Ohio Deer Season Starts Better Than Others in the Last Decade

Hunters across Ohio checked 26,667 white-tailed deer on Monday, Dec. 2 during the opening day of the weeklong gun hunting season, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR) Division of Wildlife. This is the highest harvest for opening day since 2012, when the figure was 29,297.

The states hunters checked 87,192 white-tailed deer during the weeklong gun season that concluded on Sunday, Dec. 8. The last time the state’s sportsmen harvested that number was in 2011, with a total of 90,282. By comparison, last year hunters reported 70,103 deer during the seven-day gun season. The state’s the three-year average is 70,806.

During the deer gun week, hunters checked 28,606 antlered deer—33 percent of the total reported—and 58,586 antlerless deer. Antlerless deer includes does and button bucks.

The ratio was roughly the same on opening day, with 9,602 antlered and 17,065 antlerless deer. In 2023, hunters took about 7,000 less deer on opening day of the gun season, which traditionally falls on the Monday after Thanksgiving.

The top 10 counties for deer taken during the gun season were:

1. Coshocton, 2,954
2. Tuscarawas, 2,673
3. Knox, 2,525
4. Muskingum, 2,515
5. Carroll, 2,399
6. Ashtabula, 2,281
7. Guernsey, 2,201
8. Washington, 1,970
9. Ashland, 1,893
10. Licking, 1,860

Legal hunting equipment during the deer gun season includes shotguns, straight-walled cartridge rifles, muzzleloaders, handguns and archery equipment. Deer checked by hunting implement includes:

• Straight-walled cartridge rifle, 64% (55,611 deer)
• Shotgun, 30% (26,486 deer)
• Muzzleloader, 4% (3,271 deer)
• Archery equipment, 2% (1,357 deer)
• Handgun, less than 1% (467 deer)

Nonresidents purchased 39,055 hunting licenses. The most popular states hunters traveled from include:

1. Pennsylvania (6,167 nonresident licenses)
2. Michigan (4,536)
3. North Carolina (2,821)
4. West Virginia (2,785)
5. New York (2,672)

Hunters ages 17 and younger checked 10,449 deer in the two-day youth season. An additional gun hunting weekend takes place in Ohio on Saturday and Sunday, Dec. 21 and 22.