Apex, NC Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Feeding (2026)

Neither Apex's Chapter 4 (Animals) nor the Wake County Animal Control Ordinance contains a specific wildlife-feeding section, so the practice is governed by the North Carolina Wildlife Resources Commission's general hunting and wildlife rules under NCGS Chapter 113 and 15A NCAC 10B. (1) DEER FEEDING / BAITING: NCWRC permits baiting of deer on private land for the purpose of hunting on most Piedmont private lands (with a 'baited deer stand' rule requiring hunters to know whether the area is baited), but feeding deer outside of hunting season for purposes of attracting them to a residential lot is strongly discouraged and may violate the NCWRC Chronic Wasting Disease (CWD) Surveillance Area feeding restrictions if CWD-positive cases are confirmed in or near Wake County. As of late 2024 NCWRC had detected CWD-positive deer in several northwestern North Carolina counties (Yadkin, Surry, Stokes, Cumberland, Johnston) but Wake County was NOT inside the formal CWD Surveillance Area - check the current NCWRC CWD map at ncwildlife.org/cwd for status, as the area can expand. (2) BEAR FEEDING: NCWRC's bear-management rules (15A NCAC 10B) prohibit placing food, food products, or any attractant for the purpose of taking or attempting to take black bear during the open or closed seasons, and the agency strongly discourages residential bear feeding because of habituation and public-safety risk; black bear sightings in western Wake County have increased in recent years. (3) MIGRATORY BIRDS: Bird feeders for migratory songbirds (cardinals, finches, chickadees, hummingbirds) and resident species are unregulated by Apex and NCWRC, beyond the general federal Migratory Bird Treaty Act prohibitions on capturing or harming protected species. (4) NUISANCE WILDLIFE: Intentional feeding that creates a sanitation nuisance, attracts rats or raccoons in numbers, or habituates coyotes/foxes to residential properties can be cited by Wake County Animal Services or Apex Code Enforcement under the general nuisance and lot-maintenance provisions of the Apex Code. Apex's growth into formerly rural land in southwest Wake County has produced a steady volume of coyote, fox, and deer complaints that the NCWRC Wildlife Helpline (866-318-2401) handles in coordination with Wake County Animal Services.