By Doug Leier
North Dakota Game and Fish Department
Here’s a few more answers to questions and situations hunters may find useful.
Can I transport someone else’s deer?
Yes, but you will need a transportation permit from a game warden. The license holder, person transporting the animal, and the carcass must be presented to the game warden before the permit is issued.
What if I am going to take my deer head to a taxidermist and meat to a butcher shop? How do I keep the tag with it all?
The tag should remain with the head and the carcass tag should remain with the meat.
I shot a deer, but it is rotten. What can I do?
You must take possession of the animal by tagging it. A license only allows you the opportunity to hunt. It is not a guarantee to harvest a deer, or to the quality of the animal.
What should I do if I find a wounded deer?
Contact a game warden. Do not shoot the deer unless you want to tag it or are instructed by the warden to do so.
Can I hunt road rights-of-way?
Do not hunt on road rights-of-way unless you are certain they are open to public use. Most road rights-of-way are easements under control of the adjacent landowner and are closed to hunting when the adjacent land is posted closed to hunting.
Can I hunt on a section line if it is posted on both sides?
No. If the land is posted on both sides, the section line is closed to hunting, but is still open for travel.
Can I retrieve a wounded deer from posted land?
If the deer was shot on land where you had a legal right to be and it ran onto posted land, you may retrieve it. However, you may not take a firearm or bow with you. The department suggests contacting the landowner as a courtesy prior to entering.
What if the landowner says I cannot retrieve a deer from posted land that was shot on land where I had a right to be?
Contact a game warden.
Can I drive off a trail on private land to retrieve a deer?
Unless prohibited by a landowner or operator, you may drive off-trail on private land once a deer has been killed and properly tagged. You must proceed to the carcass by the shortest accessible route and return to the road or trail by the same route. However, off-trail driving is prohibited in all circumstances on state wildlife management areas, Bureau of Land Management lands, national wildlife refuges, national grasslands, federal waterfowl production areas and state school land.
All questions and answers are available online at the Game and Fish Department website, gf.nd.gov. You may also call the Game and Fish Department Bismarck headquarters Monday-Friday from 8 a.m. – 5 p.m. at 701-328-6300.
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