Big-game hunting season is on the approach in West Virginia, and officials are reminding hunters that they must field-tag and electronically check their harvest.
Field tags must be completed before moving the carcass and remain with the carcass until it's electronically checked. Hunters are no longer required to transport their harvest to a check station, according to the state Division of Natural Resources.
Instead, hunters may now check their game by phone at 1-844-WVCheck, on a computer at WVHunt.com, or by visiting a license agent with or without the animal.
To check game by phone, hunters must know their lifetime DNR ID number, which will be printed on the top of the license for hunters who buy one each year.
Lifetime license holders can obtain their DNR ID number, which has already been assigned to them, by visiting WVHunt.com or a local license agent.
Landowners and those who don't need a license, such as former prisoners of war, residents under the age of 15, and resident hunters who turned 65 before Jan. 1, 2012, can log on to WVHunt.com or visit a license agent to obtain their number.
To game check by computer, hunters must log on to WVHunt.com. Those logging in for the first time can set up an account and receive their DNR ID number if they don't already have one, and then check-in their game.
When a hunter has completed the electronic game-check process, a 13-digit number will be assigned that confirms that the game has been checked in properly. Hunters must write the game-check confirmation number on a field tag or a sheet of paper along with their name and address, and this number must remain with the carcass until it is dressed for consumption.
A summary of the checking requirements follows, but hunters should check the 2019-2020 Hunting and Trapping Regulations brochure for complete details.
Deer
Each deer shall be electronically checked and the 13-digit confirmation number, along with the hunter's name and address, shall be attached to the deer before it is transported beyond the county adjacent to the county in which it was killed within 72 hours from when it was killed or 24 hours from the close of the respective season, whichever comes first.
Bear
Harvested bear shall be electronically checked and the 13-digit confirmation number, along with the hunter's name and address, shall be attached to the bear within 24 hours after the kill. Hunters also are required to submit a first premolar tooth from each black bear to the DNR by Jan. 31 of the year following the kill.
Turkey
Each turkey shall be electronically checked and the 13-digit confirmation number, along with the hunter's name and address, shall be attached to the carcass before it is skinned or transported beyond the county adjacent to the county in which it was killed, and within 72 hours from when it was killed or 24 hours from the close of the respective season, whichever comes first.
Boar
Harvested boar must be electronically checked within 24 hours after kill. The 13-digit confirmation number, along with the hunter's name and address, shall be attached to the carcass and remain with it until it is dressed for consumption.
