Jeff Frischkorn

Ohio’s 2026 muzzleloader hunters killed 421 fewer animals than they did during its 2025 counterpart. Still, a harvest of 13,055 whitetails is nothing to sneeze at, either.
Even so, both years showed declines from their respective three-year averages. And, it must be noted, too, that several southeast Ohio countries recorded steep declines. This steep slide no doubt was due to heavy tolls on deer caused last summer by a rampant breakout of the nearly-always fatal viral infection Epizootic Hemorrhagic Disease, or EHD.

In spite of several Ohio county deer herds being hammered by a fatal viral disease, the state’s white-tail hunters still nailed it.
During Ohio’s seven-day firearms deer hunting season from Dec. 1 through Dec. 7, hunters checked in 85,448 animals. That figure is 1,743 animals shy of 2024’s deer firearms hunting season count of 87,191 animals but is startling just the same after four southeast Ohio counties were hard hit this past summer and autumn due to an outbreak of epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD).

In spite of the epizootic hemorrhagic disease (EHD) outbreak that plundered the deer herd in several southeast Ohio counties this summer, hunters still found enough whitetails elsewhere to give a glow to the opening day firearms deer-hunting season harvest. 
In fact, call the Dec. 1 shotgun (and rifle) start of Ohio’s seven-day deer-gun season a “very solid” opener compared to recent deer gun seasons, Clint McCoy, the Ohio Division of Wildlife’s deer biologist, told Ohio Outdoor News.