Yes, it is legal to kill groundhogs in New York on property you own or lease when they are damaging it or have become a nuisance, and no state permit is required. Environmental Conservation Law § 11-0523 places groundhogs (woodchucks) in the state’s unprotected wildlife category and lets qualifying people take them “in any manner.”1New York State Senate. New York Environmental Conservation Law 11-0523 – Destructive or Menacing Wildlife; Taking Without Permit That broad permission still runs into three real limits: who counts as a qualifying person, where you can discharge a firearm, and what you can do with a groundhog once you’ve trapped it alive.
Why No Permit Is Needed
New York sorts wildlife into protected and unprotected categories. Groundhogs sit in the unprotected group, so the seasonal rules and bag limits that govern deer or turkey do not apply. ECL § 11-0523 lets landowners take unprotected wildlife (other than birds) that is injuring their property or has become a nuisance on it, and the statute says the taking may happen “notwithstanding any provision of the Fish and Wildlife Law…or the Penal Law or any other law.” No Department of Environmental Conservation license is needed for a groundhog on your own land.1New York State Senate. New York Environmental Conservation Law 11-0523 – Destructive or Menacing Wildlife; Taking Without Permit
Who Can Legally Do It
The statute is specific about which people can act without a permit:1New York State Senate. New York Environmental Conservation Law 11-0523 – Destructive or Menacing Wildlife; Taking Without Permit
- The property owner or lessee of the land where the damage is occurring.
- Immediate family members, but only those actually occupying or cultivating that land.
- Farm employees who have written authorization and are actually employed in cultivating the land.
A neighbor who offers to help, a friend with a rifle, or a handyman without written authorization does not qualify. The permission is also tied to the parcel where the damage is happening. You cannot cross onto a neighboring property to take a groundhog you expect will eventually wander onto yours.
Trapping and Shooting
Because the statute allows taking “in any manner,” you have wide latitude in method. In practice most people trap or shoot.
Traps
Live traps set near burrow entrances work well when baited with apples, cantaloupe, or carrots. Body-gripping traps such as #160 or #220 models, and foothold traps at burrow openings, are also used. Set traps must be checked on a schedule: in the Southern Zone, once every 24 hours; in parts of the Northern Zone, once every 48 hours depending on the Wildlife Management Unit and trap type.2New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Trapping Regulations
Firearms
Shooting a groundhog on your own property is legal, but firearm use has its own layer of rules, the most important being the 500-foot buffer described below. General gun-safety practices and any local ordinance on discharge still apply.
The 500-Foot Firearm Rule
New York prohibits discharging a firearm within 500 feet of a dwelling, farm building, school, church, or occupied factory. For longbows the buffer is 150 feet; for crossbows, 250 feet.3New York State Senate. New York Environmental Conservation Law 11-0931 – Prohibitions on the Use and Possession of Firearms
There is an exception for your own dwelling. The owner or lessee of a home, immediate family members who live there, employees, and guests (with the owner’s consent) may discharge a firearm near that specific house. The exception does not stretch to any other occupied building. A neighbor’s home, a barn someone uses, a school, or a church within 500 feet still shuts down that method, even when the groundhog is on your land.3New York State Senate. New York Environmental Conservation Law 11-0931 – Prohibitions on the Use and Possession of Firearms On a rural parcel this rarely matters. On a suburban lot, shooting may be off the table entirely.
You Cannot Relocate a Live-Trapped Groundhog
This is the rule that surprises the most people. If you catch a groundhog in a live trap, you cannot drive it to a park, state land, or anywhere else and let it go. The NYSDEC states plainly: “It is illegal for you to move or relocate an animal off your property. You cannot live trap an animal and release it in a park, on State land or anywhere other than on the property where it was captured.”4New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Remove Or “Take” Nuisance Animals Legally
Relocation spreads diseases like rabies and Lyme into new areas, stresses the animal, and pushes the problem onto someone else. A live-trapped groundhog has to be released on the same property or humanely euthanized. If neither option fits, a licensed professional can handle removal legally.
Local Ordinances Can Still Stop You
State law gives broad authority, but your town, city, or county can layer restrictions on top. The most common local limits involve:
- Firearm discharge bans inside town limits or in residential zones, even where the 500-foot state rule would technically allow shooting.
- Restrictions on trap placement near sidewalks, playgrounds, or neighboring yards.
- Noise ordinances that a dawn shot could violate.
Before setting a trap or loading a firearm, call your town clerk or municipal code enforcement office. State permission does not override a local law banning the method you planned to use.
Hiring a Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator
If you would rather not deal with the animal yourself, New York licenses professionals called Nuisance Wildlife Control Operators. An NWCO can legally trap, transport, euthanize, or release wildlife that is damaging property or threatening safety, and only someone holding a General Commercial NWCO license can charge a fee for the work.5New York State Department of Environmental Conservation. Nuisance Wildlife Control Operator Ask to see the operator’s DEC license before hiring; the NYSDEC keeps a searchable directory. One practical advantage of using an NWCO is that they can legally relocate the animal off your property, which you cannot do yourself.
Rabies and Handling
Groundhogs are mammals and can carry rabies, though they are not among the highest-risk species in New York. Treat any groundhog acting oddly, wandering in the open at unusual hours, or showing no fear of people with extra caution, and never handle one, alive or dead, with bare hands.
If a groundhog bites or scratches you during trapping or removal, the CDC recommends washing the wound with soap and water for at least 15 minutes and contacting a healthcare provider right away. Rabies needs urgent attention, and people who need the vaccine but do not receive it before symptoms appear will almost certainly die.6Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Rabies Prevention and Control Tell your doctor what animal was involved and whether it was behaving abnormally, and contact your local health department, which will advise on post-exposure treatment. Wear gloves through the whole job, including disposal, and wash your hands thoroughly afterward.