Reply #16: State-By-State Summary of Canned Hunting Laws [View All]

[CO Liberal]

From the National Council of State Legislators Web site: http://www.ncsl.org/programs/esnr/Hunfish.htm

The following states have banned "canned" hunts either in their entirety or in part by limiting the types of animals that can be hunted, by not allowing the conditions that would make a canned hunt profitable (WY), or by not having regulations that allow the appropriate permits (CT). When space permits, the statute is quoted verbatim; a few are summarized.

CA - Fish and Game Code 2124 - Possession, purchase, sale or transfer of wild animals for purpose of injuring or killing the animal for gain, amusement or sport - (a) Except as otherwise authorized by this code or regulations adopted pursuant thereto, including, but limited to, those provisions that authorize raising deer to produce venison for market it is unlawful for any person to possess, transport, import, export, propagate, purchase, sell, or transfer any live mammal listed under Section 2118 for the purposes of maiming, injuring, or killing the mammal for gain, amusement or sport. Except as otherwise authorized by this code or regulations adopted pursuant thereto, the buyer of a live mammal listed in Section 2118 shall not resell the live mammal to another buyer who has the intent to main, injure, or kill that mammal for the purposes of gain, amusement or sport. (b) This section does not apply to the meat, hide, or parts of a dead mammal.

CT - Connecticut does not officially ban canned hunting, but the regulations do not exist that would allow it. Shooting preserves deal only with game birds.

NC - 113-293(e) It is unlawful for any person to: (1) Release or place exotic species of wild animals or wild birds in an area for the purpose of stocking the area for hunting or trapping; (2) Release or place species of wild animals or wild birds not indigenous to that area in an area fore the purpose of stocking the area for hunting or trapping; (3) Take by hunting or trapping any animal or bird released or placed in an area in contravention of subdivisions (1) and (2) of this subsection, except under a permit to hunt or trap which may be issued by the Wildlife Resources Commission for the purpose of eradicating or controlling the population of any species of wildlife that has been so released or placed in the area.

NJ - 23:3-31, also letter from NJ Fish, Game and Wildlife explaining that only game animals can be hunted in NJ, and the only game animals defined are native to the state. Therefore, exotic animals can be owned, but not hunted.

OR - (Wildlife Commission rule - 635-064-010)-(1) It is unlawful to hunt, kill, or attempt to hunt or kill, exotic mammals (as defined in OAR 635, Div. 056) or game mammals (as defined in OAR 635, Div. O45) held or obtained by private parties. However, (a) Any person may slaughter such an animal for meat, leather, or fur production; (b) Any person may euthanize such an animal for scientific, health, safety or other valid husbandry concerns; and (c) The department's wildlife Division Director may authorize any person to hunt or kill such an animal if the Division Director determines it would be in the best interest of sound wildlife management. The Division Director may impose conditions on such authorizations. (Statutory Authority: ORS 496.012, ORS 496.138) Rule adopted 4/23/99

RI - 20-19-2 - Shooting preserves - Statute lists requirements for operating a shooting preserve, e.g., it must be a minimum of 120 contiguous acres. 20-19-3 Use of domestic game birds - Only domestic game birds may be utilized by persons conducting a field trial or operating a shooting preserve subject to the provisions of this chapter.

TX - Parks and Wildlife Code - 62.101 - UNLAWFUL CONTROLLED KILLING OF OR ATTMEPTING TO INJURE DANGEROUS WILD ANIMALS -(1) Captivity means the state of being held under control or kept caged or penned. (2) Dangerous wild animal means a lion, tiger, leopard, cheetah, hyena, bear, elephant, wolf, or rhinoceros and includes any species, subspecies, or hybrid of those animals. (3) Lion means African and Asiatic lion. 62.102 Controlled Killing of or Attempting to Injure Dangerous Wild Animals Prohibited, 62.103 Unlawful Controlled Killing; Certain Commercial Activity Prohibited. (Note: Texas does allow canned hunting of exotic (generally - hoofed - animals).

VA - 3.1763.5:1 This legislation allows only those shooting enclosures defined as "any fenced area open commercially to the public where animals are held for the purpose of being shot". that were in existence before January 1, 1995. Being out of compliance with any of the regulations is grounds for revoking the license. According to groups that follow animal issues, the existing shooting enclosures will go out of business and no new ones will be allowed.

WI - 951.09 - Shooting at caged or staked animals - No person may instigate, promote, aid or abet as a principal, agent, employee, participant or spectator, or participate in the earnings from, or intentionally maintain or allow any place to be used for the shooting, killing or wounding with a firearm or any deadly weapon, any animal that is tied, staked out, caged or otherwise intentionally confined in a man-made enclosure, regardless of size. Nothing in this section prohibits the shooting of any wild game in its wild state or the shooting of game birds and waterfowl at licensed game farms or licensed shooting preserves.

WY - 23-1-103 - Ownership of wildlife - For the purposes of this act, all wildlife in Wyoming is the property of the state. It is the purpose of this act and the policy of the state to provide an adequate and flexible system for control, propagation, management, protection and regulation of all Wyoming wildlife. There shall be no private ownership of live animals classified in this act as big or trophy game animals.