[Footage is shown of people in different parts of Ontario, participating in hunting and fishing. Images are shown of correct documentation for hunters and fishers, including licences and Outdoors Cards.]
Narrator >> The requirement to invalidate a tag is the same as the old requirement to notch your game seal. You are still required to immediately notch your tag indicating the day, month and time of the kill, at the site of the kill and before moving the animal.
For example on the left and bottom side – the numbers are 1-31. If you are successful, you will use these numbers to notch the day of the month that the deer was killed.
On the bottom right– you will see 5-12 and on the right hand side you will see 1-9, with AM/PM in the corner above the 12. You will notch the time of day you harvested your deer. For example – if you harvested your deer at 10:15 a.m. you would notch the 10.
On the right side next to the QR code, you will see letters corresponding to the first letter of each month. When you harvest an animal you will notch the month in which you are hunting.
It is your responsibility to make sure that at all times (before/after notching the tag and before/after attaching your tag to the animal) that it is always intact and
A new update to tagging regulations states that you must attach your tag if you are NOT immediately accompanying the animal or immediately available to produce the tag for inspection at the request of a Conservation Officer.
To summarize, the new paper tags do not need to be attached to the animal, if you, the tag holder, are available immediately to produce the tag for inspection.
For example:
When you’re dragging your deer out of the bush, after you’ve notched the tag, you can put the tag back in your pocket and take the animal out of the bush.
Your tag will contain specific tagging instructions.
Once you have attached your tag, you must ensure that the details on the tags are still intact and legible should a Conservation Officer need to inspect the harvested animal.
It is your responsibility to make sure that the tag is still intact and legible, before/after notching your tag, and before/after attaching your tag to the harvested animal.
It is understandable that hunting locations are not always dry and clean – which is why it is important that you have a plan in place to make sure your tag is legible at all times.
There are products that can help maintain your tag such as commercially available tag holders, or re-sealable plastic bags.
To learn more about the new regulation changes and updates, please visit Ontario.ca/outdoorscard
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