Food Safety Unit of the City of Helsinki’s Environmental Services. However, in most cases, the facilities for keeping chickens for the summer are so small and seasonal that notifications are not required.
Notification of primary production
Submit a notification on keeping chickens in an outdoor enclosure during the prohibition period
To prevent the spread of the avian influenza virus, the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry requires that from 8 February to 31 May, poultry must either be kept indoors, or their entire outdoor enclosure must be protected, e.g. with sufficiently dense netting. If you want to keep your chickens in an outdoor enclosure during the prohibition period, you must notify the Food Safety Unit of the City of Helsinki’s Environmental Services.
Contact information for the supervising veterinarian
Mon–Fri, from 9 am to 10 am
Tel. +358 9 310 31531
kymp.elainsuojelu@hel.fi(Link opens default mail program)