When it comes to the laws behind deer hunting there are a number of things that you need to take into account to stay on the right side of the law, and to make your hunting excursion a safe and happy one. The last thing you want to do is end up being turned away or worse still being fined heavily because you have neglected to take into consideration specific laws.
The purpose of today’s article is to learn more about the deer hunting laws, from the hours that you can hunt to the permits and bag limits that come with them.
Brushing up on your laws will help you gain a better understanding and knowledge of what you need to adhere to so that you will never be caught in the cold.
Wearing the Correct Colors
As a deer hunter this one probably comes quite easy to you but you would be surprised at how many newcomers as well as veteran hunters forget or neglect this one rule. Visibility is there to help you avoid being shot by another hunter because they haven’t seen you so it is important that you wear a bright orange jacket and hat, called hunter orange.
These colors need to be solid colors, and the law applies to public and private land up and down the country. Remember, this law is there for your safety so you can easily be spotted. Far too many accidents and even deaths have been caused by hunters not wearing orange, and going for a camouflage cover instead.
Take Notice of Bag Limits
Now from territory to territory this specific rule changes. The map of the US is made up of two deer counties, three deer counties, and four deer counties, this means that in a two deer county no more than two deer may be taken during the season. Both of these deer then need to be tagged with an either-sex permit but be aware that in a two deer country antlerless permits ARE NOT valid. This same rule applies in most of the three deer counties as well, but some do offer a permit so it’s best to check which areas are covered by this before heading out.
Lastly, the four deer permit counties will allow four deer to be taken during any hunting season and you are allowed to tag at least one deer with an antlerless permit whilst the other 3 can be tagged with an either-sex permit.
Most of the four deer counties will put an expiry on when you can use the antlerless permit however, usually after the end of November. If this is the case you can use the either-sex permit on all four deer that you bag.
If you are still with us, great! We know that this section can get confusing because of the different laws for each county so be sure to double-check and ask when you are not 100% sure.
Getting the Correct Permits
Obviously the main permit you are going to need is your hunting license because without this you might as well just head for home. Aside from a hunting license you will also need an either-sex deer permit or an antlerless deer permit, or both.
Antlerless Permit
This specific permit is only valid for certain counties (Cuyahoga, Delaware, Franklin, Hamilton, Lake, Lorain, Lucas, Portage, Stark, and Summit.), and can only be used to take away antlerless deer.
Either-Sex Permit
This permit will allow you to bag both antlered and antlerless deer nationwide but you can take only 1 antlerless deer per hunting season with this.
Permit prices range from being free (for seniors) to $24 for an adult wanting an either-sex deer permit.
Abiding by The Hunting Hours
Finally we come to the deer hunting hours, which state when and when you should hunt for your prize trophy. This law applies on a nationwide basis and you shouldn’t hunt out of these hours if you don’t want to risk being caught and fined.
The legal law is that you can hunt for deer half an hour before sunrise to half an hour after sunset.
Now we know that this could mean anytime in the day as the hunting season progresses so you are best getting hold of a sunrise and sunset table and printing it off or searching on the internet for a table that you can bookmark.
This will then offer you guidance on when the sun rises in your area of the country on the days you wish to hunt, and also when you can expect the sun to set in that area.
The laws are there for a reason so it is important to stick to them if you want a hassle free and smooth hunting experience.