are you allowed to feed feral animals in derry township westmoreland.county pa

Wednesday at the Delmont Volunteer Fire Department. The feeding ban proposal will be discussed at a public meeting from 6 to 8 p.m. “We all know it’s a fact (that) when you congregate any species in an area, the threat of disease transmission goes higher,” said Patrick Snickles, state game warden supervisor for the commission’s Southwest Region. In addition to enlisting the help of hunters, the state wants the public to be more aware of how wildlife feeding affects animal behavior and can have unintended consequences. The game commission recently expanded DMA 2 to include most of Somerset County and a small portion of northeast Westmoreland County. The escalation of the disease in Pennsylvania over the past decade has prompted state authorities to set up Disease Management Areas, or DMAs, where special hunting regulations apply and wildlife feeding is illegal.

The progressive, fatal disease has been found in the wild deer population in 10 of Pennsylvania’s 67 counties. Habituation also leads to nuisance problems in areas where people live and safety problems on roadways.īut the biggest concern driving the wildlife feeding proposal is the spread of chronic wasting disease, or CWA. Habituation is defined as the tendency for wildlife to become less wary of humans, while at the same time becoming dependent on humans, he said.

Habituation is another,” said Mike Steingraber, state game warden supervisor for the commission’s North Central Region. “Disease transmission is probably at the forefront of the issues related to wildlife feeding.

The state Game Commission wants to ban what Livingston is doing - a pastime for tens of thousands of Pennsylvanians who live in semi-rural areas - because of the belief that it leads to the unnatural congregating of animals and the spread of disease. “I’d rather be around these animals than people,” he said. Livingston said feeding and watching the wildlife is therapeutic for him. The area is populated with white-tailed deer and wild turkey, both of which come on his property to feed on the 700 pounds of corn he puts out weekly. Plus, it’s on my property,” said Livingtson, 69, of West Mifflin.Ī Vietnam War veteran with post-traumatic stress disorder, Livingston lives on 18 acres not far from the Allegheny County Airport. “They’re going to have to take me to jail because I’ve been doing it for so long. Gary Livingston has one thing to say to the Pennsylvania Game Commission about its proposal to ban big game feeding: Try and stop me.

Are you allowed to feed feral animals in derry township westmoreland.county pa