An Official Website of the Commonwealth of Kentucky
Interested in learning more about hunting deer in Kentucky? On this page we have a variety of statewide statistics about harvest results in 2023. This page includes reports of whitetail population growth from 2011 to the present, as well as hunter reported data covering all 120 counties. Check out more statistics on our Deer Hunting on Public lands page for more data about the 2023 Harvest.
Click to download a printable map.
Observed interesting wildlife, such as a Bobcat, while out deer hunting? Use the Hunter Observation Survey to record your wildlife sightings during Kentucky's deer hunting season (Sept. 7, 2024 - Jan. 20, 2025).
OBSERVATION SURVEY
Consider submitting your deer for CWD sampling at one of our conveniently located collection stations across the state.
NOTE: These lists include deer scored and reported to Kentucky Fish and Wildlife. It is possible that unreported bucks taken last year in Kentucky may have scored 160 typical or 185 non-typical or higher.
NEED YOUR DEER SCORED?
Kentucky Fish and Wildlife has about thirty employees across the state who are certified official Boone and Crockett Measurers. To find one, visit the Boone and Crockett Official Measurer Locator.
To be eligible for next year’s trophy list, a hunter must take a white-tailed deer in Kentucky this season that officially net scores 160 or higher typical, or net scores 185 or higher non-typical, as determined by the Boone & Crockett scoring system. Velvet deer scored under the Pope and Young Club system for bowhunters.
No later than May 1, send the completed and signed score sheet with a photo to Kentucky Hunting & Trapping Guide, #1 Sportsman’s Lane, Frankfort, KY 40601. Include the county in which the deer was taken, and the equipment used to harvest the deer. Please send a copy as score sheets and photos will not be returned. Emailed submissions to info.center@ky.gov also will be accepted. To get a list of official Boone and Crockett Club scorers in Kentucky visit: www.boone-crockett.org.