Late start, warm weather may hinder hunters during Wisconsin’s gun deer season

Wisconsin hunters are contending with warmer weather and fewer deer on the move due to the late start for the state’s upcoming nine-day gun deer season. The season runs Saturday, Nov. 21 through Sunday, Nov. 29. Hunters are facing challenges similar to last year with the hunt coming after the peak of the rut, or mating season. Although snow over the Thanksgiving weekend provided hunters with better visibility for deer last year. This year, hunters are unlikely to see snow cover or colder weather if above normal temperatures continue, said Steve Burns, deer program specialist with the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources. “The silver lining in that is that (in) a warmer gun season, hunters may be able to spend increased time in the field,” Burns said. As of Nov. 11, Burns said the state has sold 278,059 gun licenses. Sales are on par with the five-year average. Last year, more than 550,000 hunters bought gun deer licenses, which was down slightly from around 553,000 sold in 2024. Hunters registered 182,084 deer , down 1.5 percent from the five-year average. Wisconsin is estimated to have close to 2 million deer heading into the nine-day gun deer season. Understanding Wisconsin, Together. WPR’s “Wisconsin Today” newsletter keeps you connected to the state you love without feeling overwhelmed. No paywall. No agenda. No corporate filter. LinkedIn This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged. Email Subscribe Burns said last winter had a mild effect on the deer population, and hunters can expect to see similar numbers in deer herds statewide compared to last year. The annual season is a big boost to the state’s economy. A 2011 report found hunting generates an estimated $2.5 billion in state spending. As hunters take to the woods, hunting incidents have trended down over the last 10 years. The DNR’s Recreation Warden Renee Thok said the state had a total of 11 hunting incidents last year, one of which was fatal. A 24-year-old man died of an unintentional, self-inflicted gunshot wound to the chest in Fond du Lac County on opening day of the gun deer season. This year, nine hunting incidents have occurred so far. Thok reminded hunters to follow the basic rules of firearm safety and inspect tree stands. She also advised them to wear blaze orange or fluorescent pink to remain visible. People who are doing outdoor activities in areas where they could encounter hunters should also wear high-visibility clothing. “We also want to make sure that they are aware and should consider wearing blaze orange or fluorescent pink themselves, so that way they are highly visible to others,” Thok said. “It’s also a good idea to put that on your pets as well.” The DNR is projecting hunters will submit around 17,000 samples to test deer for chronic wasting disease, or CWD, this year. First detected in Wisconsin in 2002, CWD now affects 64 counties with 57 that have had detections among wild or farm-raised deer. The DNR is especially interested in samples from central and northern Wisconsin. Erin Larson, the agency’s deer herd health specialist, urged hunters to submit samples through self-service kiosks or private businesses that are listed on the DNR’s website . Larson also urged people to properly dispose of deer carcasses using deer dumpsters, landfills, transfer stations or curbside pickup if offered by their municipalities. “Those recommendations are in place just to reduce the risk of bringing a positive carcass to a new location, where then it could introduce disease,” Larson said. The agency previously noted there will be fewer deer dumpsters available this year due to budget constraints and asked hunters to review disposal options. Last month, the DNR reported the first positive detection of CWD in a wild deer in Marinette County near Peshtigo. The DNR has sampled over 356,000 deer since the agency began monitoring for the disease more than two decades ago. Of those sampled, around 16,800 deer have tested positive, mostly in the state’s southern farmland zone. In southeastern Wisconsin, the DNR has received around 2,400 reports of dead deer tied to the state’s largest outbreak of Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease . The disease is spread by biting flies or midges and often fatal in deer. However, people aren’t at risk of being infected. The DNR hasn’t reduced harvest opportunities tied to the outbreak, which is largely centered in Washington County. Larson said it appears the outbreak is over due to colder temperatures, and the DNR is now conducting a more thorough review of data from suspected cases. Wisconsin Public Radio, © Copyright 2026, Board of Regents of the University of Wisconsin System and Wisconsin Educational Communications Board. Related Stories Wisconsin DNR updates hunters on deer diseases as reports in EHD outbreak grow Oh, deer — or is it an elk? Wisconsin DNR urges hunters to know the difference. 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