Yesterday was the 1st day of general rifle deer season in Pennsylvania and my son and I still hunted to a spot
that no hunters would be because it was too far back in. Of course we saw several other hunters with large backpacks
on that my son identified as packs to carry out deer in parts after butchering in the woods. Does anyone know the laws
in Pennsylvania regarding packing out deer in parts?

Quick search found someone in PA asking same question




Some states, zones, require proof of sex, ie, head or genitals be left attached.
Also, CWD concerns may play a role.

Take date/GPS stamped photos of animal.

There's only one surefire way to satisfy the law in any state...

I did that once when I had to, lol.

Great idea Marty! Thanks to all-with the antler restrictions making deer older/heavier and my gray hair,shoulder
carry is but a dream. Tried that with a 48lb beaver once. Don't know if the lice or neck pain was worse when I got
back to the truck.

Good way to get shot. Idiots come out during gun season ...

I bone and pack out in a frame pack, it's legal in NY if you tag all the bags, no head required...HOWEVER, I called the DEC HQ to confirm and I got a run a round, Yes, it's legal, I was told, but it's up to the individual CO if a ticket is issued because the CO wouldn't "know" if the deer was from an antler restriction zone..... I said that's what the tag is for, and if the deer isn't actually seen you accept what the tag says when you call it in. Got nowhere with the guy.

So, It depends if you run into a CO that makes up the rules as he feels fit. I copied the section of the rule book and carried it with me just in case, but it probably wouldn't help with certain CO's.....

I've done it twice here in Pa. Not saying I was legal in what I did but I put the deboned meat in the hide, and tied it back shut. Made the haul somewhat easier to drag/carry.

do you have in person or online/phone registration of deer?

Here in NY it's phone/online.
Even if checked at a check station, still must be called in.

in WI the legal requirements change completely when you are registered
it has been phone and internet registration for several years now.

you only need to keep the # till the meat is used no proof of sex once registered.
so far as I can see there is no requirement that you remove the carcass from the woods before registration.

a phone picture with geo tag could be used in court to fight it if you had a bad run in with the warden.

it is a stupid argument if you have proof of sex , what do they think you walked a deer in whole that you shot 20+ miles away , walked in 3 miles then boned it out occums razor , you shot a deer a couple miles in , you carried out just the head and meat , done.

we have so many tags and they now seem to care so little in WI , no one ever sees your deer , ever any more online license sales , online registration , we had 3 doe and 1 buck tag each in my county this year we party hunt so 7 of us we could have shot 21 doe 7 bucks for 28 deer total wait we had a kid so he had 2 extra doe tags only he could fill. 30 deer


my son shot 2 and a cousin 1 it was so cold they froze solid hanging in the tree , we cut the head and legs off the doe after registration and put them in the big sled to bring home frozen solid.
we skinned and quartered them on a big plank on a set of saw horses but I could see a tarp and a set of knee pads could get it done and haulling out even the biggest buck could be a 1 person pack at around 60 pounds of actual meat

we had snow so the sled brought all the deer out very easy

3 ways to report here Pete,

Online, telephone or mail in a card.

Also a sure fire way to get infested with deer ticks, haha. Have done it with small bucks, but have killed several big woods bucks that dressed over 200 lbs, no way with those deer.

Here in Va it is legal after you have called it in and gotten your confirmation number and recorded it on your harvest record. No need to go to a check station so it is yours to do with as you would at home or at a processor AFTER you get the confirmation number. That's great IF you have cell service at the kill site, otherwise it is not so good.

well I thought they had made it better than this but apparently not

in Wisconsin
Quartering Your Deer
Hunters may divide a deer into as many
as five pieces to facilitate removal of the
carcass from the field, but the head must
remain attached to one of the five parts
of the carcass. The hide and lower legs,
if removed, do not count as one of the
five parts. Only one deer that has been
quartered may be stored or transported at
a time prior to registration, but quartered
deer can be transported with other intact
deer. The lower legs up to the tarsus joint
(ankle or hock) on the hind legs and up
to the carpus joint (wrist or knee) on the
front legs may also be removed. All parts
of the deer, except the entrails, must be
removed from the field. Deer must be kept
intact while afield, except for field dressing,
skinning and quartering

I have a feeling most people who do quarter deer cheat this some and bring out the 4 quarters head and a sack of neck meat , loins and straps wrapped up in the hide

Here you must leave evidence of sex attached. I've not seen anyone leaving the head attached to a quarter, but leaving the penis or a testicle attached to a hind quarter is the normal way this is done with males. Technically you need to leave the vulva or something attached on a doe, but in practice many don't. Having to leave evidence of sex in an antlered only hunt almost makes sense. When I was a kid I knew some old West Virginia hillbilly's who killed a spike elk opening day, and were bringing out cow quarters with that head a week later still when the eyes had sunk out of sight in it. But even then that wasn't legal (had to have evidence of sex attached) and I've not known of this to happen in well over thirty years, so I don't think it is a prevalent problem. Having to leave evidence of sex attached in an either sex season is stupid, if you ask me.

I normally leave an inch or two of the penis attached to hindquarter on elk (you're not dragging an elk very far whole) and this satisfies the evidence of sex requirement. That is easily done even if you bone it rather than simply take the quarter off with the leg bone still in. I've never known anyone to leave the antlers in the woods, but to the best of my knowledge there is no legal requirement to bring them out. It is quite common to leave the head of a doe or cow where it is killed if you are hunting an antlerless or either sex hunt.