Exotic pet laws in Louisiana

§ 101.K.2.a.ii

The following nonnative reptile and amphibian species are prohibited from importation, possession, sale, attempting to sell, transfer, release, and reproduction in the state... ii. All species in the Genera Salvator and Tupinambis, including the Argentine Black and White Tegu (Salvator merianae);

Existing owners: Owners had 365 days from the effective date of the January 2025 rule to register the animal and obtain a permit. Registered animals may not be bred and no more may be acquired.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 101.K.2.a.vii

vii. Burmese Python (Python bivittatus);

Existing owners: Registration within 365 days of the rule taking effect, no breeding, no further acquisition.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 101.K.2.a.v

v. Green Iguana (Iguana iguana);

Existing owners: Registration within 365 days of the rule taking effect, no breeding, no further acquisition.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 101.K.2.a.iii

iii. Nile Monitor (Varanus niloticus);

Existing owners: Registration within 365 days of the rule taking effect, no breeding, no further acquisition.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 101.K.2.a.iv

iv. Savannah Monitor (Varanus exanthematicus);

Louisiana is unusual in banning the savannah monitor. Most states that restrict monitors reach only the giant species.

Existing owners: Registration within 365 days of the rule taking effect, no breeding, no further acquisition.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 101.K.2.c.i

The following restricted nonnative species may be in possession only via permit to be approved and monitored by the department... i. Boa constrictor (Boa constrictor);

Restricted rather than prohibited, so a permit route exists, but a Restricted Snake Permit is required regardless of the animal's length and the facility is open to inspection.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 107(B)(6); § 107(C)(1)(a) and (C)(2)(a)

A game breeder's license must be issued before any game quadrupeds (deer, rabbits, squirrels, etc.) are obtained.

Louisiana names the animal. La. R.S. 56:8(151)(a)(i) makes squirrels game quadrupeds, and LAC 76:V.107(B)(6) writes pen specifications for "Squirrels (gray, fox, red, flying and others endemic to North America)": three feet by three by four for one animal, six more inches of length per additional animal, limbs and a nest box, plus a veterinary certificate that the animals show no symptoms of rabies, which the rule requires "due to the inherent tendency of these animals to bite people". The licence must be in hand before the animal is acquired, and § 107(C)(1)(a) bars taking a game quadruped from the wild at all, so a permitted animal has to be captive bred. Recorded permit rather than conditional because the licence is issued, inspected and held.

How this rule works: The rule that reaches a native Louisiana mammal kept as a pet. § 107(C)(2)(a): "A game breeder's license must be issued before any game quadrupeds (deer, rabbits, squirrels, etc.) are obtained", and § 107(C)(1)(a) bars taking them from the wild at all. § 107(B)(6) writes pen specifications for "Squirrels (gray, fox, red, flying and others endemic to North America)" by name, so the flying squirrel is expressly inside the scheme rather than caught by inference.

Checked against the published text on 5 September 2026.

§ 101.H; § 101.J.2

Green Anole Rule. It shall be illegal to sell or purchase any Green Anole (Anolis carolinesis) with a snout-vent length of less than 1 3/4 inches or an overall length of less than 5 inches with the tail intact.

Louisiana is the only jurisdiction on this map with a rule written for the green anole by name, and it is a size rule on the transaction rather than a bar on keeping: below 1 3/4 inches snout to vent, or five inches overall, the animal may not be sold or bought. The anole is also a Louisiana native, listed without qualifier in the § 101.I checklist while the brown anole beside it is marked "established nonnative", so the native provisions at § 101.J apply too: a basic recreational fishing licence for "collection and possession of native reptiles and amphibians for recreational purposes", and a Reptile and Amphibian Wholesale/Retail Dealer's Licence for whoever sells it, "regardless of the number of generations removed from the wild". It is not on the § 101.J.4 conservation-concern list, so it may be taken from the wild.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 5 September 2026.

§ 101.G.2, § 101.G.3.a.x

Box Turtles—Terrapene sp.

A restricted turtle. No more than ten restricted turtles in total and no more than two of any one species, and § 101.G.2.a.ii separately caps native box turtles at two regardless of species. A basic recreational fishing licence is needed to collect one.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 5 August 2026.

§ 101.G.3.a.xii

Red-eared Slider—Trachemys scripta elegans;

A restricted turtle subject to the same two per species limit. Louisiana also bars relocating or releasing sliders off the site where they were caught, and allows landowners to remove nuisance animals only by humane euthanasia.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 5 August 2026.

§ 101.G.2, § 101.G.3.a.i

No person shall collect or possess more than 10 restricted turtles, as listed in Paragraph G.3 herein, in any combination, with no individual species to exceed two per person at any time... i. Snapping Turtle—Chelydra serpentina;

Two per person, a basic recreational fishing licence to collect, no commercial use of native turtles, and captive breeding is unlawful without department approval.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 4 August 2026.

§ 101.K.2

Persons engaged in herpetological research shall possess a Scientific Research and Collecting Permit prior to removal of native reptiles or amphibians from the wild.

Ambystoma is native to Louisiana, so taking one from the wild falls under the collecting rules rather than the nonnative lists. Captive bred stock is a different question the rule does not address directly.

How this rule works: Rewritten in January 2025 and now one of the strictest reptile rules in the country. Three tiers: prohibited nonnative species, restricted nonnative species needing a permit, and a general rule that any constrictor over eight feet needs a restricted snake permit.

Checked against the published text on 5 August 2026.