Did you have no luck harvesting deer in the first shotgun hunting season? Don’t worry, the second shotgun season starts tomorrow.

There’s also been a change in deer hunting regulations for the youth. Iowa Department of Natural Resources Law Enforcement Officer Jeremy King explains, “If a kid’s got a youth tag and was unsuccessful at filling that tag, then that tag is now valid all-year-round for all the deer seasons. They just have to use a legal weapon in the season that they’re hunting, where previously a youth tag was only good for youth season and then it was good for early muzzleloader and one of the two shotgun seasons and late muzzleloader. So they had to sit out one of the other shotgun seasons and they couldn’t hunt archery with that youth tag. Now it’s wide open, they can hunt any season as long as they’re using a weapon that is in season.”

King adds the youth must shoot their own deer to fill the youth tag even in party hunting. The second shotgun deer season starts tomorrow and lasts through December 16th. State law requires that anyone born after January 1st 1972 must be certified in hunter education before they can purchase an Iowa hunting license. King says hunters are responsible for making sure they have the correct license, deer tag, and habitat fee purchased, and advises to double check their documentation before going out. You can hear more about deer hunting regulations and safety during a previous two-part Let’s Talk Guthrie County program with King online at RaccoonValleyRadio.com.