Ohio's gun season for deer opens Monday | Toledo, Ohio Hunting Accident Lawyer

Hunters get excited Ohio's deer-gun season opens statewide Monday, offering hunters a full week to harvest a whitetail. The upcoming season will again include an extra weekend of gun hunting on Dec. 18 and 19, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR), Division of Wildlife.

Deer can be hunted with a legal muzzleloader, handgun or shotgun from one half-hour before sunrise to sunset through Dec. 5 and Dec. 18 and 19. With a pre-hunting season population estimate of 750,000 white-tailed deer, the ODNR Division of Wildlife anticipates 115,000 to 125,000 deer will be killed during the nine-day season. Approximately 420,000 hunters are expected to participate in this year's season, including many out-of-state hunters.

Hunting can be exciting, but safety still needs to be important factor while out hunting. The whitetail deer is the most popular game animal in Ohio. It is frequently pursued by generations of hunters. Ohio ranks eighth nationally in annual hunting-related sales and 10th in the number of jobs associated with the hunting-related industry.

Ohio is divided into three deer hunting zones. Beginning on the opening day of gun season and continuing through Dec. 5 a limit of one deer may be taken in Zone A (20 counties) and two deer in Zone B (30 counties). A total of six deer may be harvested in eastern and southeastern Ohio's Zone C (38 counties) through the weeklong gun season. The antlerless deer permit will be valid for deer-gun week only in Zone C.

Additional hunting regulations and maps of the state's deer zones are contained in the 2010-11 Ohio Hunting & Trapping Regulations. This free publication is available wherever hunting licenses are sold, online at wildohio.com or by calling 1-800-WILDLIFE.

The 2010-11 licenses will not be printed on weatherproof paper. Sportsmen and women should protect their licenses and permits from the elements by carrying them in a protective pouch or wallet.

The Ohio Department of Natural Resources ensures a balance between wise use and protection of our natural resources for the benefit of all. Visit the ODNR website at www.ohiodnr.com.

If you or someone you know has been involved in a hunting accident, call our Toledo, Ohio hunting accident attorneys at 800.637.8170 for a free case evaluation or to request your free copy of The Ohio Accident Book.