Is It Illegal to Kill Groundhogs?

You do not need a hunting license to kill a problem groundhog. While wildlife is generally protected under the law, protection is removed if the animal is damaging or destroying personal property. Groundhogs are permitted to be killed if they are causing damage such as digging at a home's foundation.

Is it illegal to kill a woodchuck?

In most states, woodchucks can be hunted most of the year with no daily or seasonal limits. You can shoot woodchucks with a small to medium caliber rifle. Simply observe a burrow, favorite basking spot, or patch of grass and wait.

Is it illegal to move groundhogs?

Trapping wildlife, transporting it off your property, and releasing it elsewhere is also illegal in many states, New York included. Relocating an animal may not only give someone else a nuisance problem, but spreads diseases, such as rabies and distemper, Lyme disease and West Nile virus.