Deer firearms season opens on Saturday, November 14th. But before you head out to your favorite spot, the Indiana DNR Division of Fish and Wildlife has a few reminders.
Purchase your license in advance. The process of signing up to purchase a license is a little different now. Access Indiana is a new online portal that launched a few months ago. It allows Hoosiers to interact with multiple state agencies through a single login. Unless you are exempt from needing a license, purchase a deer hunting license vendor at IN.gov/5334 or buy online at IN.gov/INhuntfish.
Review the 2020-2021 Indiana Hunting and Trapping Guide for the up-to-date hunting regulations before heading out. The current guide can be found at hunting.IN.gov.
Prepare your equipment and visit a shooting range to sight in hunting equipment. To see a list of DNR shooting ranges, visit on.IN.gov/dnrshootingranges.
Remember to CheckIN your harvest. Register harvest deer within 48 hours by using the CheckIN Game system at CheckINGame.dnr.IN.gov. After this, take the after hunt survey.
Field dress and cool your deer carcasses as soon as possible. Wear disposable gloves, use clean cutting equipment, refrain from smoking or eating, and minimize contact with the deer’s brain and spinal tissues.
After you’re finished, clean and disinfect all equipment and wash your hands. For more information, visit deer.dnr.IN.gov.
Confirm with your processor. Some Indiana deer processors may have adjusted hours this fall and may not be taking full carcasses or any deer at all. Plan ahead and contact your processor before taking your deer to them.
Have your deer tested for the chronic wasting disease. Although CWD has not been detected in Indiana to date, the DNR is monitoring for the disease. For more information and to search for a sampling location near you, visit on.IN.gov/cwd.
For safety tips, visit hunting.IN.gov.
