POST FALLS — The Post Falls City Council meeting ended on a fowl note Tuesday night as city officials asked staff to look into possible revisions of the regulations concerning duck ownership in the city limits. 

According to Post Falls code, chickens are allowed on any detached single city lot with up to 10 hens. However, Post Falls regulations classify ducks as livestock.

“Currently we do allow for ducks, but you do have to have about an acre of land,” Community Development Director Bob Seale said. “A lot of properties in the city are not an acre, so we were requested to consider them more like chickens.”  

Sarah Ericson came to a planning and zoning meeting Sept. 9 with a single goal: to change the code so she could keep ducks in her household. 

She proposed a “small, but meaningful change” to city code 6.08.030 concerning backyard ducks to govern them the same as chickens. 

Ericson said the space required by ducks is small, at 10 to 15 square feet per bird for outdoor areas and added they are quiet birds. 

“Ducks also provide natural pest controls, eating slugs, mosquitoes and other bugs, reducing the need for chemical pesticides in our neighborhoods,” Ericson said. 

Ericson proposed a limit of two to five ducks per household if city leadership chooses to move forward and revise the ordinance. 

“Beyond practical benefits, ducks bring joy and are absolutely hilarious," Ericson said. "They are gentle social animals that provide companionship and emotional support, much like chickens." 

Last year, Coeur d’Alene resident Aaron Fletcher took in some ducklings as an engaging way to teach his children about food and responsibility. But he had to rehome them because they weren't allowed by city ordinance.   

Hayden also had a similar situation arise in 2020. Hayden City Council worked to amend its animal code to allow residents to keep ducks. 

At Tuesday's meeting in Post Falls, council remarks took on a trivia lens for a moment as the question arose about the proper terminology for a group of ducks.  

City Attorney Field Harrington came to the rescue with a quick search online.  

“A group of ducks is waddling if they’re on land and a paddling if they are swimming,” Harrington said. 

City staff have been compiling information from other cities facing a similar change, but City Councilor Samantha Steigleder recommended that staff also seek out additional sources. 

“Ask a duck expert,” she suggested. 

Seale stated that in other places where staff have looked, the ducks-per-acre ratio was the same as Post Falls, but noted that there could be room within a small parcel to house a handful of ducks similarly.   

City Councilor Randy Westlund also asked staff to consider increasing the number of chickens allowed on a property. 

“I have fewer than 10 hens because we’ve had a couple of deaths, but the coop I have on our property could hold at least 15, and it seems a shame to leave some of it empty, Westlund said. "If there are 10 hens or 15 hens, it’s kind of the same."  

“Your neighbors may think differently,” City Councilor Ryan Davis said. 

Council members asked city staff to look further into “fowl language” when it comes to similar ordinances. Seale pledged to talk to zoologists or “duck doctors” before the topic is brought back to council in the spring.