There are two primary ways to get fish for stocking your pond or lake. Fish are available for purchase from DNR hatcheries and fish are available from private suppliers. Find information about each below. PLEASE NOTE: Grass carp must be purchased from properly licensed suppliers only. Find information about grass carp suppliers here.

Fish From DNR Hatcheries

The Georgia Department of Natural Resources, Wildlife Resources Division (WRD), Fisheries Management Section annually provides largemouth bass, bluegill, redear sunfish, and channel catfish from seven state fish hatcheries to stock about 2,000 new or renovated private ponds. Due in part to the slow economy and budget shortfalls that the State of Georgia is experiencing, WRD has been directed to charge a nominal fee in order to continue this service. Beginning in the fall of 2003, private pond owners receiving fish from state hatcheries were required to pay this fee. NOTE: fees and application forms have changed as of April 2006. The revised forms are available on this website at the links below and at Fisheries offices statewide.

You can download the appropriate Pond Stocking Application by selecting the county your pond is located in below (Adobe Acrobat Reader required). Provide all information requested and mail the completed application to the Fisheries Section Office provided on the application. Do not include payment with your application! You will be contacted later by WRD with information about when to pick up your fish and how much they will cost. Payment is to be made when you pick up your fish with a check written to Georgia DNR. Cash will not be accepted.

NW Georgia
Bartow, Carroll, Catoosa, Chattooga, Cherokee, Cobb, Dade, Douglas, Fannin, Floyd, Gilmer, Gordon, Haralson, Murray, Paulding, Pickens, Polk, Walker, Whitfield

NE Georgia
Banks, Barrow, Dawson, Forsyth, Franklin, Habersham, Hall, Hart, Jackson, Lumpkin, Madison, Rabun, Stephens, Towns, Union, White

Metro-Atlanta & East
Clarke, Clayton, DeKalb, Elbert, Fulton, Greene, Gwinnett, Hancock, Morgan, Newton, Oconee, Oglethorpe, Rockdale, Taliaferro,Walton

East Central Georgia
Burke, Columbia, Glascock, Jefferson, Johnson, Lincoln, McDuffie, Richmond, Warren, Washington, Wilkes

Central Georgia & South Metro-Atlanta
Baldwin, Butts, Henry, Jasper, Jones, Monroe, Putnam, Spalding

West Middle Georgia
Coweta, Fayette, Harris, Heard, Meriwether, Muscogee, Pike, Talbot, Troup

Middle Georgia
Bibb, Bleckley, Crawford, Houston, Lamar, Peach, Pulaski, Taylor, Twiggs, Upson, Wilkinson

SW Georgia
Chattahoochee, Clay, Crisp, Dooly, Lee, Macon, Marion, Quitman, Randolph, Schley, Stewart, Sumter, Terrell, Webster

SW Georgia
Baker, Brooks, Calhoun, Colquitt, Decatur, Dougherty, Early, Grady, Miller, Mitchell, Seminole, Thomas, Tift, Turner, Worth

South Central Georgia
Atkinson, Ben Hill, Berrien, Clinch, Coffee, Cook, Dodge, Echols, Irwin, Lanier, Lowndes, Telfair, Wilcox

SE Georgia
Bacon, Charlton, Pierce, Ware

SE Georgia
Appling, Bulloch, Candler, Effingham, Emanuel, Evans, Jeff Davis, Jenkins, Laurens, Montgomery, Screven, Tattnall, Toombs, Treutlen, Wheeler

Coastal Georgia
Brantley, Bryan, Camden, Chatham, Glynn, Liberty, Long, McIntosh, Wayne

Fish From Private Suppliers

Fish for pond stocking are also available from private fish suppliers. List of registered fish dealers (Requires Adobe Acrobat Reader). Dealers are listed alphabetically by county.

When chosing a fish supplier or pond management consultant, there are some questions that you should ask. A list of some things to consider is available so you can be an informed consumer.