Articles

June 29, 2026

Furbearer trapping and hunting

Find all the information you need to trap or hunt furbearers in Oregon, including licensing requirements and seasons.

Furtakers Harvest Reporting

Report Online

Mail/Fax

Oregon Furbearer Trapping and Hunting Regulations

Trapper Education

All first-time Oregon trappers need to complete an approved trapper education course which includes a knowledge test. The course is not required if you're trapping on land you own or lease. This also applies to your immediate family, or an agent you have authorized to control damage to livestock or agricultural crops on your property.

The Trapper Education course for Oregon is available online

Procedures for completing trapper course

Take the online course and review the Oregon Furbearer Trapping and Hunting Regulations.
Register and complete the online Oregon Trapper Course and Exam.

State trapper exam

The exam consists of 60 multiple choice, and animal identification matching questions.
Applicants must achieve a minimum score of 80% (can only miss 12 questions).
Exam takes approximately 1 hour to complete.
The test is scored when the applicant completes the exam. Applicants will receive a certificate upon completion, please bring a printed copy to an ODFW office that sells licenses to apply for a Furtaker license. ODFW will maintain a record of your successful completion of the course.
A furtaker's license and brand number will be issued after the exam is successfully completed and the license application with payment has been processed. These are issued by the Salem Headquarters office and can take a few days to process.

License requirements and fees

Furtakers need either a Furtaker's License or a Furbearers Hunting License. A Furtaker's License allows you to trap, hunt and pursue. A Furbearers Hunting License allows for only hunting and pursuing.

A general hunting license allows you to only hunt unprotected mammals (see list below), this does not include trapping, hunting or pursuing furbearers.

Furtaker License Application

Juveniles younger than 12 years of age are not required to purchase a license, except to hunt or trap bobcat and river otter. However, they must register to receive a brand number through the Salem Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife office (ODFW). To trap bobcat or river otter, juveniles must complete the trapper education course. Juveniles 17 and younger must have completed hunter education to obtain a furtaker's license.

Landowners can get either a Furtaker's License, a Hunting License for Furbearers, or a free License to Take Furbearers on land they own and on which they reside. To receive the free license, the landowner must obtain from the ODFW Headquarters office a receipt of registration for the property.

Landowner Furtaker License Application

LICENSE	FEE
Resident Furtaker's License	$54.50
Nonresident Furtaker's License	$407.00
Resident Hunting License for Furtakers	$26.00
Resident Juvenile Furtaker's License (age 12-17) Juveniles younger than 12	$17.00 see license requirements above
Bobcat Record Card (Hunting License for Furtaker's or Furtaker's License Required.)	$37.50
River Otter Record Card (Hunting License for Furtaker's or Furtaker's License Required.)	$37.50
Fur Dealer's License	$111.00

^{The above license and record card fees each include a $2 license agent fee. For more information about licenses and tags, write: Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife, Attn. Licensing, 4034 Fairview Industrial Dr. SE, Salem, OR 97302 or phone: (503) 947-6101.}

Mandatory annual reporting

Any person possessing a valid furtaker's license or hunting license for furbearers is required to complete and return the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife Furtaker Harvest Report form, postmarked by April 15, 2027 for the 2026-2027 season.

Report your harvest

Failure to report harvest will deny the license holder the opportunity to purchase a hunting license for furbearers or furtakers license for the following furbearer season unless the late Harvest Report form and application is submitted with a $50.00 fee at the time of renewal.

Mail/Fax Submission: 2026-2027 Furtaker Harvest Report Form

Your furtaker harvest report provides valuable information to ensure sound management of Oregon's furbearers.

Important marten harvest information

If you harvest a marten, ODFW asks you to turn in all marten carcasses, along with the date, location of harvest and sex of marten taken, to the local ODFW office prior to March 1, following each season. Furtaker cooperation is critical to successful future management of this species.

Seasons

Furbearer pursuit seasons (statewide)

No animals shall be killed except during authorized open harvest seasons. A bobcat record card must be in possession to harvest bobcat. A Furtaker's License or Hunting License for Furbearers must be in possession to pursue. Remember, Oregon is wolf country; it is not legal to injure or kill a wolf even if attacking your dog.

STATEWIDE FURBEARER PURSUIT SEASONS
Bobcat	Sept. 1 - Feb. 28
Fox	Sept. 1 - Feb. 28
Raccoon	Sept. 1 - March 15

Furbearer harvest seasons

OPEN SEASON	OPEN AREAS AND SPECIAL REGULATIONS
Bobcat
Dec.1 - Feb. 28	WESTERN OREGON - No bag limit. All counties west of the summit of the Cascades, except Klamath and Hood River counties. See the Oregon Furbearer Trapping and Hunting Regulations of special bobcat regulations.
Dec. 1 - Feb. 28	EASTERN OREGON - Bag limit is five bobcats. All counties east of the summit of the the Cascades, including Klamath and Hood River counties. See the Oregon Furbearer Trapping and Hunting Regulations for special bobcat regulations.
Fox, grey and red
Oct. 15 - Feb. 28	Entire state
Marten
Nov. 1 - Jan. 31	Areas east of Interstate 5.
Muskrat/mink
Nov. 15 - March 31	Entire state
Raccoon
Nov. 15 - March 15	Entire state
River otter
Nov. 15 - March 15	Entire state
Fisher, ringtail cat, wolverine, kit fox and sea otter
Closed season entire year.
Badger, coyote, nutria, opossum, porcupine, spotted skunk, striped skunk and weasel
Open season entire year	To hunt these a species, requires an appropriate furtaker's license to trap (also allows hunting) or appropriate hunting license for furbearer's, or a general hunting license.
Beaver
Nov. 15 - March 15	See the 2025-2027 Oregon Beaver Harvest Closure Map.

Please contact your local District Wildlife Biologist for more information or questions.

Definitions

What is a furbearer?

In general, a furbearer is an animal whose fur has commercial value. In Oregon, this includes beaver, bobcat, fisher, marten, mink, muskrat, river otter, raccoon, red and gray fox.

For any person owning, leasing, occupying, possessing or having charge or dominion over any land (or an agent of this person) who is taking or attempting to take beaver or muskrat on that property, these two species are considered to be predatory animals.

What is an unprotected mammal?

Unprotected mammals are badger, coyote, gophers, moles (Scapanus townsendii, S. orarius and S. latimanus), mountain beaver, yellowbellied marmots, nutria, opossum, porcupine, spotted skunk, striped skunk and weasel.

For any person owning, leasing, occupying, possessing or having charge of or dominion over any land (or an agent of this person) who is taking or attempting to take coyote, gopher, mountain beaver (boomer), marmot, nutria or porcupine on that property, these six species are considered to be predatory animals.

What is a predatory animal?

Predatory animals are coyotes, rabbits, rodents and feral swine, which are or may be destructive to agricultural crops. Therefore these animals have no closed season, bag limit or weapons restriction.

This however does not mean that all rabbits and rodents are available to hunt. A hunter must first find out if the small game they are seeking to hunt is either federally or state protected and if it carries any special regulations, such as closed seasons, bag limits or weapons restrictions.

Protected species

Protected species may not be taken without a valid license and tag during authorized seasons, or a Scientific Take Permit. However, you may take rabbits and rodents destructive to agricultural crops, products and activities.

PROTECTED MAMMALS AND BIRDS
Game mammals	Silver-haired bat	Washington ground squirrel
Game birds	Western small-footed myotis	Northern flying squirrel
Furbearers	Long-eared myotis	Chickaree (pine squirrel)
Threatened or endangered species	Long-legged myotis	Golden-mantled ground squirrel
Fisher	Yuma myotis	Chipmunks
Ringtail	Pika (cony)	While-footed vole
Fringed myotis	Pygmy Rabbit	All marine mammals
Townsend's big-eared bat	White-tailed jackrabbit	Pallid bat
White-tailed antelope squirrel	All nongame birds except Eurasian collared-dove, European starling, house sparrow and rock pigeon