Photo extracted from the City of Medicine Hat Council Meeting Youtube video

By Jett Schwaier

CITY HALL

Benefits of urban hens in Medicine Hat discussed with council on Monday

Sep 16, 2025 | 2:37 PM

Medicine Hat city council received a presentation on urban hens from Kristen Mann during Monday meeting, with her thoughts on the benefits of owning hens in the city.

The benefits Mann had stated were composting, food production, companionship and fertilizer production.

Chickens are currently considered livestock due to the noise, smell and nuisance behavior of these animals, so therefore are not allowed to be kept as pets in the city.

Mann had compared chickens to cats, saying they both can be a neighborhood nuisance but are still considered a pet.

“Many people have kept large coops in their backyards for decades mostly without neighbor complaint,” Mann said.

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“It just goes back to being a good pet owner whether you have a cat, a dog, a pigeon, a chicken, as long as you’re keeping good care of your animal, keeping it healthy, keeping it happy, keeping it safe, I think that’s what really matters.”

Mann said she has been working to get city council to approve of urban hens for 14 years.

“I think council and the people running on council have some really big issues that they should be focusing on in this campaign,” Mann said.

“I mean we’re talking about our energy division, we’re talking about what’s been happening at City Hall, we’re talking about the future of our city and industry and chickens is kind of a fringe issue.”

Hens have been allowed in several places across Canada.

In Alberta specifically municipalities like Calgary, Edmonton, Lethbridge, Airdrie, and Brooks allow urban hens.

Council approved to direct the topic to administration and to discuss at a future meeting.

The only councillor opposed was Cassie Hider, who was concerned with the potential odor of the hens.

The nearby community of Bow Island approved a limited amount of licenses for urban hens in 2024.

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READ: Urban hen applications underway in Bow Island as council approves limited licences