Oklahoma Game Wardens Give Reminders For Deer Gun Season Opening Day

The Oklahoma Department of Wildlife estimates 200,000 hunters will be in the woods Saturday for opening day of deer-gun season, which means being smart and being safe is paramount.

It's the time of year when deer are moving, which means hunters and game wardens are doing the same.

“We're everywhere that we believe there's hunting going on,” ODWC Game Warden Carlos Gomez said.

Gomez has been a game warden for 35 years, in that time he says a lot has changed and in many cases for the better.

“Decades ago we had 'shooting mistaken for game' accidents in the dozens each year, the dozens. Now we have a couple, three,” he said.

Wearing the blaze orange is key for those hunting deer with a gun. Hunter orange must cover the upper body and head.

“There's folks that will tell me, 'Hey I just saw a guy get out of his car with a rifle, he wasn't wearing his orange.' I'll go to that location, I'll try to find him.

Gomez says the orange must be on while walking to and from your spot.

It must stay on throughout the hunt whether in a blind, on the ground or in a tree stand, that rule applies to those hunting public and private land.

Those who don't follow the law face a $100 fine or more fine or worse.

“There's folks that are going to shoot first and maybe not verify, 'Is that a buck? Is that a deer?'” Gomez said. “They see some clothing or something brown or some movement or your brown hair was to lean out from around a tree. That could be a bad thing.”

Gomez says the majority of hunting accidents aren't gun-related, though.

“The ERs fill up this time of year from people falling out of their tree stand.”

To keep from falling, Gomez says hunters taking aim from tree stands should be sure and wear a safety harness in addition to that bright orange.

Wardens also hope hunters will keep an eye out for people who might breaking the law, doing things like poaching.

"We'd kind of like you take notes and pay attention to what they look like and what the vehicle looked like and what they were doing and their tag number and that sort of thing," he said.

Anyone can report information anonymously through the Wildlife Department’s Operation Game Thief (800)-522-8039. Click here for more info.