West Virginia restricts keeping dangerous wild animals such as big cats, bears, and primates without a permit, and Kanawha County cities may bar additional exotics. Native wildlife is governed by the WV Division of Natural Resources; small legal exotics stay subject to nuisance rules.
West Virginia's dangerous wild animal law restricts privately keeping species like big cats, bears, and nonhuman primates, with permitting handled by the state and narrow exemptions for accredited facilities. Native species such as raccoons, foxes, and deer are governed by WV Division of Natural Resources rules, and holding native wildlife as pets is generally not allowed. Charleston and other Kanawha cities may prohibit further exotic species through their animal codes. Legal small exotics such as most reptiles, birds, and ferrets are generally allowed but still subject to nuisance, sanitation, and cruelty rules. Anyone with a grandfathered animal must meet strict caging conditions.
Keeping a prohibited or unpermitted wild animal can bring confiscation, fines, and criminal charges, and the owner is liable for any harm an escaped animal causes.
Other ordinances people look up for this city. Green dot = verified primary-source excerpt.
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See how Kanawha County's exotic pets rules stack up against other locations.
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