Exotic pet laws in Kansas

K.A.R. 115-15-2(a)(6); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

The following species shall be designated nongame species in need of conservation within the boundaries of the state of Kansas. ... (6) Mammals ... Southern flying squirrel, Glaucomys volans (Linnaeus, 1758)

Three rules have to be read together and each one closes a door. K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2) makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife except as permitted by law or regulation. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, but 115-20-3(d) defines that as species not native to Kansas, and this regulation is the state saying in terms that Glaucomys volans is a Kansas species. 115-20-2 permits taking certain Kansas wildlife for personal use, but subsection (b) excludes any species listed in K.A.R. 115-15-1 or K.A.R. 115-15-2, which is this list. Nothing is left, and the special-permit regulation at 115-15-3 covers threatened and endangered wildlife rather than nongame species in need of conservation.

Existing owners: K.A.R. 115-15-2(c) lets an animal possessed before the regulation took effect be retained if an affidavit was filed with and approved by the secretary before 1 January 1990, or possession had already been approved by the department.

How this rule works: The list of nongame species in need of conservation, adopted under K.S.A. 32-959. It is both a protection and a statement of nativity: a species on it exists in Kansas, which takes it out of the exotic wildlife definition in 115-20-3(d) and out of the takeable list in 115-20-2(b).

Checked against the published text on 5 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-15-2(a)(4); 115-20-2(b); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

The following species shall be designated nongame species in need of conservation within the boundaries of the state of Kansas. ... (4) Reptiles ... Plains hog-nosed snake, Heterodon nasicus (Baird and Girard, 1852) ... Eastern hog-nosed snake, Heterodon platirhinos (Latreille, 1801)

This is the flying squirrel pattern, and it is the sharpest case on the map of three regulations closing in sequence. Kansas has both hognose snakes, the western and the eastern, and both are established taxa on the Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas. K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2) makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife except as permitted by law or regulation. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, but (d) defines exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas, and a Kansas native is not that. K.A.R. 115-20-2 permits taking certain Kansas wildlife, and its reptile clause at (b)(13) would cover a hognose, but the opening words of (b) exclude any species listed in K.A.R. 115-15-1 or 115-15-2, and this regulation is that list with both Heterodon species on it by binomial. Nothing is left to permit possession. The special permit at 115-15-3 covers threatened and endangered wildlife rather than nongame species in need of conservation, so there is no permit route either. Worth knowing for the pet trade specifically: the western hognose, Heterodon nasicus, is the animal almost every captive-bred hognose in the trade is, and it is the one Kansas names first.

Existing owners: K.A.R. 115-15-2(c) lets an animal possessed before the regulation took effect be retained if an application of affidavit was filed with and approved by the secretary before 1 January 1990, or possession had already been approved by the department.

How this rule works: The list of nongame species in need of conservation, adopted under K.S.A. 32-959. It is both a protection and a statement of nativity: a species on it exists in Kansas, which takes it out of the exotic wildlife definition in 115-20-3(d) and out of the takeable list in 115-20-2(b).

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-18-10(a)(13), (b)(1), (c)

The importation, possession, or release in Kansas of the following live wildlife species shall be prohibited, except as authorized by terms of a wildlife importation permit issued by the secretary: ... (13) monk parakeet (Myiopsita monachus)

Named by binomial on the prohibited list, and the company it keeps says what the prohibition is for: walking catfish, four carps, a snakehead, a round goby, zebra and quagga mussels, a mudsnail and three crayfish. This is an escape-and-establishment rule, not a dangerous-animal rule, which is the same reason a dozen other states bar this bird. The dangerous regulated animal statute at K.S.A. 32-1301 names no bird and has nothing to do with it. The permit that subsection (a) refers to is issued under (c) "for experimental, scientific, display, or other purposes", so there is no personal-pet route.

Existing owners: 115-18-10(b)(1) lets a bird possessed before 1 February 1978 be retained in closed confinement on an application to the secretary detailing how it came into the applicant’s possession.

How this rule works: Kansas's prohibited species list, and it is almost entirely aquatic invasives: carps, a snakehead, a goby, mussels, a mudsnail, crayfish. Two land animals are on it, the Asian raccoon dog and the monk parakeet, which is the quaker parakeet of the pet trade. The permit in subsection (c) is for experimental, scientific, display or other purposes and is not a pet route.

Checked against the published text on 5 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-7-5(b), (d); 115-20-2(b)(13); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

A valid Kansas fishing license shall be required to take common snapping turtles and soft-shelled turtles.

The Kansas column was written against K.S.A. 32-1301, the dangerous regulated animal statute, which names six cats, bears and non-native venomous snakes and answers nothing here. The pair that decides a Kansas cell is K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2), which makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife at all "unless and except as permitted by law or rules and regulations adopted by the secretary", and the two regulations that do the permitting. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, and 115-20-3(d) reads exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas and not present here as an established wild population. Chelydra serpentina is one of only five herps the Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas records in every county, so it is a Kansas native and 115-20-3 cannot reach it. Nor does the native permission: 115-20-2(b)(13) puts reptiles on the takeable list "except common snapping turtles and soft-shelled turtles", which takes this animal straight back out, and the cap in 115-20-2(e) never applies to it. The reason for the carve-out is that Kansas handles these two as fishing species. K.A.R. 115-7-5(b) sets the legal methods, hand, hook and fishing line, set line, hand dip net, seine, turtle trap and gig, and (d) requires a valid Kansas fishing license to take one. The bag and possession limits come from the fishing regulations rather than from Article 20. So the license-first answer is the real one: Kansas gives no no-permit route to a snapping turtle and no dealer route either, because the only permission in the rules is a licensed take. K.A.R. 115-9-7(i) then exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual, so the license attaches to getting the animal rather than to keeping it.

How this rule works: The rule that 115-20-2(b)(13) carves the common snapping turtle and the soft-shelled turtles out for. Kansas handles those two as fishing species rather than as takeable reptiles: subsection (b) sets the legal methods and subsection (d) requires a valid Kansas fishing license to take them. 115-9-7 is the other half of the licensing picture, because its subsection (i) exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual from needing a license at all, which is why none of the Kansas caps carry a license condition for a bought animal.

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-20-2(b)(13), (e), (f); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

no more than five reptiles and no more than two individuals of any reptile species per person and/or domicile, whichever is reached first

The Kansas column was written against K.S.A. 32-1301, the dangerous regulated animal statute, which names six cats, bears and non-native venomous snakes and answers nothing here. The pair that decides a Kansas cell is K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2), which makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife at all "unless and except as permitted by law or rules and regulations adopted by the secretary", and the two regulations that do the permitting. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, and 115-20-3(d) reads exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas and not present here as an established wild population. The ornate box turtle, Terrapene ornata, and the three-toed box turtle, Terrapene triunguis, are both established Kansas taxa on the Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas, and neither is on K.A.R. 115-15-1 or 115-15-2. A Kansas native is therefore outside 115-20-3 and falls to K.A.R. 115-20-2, which permits taking certain Kansas wildlife for personal use on a noncommercial basis. 115-20-2(b)(13) puts reptiles on that list, with common snapping turtles and soft-shelled turtles taken back out, and the open season under (d) is year-round. What the earlier entry missed is the cap in (e): five reptiles and two individuals of any one reptile species, per person and per domicile, whichever is reached first. 115-20-2(f) defines domicile as the address you declare in legal documents to pay taxes, receive social security, vote, bank, and register vehicles and animals, so two people at one address do not get four. Taking one from the wild needs a hunting license, since 115-20-2(i) exempts only invertebrates from that, but K.A.R. 115-9-7(i) exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual, so a bought animal needs no license to keep. One gap Kansas has never closed: 32-1002(a)(3) bars purchasing or selling any wildlife in this state unless a regulation permits it, 115-20-2 permits taking only on a noncommercial basis, and 32-1002(b) lifts the possession and sale bars for animals legally taken outside this state without saying what that means for one bred in captivity out of state.

How this rule works: 115-20-3 is the permission K.S.A. 32-1002 refers to for anything not native to Kansas. 115-20-2 is the parallel permission for Kansas own wildlife, and it carries caps that 115-20-3 does not: five reptiles and two of any one reptile species per person or domicile. Read from Cornell LII because ksrevisor.gov serves a bot-check loader and both ksoutdoors.gov and www.kdwp.state.ks.us refuse this container outright.

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-20-2(b)(13), (e), (f); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

no more than five reptiles and no more than two individuals of any reptile species per person and/or domicile, whichever is reached first

The Kansas column was written against K.S.A. 32-1301, the dangerous regulated animal statute, which names six cats, bears and non-native venomous snakes and answers nothing here. The pair that decides a Kansas cell is K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2), which makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife at all "unless and except as permitted by law or rules and regulations adopted by the secretary", and the two regulations that do the permitting. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, and 115-20-3(d) reads exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas and not present here as an established wild population. Thamnophis sirtalis is an established Kansas taxon on the Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas, and the only gartersnake Kansas lists in regulation is the checkered gartersnake, Thamnophis marcianus, which 115-15-1(b)(4) makes threatened and which is not this animal. A Kansas native is therefore outside 115-20-3 and falls to K.A.R. 115-20-2, which permits taking certain Kansas wildlife for personal use on a noncommercial basis. 115-20-2(b)(13) puts reptiles on that list, with common snapping turtles and soft-shelled turtles taken back out, and the open season under (d) is year-round. What the earlier entry missed is the cap in (e): five reptiles and two individuals of any one reptile species, per person and per domicile, whichever is reached first. 115-20-2(f) defines domicile as the address you declare in legal documents to pay taxes, receive social security, vote, bank, and register vehicles and animals, so two people at one address do not get four. Taking one from the wild needs a hunting license, since 115-20-2(i) exempts only invertebrates from that, but K.A.R. 115-9-7(i) exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual, so a bought animal needs no license to keep. One gap Kansas has never closed: 32-1002(a)(3) bars purchasing or selling any wildlife in this state unless a regulation permits it, 115-20-2 permits taking only on a noncommercial basis, and 32-1002(b) lifts the possession and sale bars for animals legally taken outside this state without saying what that means for one bred in captivity out of state.

How this rule works: 115-20-3 is the permission K.S.A. 32-1002 refers to for anything not native to Kansas. 115-20-2 is the parallel permission for Kansas own wildlife, and it carries caps that 115-20-3 does not: five reptiles and two of any one reptile species per person or domicile. Read from Cornell LII because ksrevisor.gov serves a bot-check loader and both ksoutdoors.gov and www.kdwp.state.ks.us refuse this container outright.

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-20-2(b)(13), (e), (f); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

no more than five reptiles and no more than two individuals of any reptile species per person and/or domicile, whichever is reached first

The Kansas column was written against K.S.A. 32-1301, the dangerous regulated animal statute, which names six cats, bears and non-native venomous snakes and answers nothing here. The pair that decides a Kansas cell is K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2), which makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife at all "unless and except as permitted by law or rules and regulations adopted by the secretary", and the two regulations that do the permitting. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, and 115-20-3(d) reads exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas and not present here as an established wild population. Kansas has two milksnakes, and the atlas carries the eastern milksnake under this exact binomial, Lampropeltis triangulum, alongside the western milksnake Lampropeltis gentilis. So the pet-trade name and the Kansas native are the same species here, and neither milksnake is on K.A.R. 115-15-1 or 115-15-2. A Kansas native is therefore outside 115-20-3 and falls to K.A.R. 115-20-2, which permits taking certain Kansas wildlife for personal use on a noncommercial basis. 115-20-2(b)(13) puts reptiles on that list, with common snapping turtles and soft-shelled turtles taken back out, and the open season under (d) is year-round. What the earlier entry missed is the cap in (e): five reptiles and two individuals of any one reptile species, per person and per domicile, whichever is reached first. 115-20-2(f) defines domicile as the address you declare in legal documents to pay taxes, receive social security, vote, bank, and register vehicles and animals, so two people at one address do not get four. Taking one from the wild needs a hunting license, since 115-20-2(i) exempts only invertebrates from that, but K.A.R. 115-9-7(i) exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual, so a bought animal needs no license to keep. One gap Kansas has never closed: 32-1002(a)(3) bars purchasing or selling any wildlife in this state unless a regulation permits it, 115-20-2 permits taking only on a noncommercial basis, and 32-1002(b) lifts the possession and sale bars for animals legally taken outside this state without saying what that means for one bred in captivity out of state.

How this rule works: 115-20-3 is the permission K.S.A. 32-1002 refers to for anything not native to Kansas. 115-20-2 is the parallel permission for Kansas own wildlife, and it carries caps that 115-20-3 does not: five reptiles and two of any one reptile species per person or domicile. Read from Cornell LII because ksrevisor.gov serves a bot-check loader and both ksoutdoors.gov and www.kdwp.state.ks.us refuse this container outright.

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-20-2(b)(13), (e), (f); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

no more than five reptiles and no more than two individuals of any reptile species per person and/or domicile, whichever is reached first

The Kansas column was written against K.S.A. 32-1301, the dangerous regulated animal statute, which names six cats, bears and non-native venomous snakes and answers nothing here. The pair that decides a Kansas cell is K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2), which makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife at all "unless and except as permitted by law or rules and regulations adopted by the secretary", and the two regulations that do the permitting. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, and 115-20-3(d) reads exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas and not present here as an established wild population. The pond slider, Trachemys scripta, is an established Kansas taxon on the Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas, and Kansas is inside the natural range of the red-eared subspecies. It is on neither K.A.R. 115-15-1 nor 115-15-2. A Kansas native is therefore outside 115-20-3 and falls to K.A.R. 115-20-2, which permits taking certain Kansas wildlife for personal use on a noncommercial basis. 115-20-2(b)(13) puts reptiles on that list, with common snapping turtles and soft-shelled turtles taken back out, and the open season under (d) is year-round. What the earlier entry missed is the cap in (e): five reptiles and two individuals of any one reptile species, per person and per domicile, whichever is reached first. 115-20-2(f) defines domicile as the address you declare in legal documents to pay taxes, receive social security, vote, bank, and register vehicles and animals, so two people at one address do not get four. Taking one from the wild needs a hunting license, since 115-20-2(i) exempts only invertebrates from that, but K.A.R. 115-9-7(i) exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual, so a bought animal needs no license to keep. One gap Kansas has never closed: 32-1002(a)(3) bars purchasing or selling any wildlife in this state unless a regulation permits it, 115-20-2 permits taking only on a noncommercial basis, and 32-1002(b) lifts the possession and sale bars for animals legally taken outside this state without saying what that means for one bred in captivity out of state.

How this rule works: 115-20-3 is the permission K.S.A. 32-1002 refers to for anything not native to Kansas. 115-20-2 is the parallel permission for Kansas own wildlife, and it carries caps that 115-20-3 does not: five reptiles and two of any one reptile species per person or domicile. Read from Cornell LII because ksrevisor.gov serves a bot-check loader and both ksoutdoors.gov and www.kdwp.state.ks.us refuse this container outright.

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.

K.A.R. 115-20-2(b)(1), (e), (f); K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2)

no more than five total of any combination of amphibian may be possessed per person or domicile, whichever is reached first

The Kansas column was written against K.S.A. 32-1301, the dangerous regulated animal statute, which names six cats, bears and non-native venomous snakes and answers nothing here. The pair that decides a Kansas cell is K.S.A. 32-1002(a)(2), which makes it unlawful to possess any wildlife at all "unless and except as permitted by law or rules and regulations adopted by the secretary", and the two regulations that do the permitting. K.A.R. 115-20-3 permits exotic wildlife, and 115-20-3(d) reads exotic as a species not native or indigenous to Kansas and not present here as an established wild population. The eastern tiger salamander, Ambystoma tigrinum, is an established Kansas taxon under this exact binomial on the Kansas Herpetofaunal Atlas, with the western tiger salamander Ambystoma mavortium beside it, so this is a Kansas animal rather than an exotic one. That sends it to K.A.R. 115-20-2, whose subsection (b)(1) lists amphibians other than bullfrogs among the wildlife that may be taken for personal use on a noncommercial basis, year-round under (d). The cap is the part the earlier entry missed, and for an amphibian it is a single number rather than the reptile pair: five in total of any combination of amphibian per person or domicile, whichever is reached first. 115-20-2(f) defines domicile as the address you declare in legal documents to pay taxes, receive social security, vote, bank, and register vehicles and animals. Kansas lists eleven amphibians in K.A.R. 115-15-1 and 115-15-2 and this is not one of them, so the exclusion in 115-20-2(b) does not bite. Taking one from the wild needs a hunting license under 115-20-2(i), but K.A.R. 115-9-7(i) exempts the possession of wildlife that was legally acquired by the individual, so a bought animal needs no license to keep.

How this rule works: 115-20-3 is the permission K.S.A. 32-1002 refers to for anything not native to Kansas. 115-20-2 is the parallel permission for Kansas own wildlife, and it carries caps that 115-20-3 does not: five reptiles and two of any one reptile species per person or domicile. Read from Cornell LII because ksrevisor.gov serves a bot-check loader and both ksoutdoors.gov and www.kdwp.state.ks.us refuse this container outright.

Checked against the published text on 16 September 2026.