Oklahoma Administrative Code › Title 800 - Department of Wildlife Conservation › Chapter 25 - Wildlife Rules › Subchapter 27 - Facility Requirements for Captive Bred Wildlife › Section 800:25-27-2 - Procedures and guidelines

Current through Vol. 41, No. 20, July 1, 2024
(a)
				The following regulations shall be in effect to establish certain standards,
				maintenance and operations of facilities licensed to hunt, possess, raise,
				breed or rehabilitate wildlife, for the humane treatment, benefit, health and
				welfare of such captive held wildlife, or wildlife held in
				subjugation.
(b) Any person, so
				licensed for any of the activities listed in (a) of this Section shall comply
				with the minimum standards set forth in the Animal Welfare Act, 9 CFR Chapter
				1, subpart F, Sections 3.125 through 3.142, "Specifications for the Humane
				Handling, Care, Treatment and Transportation of Warmblooded Animals", and this
				act shall further apply to any and all wildlife as defined by the Oklahoma
				Wildlife Conservation Code for the purpose of this Subchapter, and a copy of
				the above stated act and definition shall be made available to any and all
				persons permitted for the activities mentioned in (a) of this
				Section.
(c) Cage requirements for
				mammals shall be computed using the following equation: (length of mammal in
				inches plus 6) multiplied by (length of mammal in inches plus 6) = required
				area in square inches divided by 144 = required square feet of floor space.
				That this cage requirement shall be the required minimum of any mammal and its
				offspring that have not yet reached the age of eight (8) weeks of
				age.
(d) Those persons holding a
				Commercial Hunting Area License, or a Commercial Wildlife Breeders License and
				holding any mammals in subjugation, or any persons licensed to rehabilitate any
				sick or injured wildlife shall be required to have a veterinarian of record,
				and shall have a written parasite/pest control program that has been reviewed
				and signed by their respective veterinarian of record.
(e) Any venomous reptile possessed by a
				permittee shall be kept in a solid enclosure that is structurally sound so that
				it restricts access and contains the animal. Any ventilation ports shall be
				constructed of a double layer of fine mesh screen or a similar suitable
				material firmly secured to the cage, and-any transparent sides shall be of a
				thickness of no less than 1/4" glass or plexiglass. Additionally, each cage
				door shall be key locked or secured with a similar type mechanical
				lock.
(f) All cages or enclosures
				housing any bear or cat that will grow to reach 50 pounds or more shall be key
				locked or secured with a similar type mechanical lock. Any cages or enclosures
				housing bear or cats which is visible to the public shall be required to have a
				perimeter/barrier fence constructed to prohibit unrestricted access, and to
				reduce risk of harm to the public.
(g) Commercial Wildlife Breeders who are
				raising, breeding, and selling mule deer, whitetail deer, and elk for the
				purposes of selling the deer and elk for meat, as allowed in O.S. 29, Section
				5-601, may slaughter the deer and elk year round under the Exotic Livestock and
				Exotic Livestock Products Inspection Act in the Agriculture Code. Operators of
				such facilities shall contact the warden(s) in the county where the facility is
				located and provide notice of such slaughter a minimum of twenty-four (24)
				hours before the animals are slaughtered.
(h) All records, and facilities, of
				Commercial Wildlife Breeders shall be available for inspection at all
				reasonable times by authorized representatives of the Department, and/or
				authorized representatives of the Department of Agriculture.
(i) No person may:
(1) Kill or attempt to kill, injure or
				attempt to injure any cat or bear that can grow to a weight of fifty pounds or
				more that is:
(A) in captivity in this state;
				or
(B) released from captivity in
				this state for the purpose of being killed; or