US Forest Service Prohibiting Deer Hunting with Dogs on Kisatchie National Forest Effective with 2012-2013 Hunting Season

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries 11.09.12

The US Forest Service has ruled that hunting deer with dogs will be prohibited in the Kisatchie National Forest (KNF) effective with the 2012-2013 hunting season. The decision is a federal action and overrules the Louisiana Wildlife and Fisheries Commission which previously approved deer season dates for the KNF that included nine days in December 2012 for deer hunting with dogs.

All deer season dates within the KNF for the 2012-2013 season are now still hunting only and no special federal or state deer hunting permit is required.

The remaining deer season dates, within the Catahoula (Grant and Rapides parishes), Winn (Winn, Grant and Natchitoches parishes), Kisatchie Ranger Districts (Natchitoches Parish), and the Evangeline Unit of the Calcasieu Ranger District (Rapides Parish), include the following:

Firearms, either sex: Nov. 23, still hunt only
Firearms, bucks only: Nov. 3-22 and 24-25, Dec. 15-30, still hunt only.

The public is advised that the deer hunting “with or without dogs” dates listed for the KNF in the printed 2012-2013 Louisiana Hunting Regulations booklet are no longer valid. A revised version of the booklet is available on the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries (LDWF) website with all deer season changes included. To access that document, go to: http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov/hunting/regulations.

For details, visit the Forest Service’s website at www.fs.usda.gov/kisatchie or the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries website at http://www.wlf.louisiana.gov.

Louisiana Dept. of Wildlife and Fisheries

The Louisiana Department of Wildlife & Fisheries – Enforcement Division(LDWF) is the fish & game regulatory agency of Louisiana. It has jurisdictionanywhere in the state, and in state territorial waters. The agency enforces both state and federal laws dealing with hunting, fishing, and boating safety. The agency also enforces criminal laws in rural areas including DWI enforcement both on highways and waterways. Most of the Department’s Wildlife Agents also carry Federal law enforcement commissions issued from the United States Department of the Interior - U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, and United States Department of Commerce - U.S. National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS). These federal commissions allow these state officers to enforce federal migratory waterfowl laws and federal marine fisheries laws in state and federal waters off the coast of Louisiana. Besides their traditional role as a “game warden”, Louisiana Wildlife Enforcement Agents also have a number of other responsibilities, including conducting board of health inspections on some portions of the state’s commercial fishing industry. Agents are trained in and conduct numerous search and rescue operations, both in remote land areas and on the state’s waterways. Agents ensure that hunters, anglers, boaters, dealers, breeders, farmers, and transporters are in compliance with regulations governing equipment, quotas, licenses, and registrations. Agents also assist other State departments and law enforcement agencies in the coordination of educational and professional endeavors, as well as national and state emergency alerts by the Federal Office of Emergency Preparedness. In addition, agents perform search and rescue missions alone or in conjunction with other local, state, and federal agencies.