| (a) General. No person may possess breeder deer in
a trailer or vehicle, or remove or allow removal of breeder deer from
a trailer, or accept, introduce, or allow introduction of breeder
deer into a permitted facility, unless a valid transfer permit has
been activated as provided in this section.
(b) Transfer by deer breeder. In accordance with the
provisions of Subchapter B, Division 2, of this chapter (concerning
Chronic Wasting Disease - Movement of Deer), the holder of a valid
deer breeder's permit may transfer legally possessed breeder deer
to:
(1) a facility registered with the department for purposes
of veterinary treatment; or
(2) an educational display or zoological facility permitted
by the department. A transfer under this paragraph is final; breeder
deer transferred to a permitted educational display or zoological
facility may not be returned to any breeder facility.
(c) White-tailed deer and mule deer may not be transferred
to a facility located in a county for which there is no open season
for that species.
(d) The department will not authorize the transfer
of breeder deer to a release site if the department has determined
that the transfer will detrimentally affect existing populations or
systems.
(e) Release.
(1) Breeder deer lawfully transferred to a registered
release site may be held in temporary captivity for any period of
time from March 1 through the eleventh day immediately preceding an
open deer season to acclimate the breeder deer to habitat conditions
at the release site; however, such temporary captivity must be specifically
authorized in writing by the department. Not later than 11:59 p.m.
on the eleventh day immediately preceding an open deer season, all
deer being held in temporary captivity under the provisions of this
paragraph shall be released. Release shall consist of the removal
of at least 20 feet of the components of a pen that serve to maintain
deer in a state of detention within the pen; however, no opening shall
be less than 10 feet in width. Such components shall be removed for
no fewer than 30 consecutive days.
(2) An enclosure used to temporarily detain deer under
this paragraph shall be physically separate from any deer breeding
facility and the deer being temporarily held shall not be commingled
with breeder deer. Deer held in temporary captivity shall not be returned
to any deer breeding facility.
(3) The department will not authorize the detention
of deer under this paragraph during an open hunting season.
(4) Deer in temporary captivity under the provisions
of this paragraph shall not be hunted while in temporary captivity.
(f) Transfer permit.
(1) A transfer permit is valid for 48 consecutive hours
from the time of activation.
(2) A transfer permit authorizes the transfer of the
breeder deer specifically identified on the transfer permit to one
and only one registered facility.
(3) A transport manifest is a written document that
specifically identifies the deer in a means of transport at any given
time between departure from the source facility identified on the
transfer permit and any destination facility identified on the transfer
permit. A person in possession of deer during transport under a transfer
permit must physically possess a transport manifest under any of the
following conditions:
(A) multiple vehicles are employed to transport deer
to only one destination identified in a single transfer permit;
(B) a single vehicle is employed for multiple trips
to a single destination identified in a single transfer permit; or
(C) a single instance of transport involves stops at
multiple destinations.
(4) A transfer permit is activated only by:
(A) utilizing the department's online application;
or
(B) notifying the Law Enforcement Communications Center
in Austin by phone or email in the event the department's online application
is offline or otherwise unavailable to the general public.
(C) It is an offense for any person to transport a
deer under a transfer permit unless the person also possesses a confirmation
number issued by the department indicating receipt of the notification
for that instance of transport.
(5) No person may possess a live breeder deer at any
place other than within a permitted facility unless that person also
possesses on their person a department-issued transfer permit legibly
indicating, at a minimum:
(A) the species, sex, and unique number of each breeder
deer in possession;
(B) the facility identification numbers for the source
and destination facilities; and
(C) the date and time that the permit was activated.
(6) Not later than 48 hours following the completion
of the movement of breeder deer under a transfer permit, the permit
shall be completed and submitted to the department.
(7) A deer breeder may transport breeder deer without
a transfer permit from a permitted facility to a licensed veterinarian's
medical facility for emergency medical treatment, provided:
(A) the transport occurs by the most feasible direct
route;
(B) the breeder deer are not removed from the means
of transportation at any point from the time of departure from the
source facility to the time of return to the source facility, including
at the place of treatment; and
(C) the breeder deer do not leave this state.
(D) If a breeder deer is removed from the means of
transportation to the medical facility and is temporarily housed in
a location that may house other susceptible species, then a transfer
permit reflecting that transport must be activated and completed and
an additional transfer permit must be activated prior to the deer
returning to the deer breeding facility.
(E) An eligible-age deer that is transported to a veterinary
medical facility under the provisions of this section and dies at
any time before being returned to a breeding facility will be treated
as a mortality within the originating facility for the purposes of
the requirements of Subchapter B of this chapter.
(g) Marking of vehicles and trailers. No person may
possess, transport, or cause the transportation of breeder deer in
a trailer or vehicle under the provisions of this subchapter unless
the trailer or vehicle exhibits an applicable inscription, as specified
in this subsection, on the rear surface of the trailer or vehicle.
The inscription shall read from left to right and shall be plainly
visible at all times while possessing or transporting breeder deer
upon a public roadway. The inscription shall be attached to or painted
on the trailer or vehicle in block, capital letters, each of which
shall be of no less than six inches in height and three inches in
width, in a color that contrasts with the color of the trailer or
vehicle. If the person is not a deer breeder, the inscription shall
be "TXD". If the person is a deer breeder, the inscription shall be
the deer breeder serial number issued to the person.
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| Source Note: The provisions of this §65.610 adopted to be effective May 23, 2006, 31 TexReg 4227; amended to be effective March 21, 2007, 32 TexReg 1581; amended to be effective March 23, 2008, 33 TexReg 2548; amended to be effective August 10, 2009, 34 TexReg 5407; amended to be effective March 5, 2013, 38 TexReg 1373; amended to be effective June 9, 2019, 44 TexReg 2730; amended to be effective March 14, 2021, 46 TexReg 1500 |
