In Washington we do not need the landowners permission nor do we need a CO in order to retrieve downed game. Free chase is one of the smarter moves our state has made.

In Iowa, you can go on to other properties to retrieve game. You cannot go on to other property with weapons without the landowners consent.

I have always stopped by the owners home first though. That way if there were others hunting his property, I would not be interfering with someone elses hunt. I have also had others claim my deer by getting to it first and tagging it without firing a shot when it has gotten on to other property.

I had a group this past December claim that one of them shot a deer that had come on to my property and they let me know that "they" were going to work their way down through my property to find it. I in return let them know that the one who shot it could walk unarmed from the place where the deer entered my property to the place where the deer was down. I also let them know that since I wasn't busy, I would walk along with him and help him locate his deer. The response then was "Well, I guess it wasn't hurt that bad that it was going to die, nevermind."

Ky. Landowner permission. But you know when it comes down to a downed animal its easier to ask for foregiveness that to ask for permission...that's my philosophy.

SC---If the land owner says no, then you can't. Not even if you are accompied by a LEO.

Thats half true; in MN if the landowner refuses you CAN'T go get it. The law basically says that you can go get it (unarmed) unless/until you get busted and the landowner tells you to leave, or refuses permission to enter his/her land. Then if you want, you call the sherrif or CO, and they come out to try to help mediate. The landowner still has the right to refuse entry to retrieve game.

You are correct mnbirddog!!

Magicman actually in Wisconsin if the Warden asks the landowner also and he states no, they can not retrieve the animal for someone else unless it is needed as evidence in a criminal act.
So the animal can lay and rot which sucks. I talked with our local warden and she says it happens all the time unfortunatly.

In California, they have regs concerning retrival, if we were to get a warden to assist with retrival of downed game and the owner refused the owner would be cited, there is a little one line in the California regs about retrival of downed game...Here I think the game warden would make sure it was retrieved.

I am going to stop by the local warden station on mar. 28th to pick up a turkey tag. I'm going to ask a warden when I go. If you talked to a warden you are probably right. We were told in the past by a warden, to call a warden if we needed to retrieve. Maybe it depends on the warden.

Magic man, I'm not sure where u got your info on Wisconsin. But I got a little bit different answer from a DNR warden this past fall. If an animal runs onto an adjacent property you are hunting on, you must get permission from the land owner to retrieve it. If the land owner will not give permission, you then can ask the DNR to intervene on your behalf, but the land owner does NOT have to let him or you on their land to retrieve that animal. But one thing that is little known, that the land owner cannot take possession of your animal since they did not kill it. The DNR will then watch the animal & if the land owner takes it, they will be charged with illegal possession of game. This very subject was brought up this past Sept. at my kid's hunter's safety course, and that is how he answered the question on retrieveing game on adjacent land that you are not hunting.