Vermont, 2027 shed season

Vermont Shed Antler Season 2027

Q: When is shed hunting season in Vermont?

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department lists its Vermont shed rules without dated closures, so they hold year round. The weeks that matter most are the ones when antlers drop.

Q: Do I need a permit to collect sheds in Vermont?

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department's published shed rules name no permit, course or license for collecting. Landowner permission and the land manager's own rules still apply wherever you walk.

Q: When do deer shed antlers in Vermont?

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department names white-tailed deer and moose among the antlered animals of Vermont. For whitetails, Iowa Department of Natural Resources puts the drop at mid January to mid March: "Whitetail deer have about a two-month shedding period in Iowa, beginning mid-Jan. and ending mid-March."

Q: Who sets the shed antler rules in Vermont?

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department. The rules here were read from its own pages on September 21, 2026, and each one links to the page it came from. Rules change between winters, so the agency page is the one to check before a trip.

Vermont Fish and Wildlife lists collecting shed antlers among the walking activities allowed on the lands it manages.

“Dispersed, wildlife-based pedestrian activities including walking, snowshoeing, swimming, cross-country skiing, and collection of shed antlers;” Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department

Agency statement

Rule type

from Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department

Rules quoted

each linked to the agency page

None named

Course or permit

in the agency rules quoted below

September 21, 2026

Rules read

from the agency page

The rule

Shed antler rules in Vermont

Agency statement

Shed collecting sits beside snowshoeing and cross country skiing in the department's land rules, which bar commercial activity other than guiding. Separately, antlers of lawfully taken deer or moose may be bought or sold at any time.

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department lands (Wildlife Management Areas)

Collecting shed antlers is an authorized walking activity on department managed lands, with no season or permit named.

Dispersed, wildlife-based pedestrian activities including walking, snowshoeing, swimming, cross-country skiing, and collection of shed antlers;

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

Courses, sale and state land

More Vermont shed rules

Buying and selling sheds

Antlers of legally taken deer or moose may be bought or sold at any time.

A person may buy or sell the head, hide, hoofs, and antlers of legally taken deer or moose and the head and hide of legally taken black bears at any time.

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

State wildlife land

On department lands shed antler collection is authorized, while commercial activities other than guiding are prohibited.

Commercial activities, except for guiding for purposes of fishing, hunting and trapping, or wildlife viewing;

Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department, read September 21, 2026. Read it at the source

When antlers drop

When deer shed antlers in Vermont

For white-tailed deer, Iowa Department of Natural Resources puts the drop at mid January to mid March.

Whitetail deer have about a two-month shedding period in Iowa, beginning mid-Jan. and ending mid-March.

Iowa Department of Natural Resources. Read it at the source

A large elk antler lying in green grass with snow covered mountains in the distance — An elk shed on the National Elk Refuge, Wyoming, with the Tetons behind. Elk winter range in the West is where most dated shed closures fall, because the closures exist for the animals wintering there. “Shed Antler on the National Elk Refuge (53662858076)”, USFWS Mountain Prairie, Public domain

Vermont shed antler questions

Is it legal to pick up shed antlers in Vermont?

When is shed hunting season in Vermont?

Do I need a permit to collect sheds in Vermont?

Can you sell shed antlers in Vermont?

Can I collect sheds on state wildlife land in Vermont?

When do deer shed antlers in Vermont?

Who sets the shed antler rules in Vermont?

Shed antler rules in other states

Vermont deer seasonArchery and firearms dates for Vermont, read from Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department.Vermont deer rutWhen bucks breed in the fall, months before those antlers drop.Shed antler rules by stateEvery state's shed rule, the dated western closures and when each species drops.

A bull moose with broad palmate antlers walking across a snowy flat — A bull moose near Soda Butte, Yellowstone. Colorado Parks and Wildlife dates the moose drop from November through January, the earliest of the antlered animals it names. Photo: Jacob W. Frank, NPS. “Bull moose near Soda Butte (b95e1acc-f297-4abd-8b01-bd4f25a9a6a5)”, Jacob W. Frank, Public domain

Compiled September 21, 2026. Every rule above is republished from Authorized and Prohibited Activities on Fish & Wildlife Lands, Vermont Fish & Wildlife Department and the other Vermont Fish and Wildlife Department pages linked beside each quote, read on September 21, 2026. Rules change between winters, so the agency page is the one to check before a trip. Every state is in the national shed antler guide.