Tagging & Reporting

Tagging and Reporting Instructions

1. Immediately upon making your kill, complete a Deer/Turkey Harvest Tag. The Harvest Tag must be kept with your deer or turkey until it is processed for consumption. While transporting your kill, you may keep the Harvest Tag in your pocket or wallet. However, if you leave the kill, the completed Harvest Tag must remain with the animal.
2. All turkeys and deer taken must be reported within 24 hours via the internet at www.ct.gov/deep/hunting or by telephone at the toll-free number, 1-877-337-4868. To report your deer or turkey, you will need to know the 3-digit number code of the town in which the animal was killed. See Town Reporting Codes for a list of Connecticut’s 169 towns and their identifying numbers. If you killed your deer or turkey on state land, you will also need to know the 3-digit number code of the public hunting area. See Hunting Area Reporting Codes for a list of the 3-digit number codes of Connecticut’s public hunting areas. See Public Hunting Areas for what may legally be hunted on these public hunting areas.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do I report my deer and turkey kills and get a kill report confirmation number?

You can report your kill on the Department’s website or by calling the toll free number 1-877-337-4868. After reporting your kill you will be given a confirmation number to write on your Harvest Tag. This confirmation number serves as proof that you have legally reported your kill. You may find that submitting kill reports on the Department’s website is much easier than using the telephone reporting system. The telephone reporting system uses an automated attendant that prompts you to answer a series of questions by pressing the appropriate numbered responses. On the website, you answer questions by using convenient drop-down menus. Other advantages of using the website to report your kill is that you can review reports that you have previously submitted and print out copies of these reports for your records.

Reporting Your Kills by Telephone

Call 1-877-337-4868 (1-877-DEP-HUNT) After a short delay, you will hear an introductory message and instructions on how to report by telephone. Hint: You can skip the introductory message by pressing 1 on your phone.

Reporting Your Kills on the Internet

Go to www.ct.gov/deep/hunting and look for the link for reporting deer and turkey kills.

Kill Report Information

Before going on the Internet or calling in to report your kill, you can use this form to make sure you have all of the information you will need to accurately report your kill.

Turkey Identification Guidelines

Use the chart below to identify the age and sex of your turkey before calling the harvest line.

Fall Turkey		Spring Turkey
Adult Tom Juvenile Tom or Jake Adult Hen Juvenile Hen Unsure of Sex/Age			Adult Tom Juvenile Tom or Jake Bearded Hen Unsure of Sex/Age
Beard longer than 6 inches Beard shorter than 6 inches			Beard longer than 6 inches Beard shorter than 6 inches
Spur longer than ½ inch Spur shorter than ½ inch			Spur longer than ½ inch Spur shorter than ½ inch
Outer two wing feathers pointed with no barring Outer two wing feathers rounded with barring to the tip			n/a
Breast feathers black-tipped Breast feathers buff-tipped			n/a
n/a			Tail fan smooth in shaped Middle tail feathers longer than others

Deer Identification Guidelines

Use the chart below to identify the age and sex of your deer before calling the harvest line.