Transfer of control of captive deer farms from Wildlife to Agriculture as proposed in the House budget is a poorly conceived idea that needs closer evaluation


The House version of the 2014-15 budget would transfer control over captive deer farms from Wildlife Resources Commission to the Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services.

We sent you a Camo Alert along with a message to send to your Representative last week. You responded in strong and timely fashion with an outpouring of support for our wildlife agency and the welfare of our valuable white-tailed deer resource, but the transfer remained in the budget. One can only speculate why the concerns of North Carolina sportsmen and concerned citizens were ignored to keep this risky proposal in the budget.

No one has publicly said the WRC is not doing a good job managing the 37 captive deer farms in the state. No wildlife diseases have broken out in our state although Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) in now found in Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. Wildlife and Agriculture work closely and cooperatively together in the best interest of protecting the wildlife resource and the domestic livestock industry from outbreaks and introductions of diseases. Is it possible that the small number of deer breeders in our state think they can get a more relaxed set of rules under Agriculture than they have under Wildlife?

The stakes are too high to risk this disruptive change at this time. CWD is all around us and importation of captive deer greatly increases the risk of introduction. The introduction of CWD would devastate our wild deer herd and severely adversely impact the economy that has built up around deer management and deer hunting not to mention the chilling affect the disease would have on the sport of deer hunting.

The Senate version of the budget does not contain the transfer provision; it wisely calls for further evaluation of the current situation, the risks from CWD, and the best way to manage the captive deer farms with a report to the next session of the General Assembly. The budget will be sent to a Joint Conference Committee composed of Senators and Representatives probably later this week to work out the differences between the two versions. We will try to convince the members of the Conference Committee to accept the Senate version which contains the Study of Captive Deer Farms.

Send a message to your Senator with a click of your mouse and ask him/her to reject the House version of the captive deer program transfer away from WRC.
NC Camo Coalition is a project of the NC Wildlife Federation.