Newport News, VA Animal Ordinances: Wildlife Rescue Permits (2026)
Key Facts
- Who qualifies
- VA-licensed wildlife rehabilitators only
- Animal cap
- 4 at a time, litters excepted
- Max hold
- 120 days
- Governing section
- City Code § 6-8(c)
Summary
State-licensed wildlife rehabilitators may keep up to four wild animals at a time in Newport News, for no more than 120 days each, under City Code § 6-8(c).
(c)Wild animals may be kept in the city by any person licensed as a wildlife rehabilitator by the Commonwealth of Virginia. No such wildlife rehabilitator shall keep more than four (4) such animals, unless such animals are from the same litter, at any one (1) time; nor shall any such animal be kept by a wildlife rehabilitator for more than one hundred twenty (120) days or until the animal is returned to health sufficient for its return to the wild, whichever is shorter.
Official source re-checked September 7, 2026: no newer edition of the code had been published (publisher’s edition: Code of Ordinances: Supplement 81).
Full Breakdown
City Code § 6-8(c) carves out the only legal path to keep wild animals in the city: a person licensed by the Commonwealth of Virginia as a wildlife rehabilitator. Even a licensed rehabber may hold no more than four wild animals at once, unless they're from the same litter, and must release or otherwise dispose of each animal within 120 days, or sooner if it's healthy enough to return to the wild, whichever comes first.
Violations & Fines
Keeping more than four wild animals, holding one past 120 days, or lacking state rehabilitator licensure violates § 6-8(c), a Class 4 misdemeanor under § 6-1.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I care for an injured wild animal at home in Newport News?
How long can a licensed rehabilitator keep an animal?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Newport News
Compare Newport News to another location·View the Virginia animal ordinances overview
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