Frequently Asked Questions

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There is not enough information provided to give a definitive answer whether all the elements of the crime of interferring with lawful hunting exist. If you have more specific information as to when and where this occured and a desription of the persons and/or vehicles involved, please report them to your local Conservation Officer, IDFG office or call the Citizens Against Poaching at 1-800-632-5999 for a follow up investigation.

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Yes, nothing in Idaho Code, Law or rule prohibits you from carrying a firearm. In fact Idaho Code 36-401 (g) states: Nothing contained herein shall be construed to prohibit citizens of the United States who are residents of the state of Idaho from carrying arms for the protection of life and property.

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Seasons for 2014 will not set by the Fish and Game commission until their meeting on March 20. We'll have that information posted on the website a.s.a.p. after that meeting.    

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Big game season and bag limit changes will be reviewed by the public typically in February and reviewed by the commission during their March meeting.  All proposals will be posted on our website during the public comment period.  However, there is currently no proposal to change the Controlled Hunt process as stated on page 94 of the 2013 Big Game Rules book.

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There is no comprehensive location we know of that provides information on ice conditions for Idaho lakes and reservoirs.  Your best bet is to call our local Fish and Game Office and ask if they had recent reports or if a Conservation Officer might be able to provide information.  Usually, the local IDFG Office can find an information sources that is reliable.   F08

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Yes. You will need to go to a Fish and Game Regional or Headquarters office to change your license from a combination license to the sportsman's package.

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Planting a food plot is legal in Idaho, just like gardening or farming.  You may want to consider your objectives and what is possible to grow there before deciding what to plant. It would be okay to hunt over if it left alone and completely unharvested, or if it has been completely harvested using normal farming practices. Otherwise, that may be construed as baiting. 

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Thank you for your question about filing your hunter report for your deer tag. We try to keep the reporting forms as simple as possible, short and sweet. But sometimes, it is TOO short.  Sometimes we wish we had put more instructions on the online forms. Maybe next year. --If you hunted with rifle or shotgun, put your information in the “center-fire” section. --If you hunted with archery or with muzzleloader, it goes in those specific sections. There is not a separate form for shotgun or for short-range weapons as a separate category. The same form is used for both general and controlled tags, and sometimes this is confusing. General or controlled, it goes on the same form.  So in your case, hunting in a general short-range only season, your days hunting with shotgun will still be filed under “center-fire”.  We have records for each tag purchased by hunters, what kind of hunt it was for, which areas are legal, which animals, and using what weapons. We can usually figure out what was meant in each report. We really appreciate having the hunters file their reports, either online or by phone. The sooner the better. It is a very large project. In 2013, there were about 230,000 tags sold for deer, elk, and pronghorn. About 89,000 reports have been filed so far, up to 3000 per day.  Reminder postcards were mailed to hunters in November who had not yet filed, and some will get phone calls from us in December or January. These data are used to calculate the harvest estimates for 1400 different hunts (600 controlled hunts plus general hunts in 99 game management units by 3 weapon types and 4 species).  File your reports here, for deer, elk, and pronghorn:     http://fishandgame.idaho.gov/public/hunt/?getPage=106

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The next time you go to purchase a license, tag or permit, please have the vendor update your email address. This will update your email address in our the license system and our license buyer database. Thanks.  

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Yes, you can sign up for an Idaho Hunter's Ed class.  No documents are necessary.

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Students are allowed to job shadow or accompany officers on Ride-alongs as we call them.  Students will need their parents to sign parental consent and waiver forms.  Ride-alongs are available as work schedules allow with the field officers, make your initial request through the Regional Conservation Officer in the regional offices.