Woodbridge, NJ Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Feeding (2026)
Key Facts
- Newer rule
- § 3-51, adopted 2023
- Older parallel rule
- § 11-10, adopted 2006
- Exempt animals
- Zoo, rehab, education-center wildlife
- TNR exception
- Approved feral-cat programs only
- Enforcement (2023 rule)
- Police and Health Departments
- Older-rule minimum fine
- $100
Summary
Woodbridge Code § 3-51.3 bars feeding wildlife in any public park or on Township-owned or operated property, updating a similar 2006 ban in § 11-10. Confined zoo or rehab-center animals, environmental-education-center wildlife, and cats in an approved trap-neuter-release program are exempted, and both provisions carry their own separate fines.
FEED To give, place, expose, deposit, distribute or scatter any edible material with the intention of feeding, attracting or enticing wildlife. Feeding does not include baiting in the legal taking of fish and/or game. ... No person shall feed, in any public park or on any other property owned or operated by the Township of Woodbridge, any wildlife, excluding confined wildlife (for example, wildlife confined in zoos, parks or rehabilitation centers, or unconfined wildlife at environmental education centers, or feral cats as part of an approved Trap-Neuter-Release program).
Full Breakdown
Ordinance #2023-43 added § 3-51 to regulate feeding wildlife on Township property. 2 defines 'feed' as giving, placing, exposing, depositing, distributing or scattering edible material with the intent of feeding, attracting or enticing wildlife, expressly excluding legal fish and game baiting, and defines 'wildlife' as all animals that are neither human nor domesticated. 3 prohibits feeding wildlife in any public park or on any other Township-owned or operated property, carving out confined wildlife such as animals in zoos, parks or rehabilitation centers, unconfined wildlife at environmental education centers, and feral cats managed under an approved Trap-Neuter-Release program.
4 assigns enforcement jointly to the Police Department and the Health Department and directs that anyone found feeding wildlife be ordered to stop immediately. 5 ties violations to the general municipal penalty in Chapter 1, § 1-5, rather than a bespoke fine. 5.
Violations & Fines
A § 3-51.5 conviction is punished under the general Chapter 1, § 1-5 penalty schedule rather than a fine fixed within § 3-51 itself. The older, still-codified § 11-10.5 sets its own penalty of not less than $100 for any violation. Either way, an officer or Health Department inspector who catches someone feeding wildlife in a park orders the feeding stopped immediately.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is it illegal to feed geese or deer in a Woodbridge park?
Can you feed feral cats in Woodbridge Township?
What's the fine for feeding wildlife in a Woodbridge park?
Who enforces Woodbridge's wildlife-feeding ban?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Woodbridge
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Wildlife Feeding in Nearby Cities
How other cities in this county handle wildlife feeding.