Is It Legal to Trap and Kill Raccoons in Nebraska [No]

In Nebraska, raccoons are wild animals and are present throughout the State. Although raccoons are economically significant due to their furs, they may harm your crops and livestock. To throw them off your home and fields, the question in your mind would be: Is it legal to trap and kill raccoons in Nebraska?

If a raccoon takes up residence in your home, don’t worry. This article will give you all the legal ways to trap and hunt raccoons in Nebraska.

Is It Legal to Trap and Relocate Raccoons in Nebraska?

Yes, you can trap raccoons in Nebraska after getting a Commercial Damage Control permit. However, according to Nebraska Wildlife Rehab, you can release or kill raccoons within 100 yards instead of relocating them. Although raccoons trapping laws are not strict in Nebraska, you must keep in mind the below-mentioned points:

• If you have a commercial damage control permit, you trap raccoons without a trapping license.
• According to Nebraska City News Press, you can trap raccoons from Nov 1 to Feb 29.
• If you are 16 years or older resident of Nebraska, you need a resident fur-harvester license to trap raccoons.
• A non-resident of Nebraska needs a non-resident fur-harvester license and habitat stamp to trap raccoons.
• If you are a local of Nebraska, you can buy your trapping license from Outdoor-Nebraska.gov.
• A non-inhabitant of Nebraska can buy a fur-harvester license only from Game and Parks’ Lincoln office.

Is It Legal to Hunt Raccoons in Nebraska?

Yes, it is legal to hunt raccoons in Nebraska. According to Nebraska City News Press, you can hunt raccoons by following the below rules and regulations:

• You can hunt raccoons after getting a fur-harvester license from Sep 1 to Oct 31 with no bag limit.
• If you are an inhabitant of Nebraska aged 16 or older, you can hunt a raccoon with a fur-harvester license.
• Regardless of age, a non-Nebraska resident needs a far-harvester license to hunt a raccoon.
• All residents and non-residents of Nebraska must have a habitat stamp to hunt raccoons, except landowners and farmers.
• If you are more than 69 years old resident of Nebraska, you can hunt raccoons after getting a combination license.
• Further, if you are a disabled veteran resident of Nebraska, you don’t need to pay a fee to get a license.
• Moreover, you can get a lifetime fur-harvester license if you are a local of Nebraska.

Laws Governing About Raccoon Trapping in Nebraska

In Nebraska, you can find raccoons in almost every habitat. Raccoons are nocturnal, but you can find them in day time anywhere near food. Their love for food like sweet corn and grapes may harvest your gardens. To protect your food and homes, Nebraska has given the following laws to trap raccoons:

• First, you must have a resident or non-resident fur-harvester license to trap raccoons.
• You can trap raccoons with box traps, metal spring traps, and snares.
• Remember, you can trap raccoons only during the trapping season.
• After trapping a raccoon, you cannot possess it because it is illegal to keep a fur-bearing animal in Nebraska.
• You can use a body-gripping trap to capture raccoons on public lands with a jaw spread of 8 inches.
• Furthermore, you cannot set a snare on any dry land part of Yankee Hill Wildlife Management Area before 15 December to trap raccoons.

Laws Governing About Raccoon Shootings in Nebraska

Although due to fur-bearing mammals, raccoons have economic importance in Nebraska, their predatory nature may harm you and your pets. They like pet food, fruits, and leftover meals. So, you may find them near your home garbage cans. Sometimes, their nuisance reaches that peak where you want to shoot them.

Here are some shooting rules in Nebraska that you must know:

• In Nebraska, instead of relocating raccoons, you can kill or release them within 100 yards.
• If a raccoon destroys your property, you can shoot it on your land during the hunting season.
• To shoot raccoons in the municipality area, first, you must take their permission to discharge firearms within the limit.
• You can shoot a raccoon with a shotgun having 0.22 caliber.
• Moreover, you can legally shoot a raccoon with a dog.
• If you don’t know how to shoot a raccoon, you must hire a professional hunter to protect your crops and fields.

How Can You Trap Raccoons in Nebraska?

Raccoons have numerous safety and health interests. They can eat parasites such as fleas and ticks. Along with these safety concerns, they may danger to your health, as they carry vectors of various life-threatening diseases. For whatever purpose you are trapping a raccoon, must pay heed to below steps:

• After getting a legal permit for trapping, you can trap raccoons using a body-gripping trap, a box trap, and a snare.
• If a body-gripping trap has a jaw spread greater than 8 inches, you can place it in water to trap a raccoon.
• Furthermore, the box traps you set up to catch raccoons must be 10″ x 10″ x 32″.
• You cannot set a snare during an upland game bird season to trap raccoons on public lands.
• Once a year, you have to check all traps before trapping a raccoon.
• Above all, the trap you use to capture raccoons must have a tag with your driving license number and Nebraska State ID card number.

How Can You Shoot and Hunt Raccoons in Nebraska?

Raccoons cause damage to garden fruits and vegetables, especially grapes and sweet corn. You can find them in chimneys and anywhere in your gardens and lawns. In Nebraska, after getting a fur-harvester license, you can hunt and shoot raccoons by below rules:

• You can hunt raccoons throughout the year after getting a lifetime license.
• If you are a non-resident of Nebraska, you can hunt up to 1000 raccoons with a fee of additional 100 raccoons.
• During running and harvest season, you can hunt raccoons 24 hours a day.
• If you are a resident of Nebraska, you can hunt raccoons with no bag limit.
• You can hunt or shoot raccoons with a firearm, bow, and arrow.
• Besides having a shotgun, you can shoot raccoons with your dog.
• Moreover, to shoot a raccoon, you can use only a less caliber rifle (0.22) that causes minor damage to the fur.

Conclusion

In Nebraska, raccoons are well-known for their furs and meat. People like to watch them as they roam around the backyard and look for their footsteps on a muddy stream bank. However, these cherished species can often conflict with your safety and concerns.

If a raccoon finds a way to your home or yard and you are eager to throw it away, the above article will surely help you to trap it. Furthermore, before making sure raccoon damage your crops and property, find out the signs at the damage scene. It will assist you in identifying the species that wreck your property.