North Carolina Captive Hunting Statutes and Regulations

Complete Ban: Fox and coyote may be taken on licensed hunting preserve for purposes of dog training.

Statute

North Carolina statues require that licenses be obtained for the operation of controlled hunting preserves operated by private persons. G.S.N.C.A. §113-273(g).

The relevant statutes specify that: "controlled hunting preserves are of two types: one is an area marked with appropriate signs along the outside boundaries on which only domestically raised game birds other than wild turkeys are taken; the other is an area enclosed with a dog-proof fence on which foxes may be hunted with dogs only.

A controlled fox hunting preserve operated for private use may be of any size; a controlled hunting preserve operated for commercial purposes shall be an area of not less than 500 acres or of such size as set by the regulation of the Wildlife Resources Commission, which shall take into account differences in terrain and topography, as well as the welfare of the foxes."

Operators of controlled fox hunting preserves may purchase live foxes and coyotes from licensed trappers…The controlled hunting preserve operator license may be obtained for a fee of fifty dollars ($50.00), and is an annual license issued beginning 1 July each year. ld.

Regulation

According to a North Carolina Wildlife official, when properly licensed, the taking of foxes and coyotes from within fenced enclosures is permitted. In order to obtain licensing, statute-specified acreage requirements must be met, with exceptions granted in instances when terrain impacts the animal's "freedom to run."

A controlled hunting preserve license entitles "the holder or holders thereof, and their guests, to kill or take, during an extended season, starting October 1 and ending March 31, on such preserves by shooting only, and without regard to sex or bag limits, domestically-raised pheasants, chukar partridges, Hungarian partridges, mallard ducks, or other game birds, except wild turkey." North Carolina Regulations (NCR) § 10H.0101.

A North Carolina Wildlife official in charge of coordinating these preserve permits verified that "no mammals are currently being taken" under shooting preserve licenses.  The size of a controlled hunting preserve shall consist of not less than 100 acres nor more than 1,000 acres and shall be in one block of land. ld. At §10H.0102(a).

Boundaries of the preserve shall be marked with printed signs to prevent trespass and confine hunting inside the preserve. ld. At §10H.0102(b).

In a letter from the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission, the section manager of the Division of Wildlife Management stated, "With the exception of game birds, there are no other shooting preserves in North Carolina. It is unlawful to operate shooting preserves for any native or exotic game animals."

Preserves must have dog-proof fences to prevent animals from escaping. Records for all animals brought onto the preserve must be maintained and are subject to inspection by state officials. Both the boundaries and conditions on the preserve must be maintained at a level “suitable to maintain viable populations of the species.”

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