New Louisiana law changes restrictions for hunters, dogs tracking shot deer

BATON ROUGE, La. (BRPROUD) — Gov. Jeff Landry signed a bill into law that changes restrictions for dogs tracking wounded game.

Act 272, sponsored by Rep. Jason Dewitt (R-La.), would allow a licensed hunter to find a deer that was legally shot and wounded using lights, blood trails or a tracking dog. If the game is found alive after legal hunting hours, the licensed hunter is allowed to kill the game with a pistol. This rule excludes the Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries Management Areas.

Only one dog is allowed per tracking party, but the law allows a second dog to be used for retrieval training purposes. All dogs must be on a handheld leash or have a GPS-tracking collar.

Present law requires the dog to be on a leash when tracking.

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The Louisiana Department of Wildlife and Fisheries thanked Landry, the Louisiana State Legislature and Dewitt for passing Act 272.

The law goes into effect on Aug. 1, 2024.

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