Idaho Couple Transported Live Animals In Wyoming With No Permit

An Idaho couple recently paid fines in Wyoming for transporting live pheasant chicks without permits.

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West Cheyenne Game Warden Spencer Carstens received a tip in April of 2021 from a concerned citizen about an online advertisement offering day-old pheasant chicks for sale. A husband and wife wanted to raise pheasants on their small Idaho farm.

Wyoming has long been careful to minimize risk in the handling or movement of live wildlife, having enacted a number of regulations covering the possession of live wildlife, game bird farms, scientific research, with still more rules specifically applying to specialized activities such as possessing raptors for falconry purposes.

Wyoming Livestock Board regulations also cover the movement of most live animals in order to further protect the health of Wyoming’s animals, the livestock industry, and the general public. Both agencies require paperwork certifying the health of imported animals.

The Idaho couple made no apparent attempt to obtain any permits for any of the states traveled, they did not stop at interstate ports of entry for commercial transport permits, and there was no health certificate for the more than 2,000 live birds in their possession.

The couple each paid $450 fines in Laramie County Circuit Court on Nov. 2. The husband was cited for importing live wildlife without a permit, and the wife was cited as an accessory for her part in arranging the sales and delivery of live birds into Wyoming. They were also warned for failing to produce a certificate of veterinary inspection and failing to provide a certificate of origin to their customers, as well as other record-keeping and game bird farm permitting requirements.