Jay County, Indiana: deer harvest and public hunting land
Jay County covers 384 square miles around Portland. Hunters took 1,537 deer here in the 2025 season, 686 of them antlered, by the DNR's deer report. That is up 15% from 2024, and the most in the 5 years shown. 0.1% of Jay County is public land open to the public, the largest share county, city and regional land (129 acres), by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries.
Data updated October 2026. Harvest: the DNR's deer reports, 2021 to 2025. Land: PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting property layer.
Properties open to public hunting (DNR map)Other DNR landCounty, city and regional landLand trusts and other open landJay CountyNeighboring countiesLakeHighway
| Size | 245,812 acres (384 square miles) |
|---|---|
| Deer taken, 2025 | 1,537 (686 antlered, 851 antlerless) |
| Public land | 0.1% (144 acres) |
| Public hunting properties | None mapped |
| Towns in and near it | Portland, Dunkirk, Redkey, Albany, Ridgeville and Geneva |
How many deer are harvested in Jay County?
Hunters took 1,537 deer in Jay County in 2025: 686 antlered and 851 antlerless (55% antlerless).
| Season | Deer taken | Antlered | Antlerless |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 1,537 | 686 | 851 |
| 2024 | 1,335 | 635 | 700 |
| 2023 | 1,125 | 513 | 612 |
| 2022 | 1,173 | 540 | 633 |
| 2021 | 973 | 452 | 521 |
Source: Indiana DNR White-tailed Deer Reports (2021 to 2025 seasons, Table 3-4), Jay County.
How much public land is in Jay County?
144 of Jay County's 245,812 acres are public land open to the public (0.1%). The biggest share is county, city and regional land: 129 acres.
| Manager | Acres | Share of Jay County |
|---|---|---|
| County, city and regional land | 129 | 0.1% |
| Other DNR land | 14 | under 0.1% |
| Land trusts and other open land | 1 | under 0.1% |
| All public land open to the public | 144 | 0.1% |
Measured by FilledTag inside the county line from USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries. Hunting rules differ by manager: properties on the DNR's public hunting map are open under the DNR's rules for each; national forest is open; refuges follow U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service rules; Corps of Engineers lake land is open in many places under each project's own rules; state parks hold only special hunts; city and county land sets its own rules.
How do you get to Jay County?
Highways through it: US 27 (about 18 miles inside). Towns inside: Portland, Dunkirk, Redkey, Salamonia, Pennville and Bryant. Nearby: Albany (on the line), Ridgeville (on the line), Geneva (2 miles) and Montpelier (4 miles).
Which counties border Jay County?
Jay County touches 5 other counties. Their latest DNR harvest and public land, for comparison:
| County | Deer harvested | Year | Public land |
|---|---|---|---|
| Adams County | 1,107 | 2025 | 0.1% |
| Wells County | 916 | 2025 | 1.2% |
| Delaware County | 1,049 | 2025 | 1.4% |
| Randolph County | 941 | 2025 | 0.3% |
| Blackford County | 602 | 2025 | 0% |
Questions hunters ask
How many deer were harvested in Jay County in 2025?
1,537: 686 antlered and 851 antlerless (DNR). In 2024: 1,335.
Is there public hunting land in Jay County?
144 acres, 0.1% of the county, are public land open to the public by USGS PAD-US 4.1 and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries, the largest share county, city and regional land (129 acres).
What is the deer bag limit in Jay County?
Indiana's statewide limit is 1 antlered and 6 antlerless deer; each county has its own antlerless limit within that, on the DNR's county antlerless bag limit list.
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Where these numbers come from
- Deer harvest: Indiana DNR White-tailed Deer Reports (2021 to 2025 seasons, Table 3-4).
- Public land: USGS PAD-US 4.1 (fee land open to the public) and the DNR's public hunting property boundaries. DNR properties open to hunting: Indiana DNR properties with public hunting (managed lands layer).
- Boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau 2024 cartographic county boundaries. Highways and towns: U.S. Census Bureau TIGER/Line 2024 primary and secondary roads; U.S. Census Bureau 2024 Gazetteer, places.
FilledTag is not part of the Indiana Department of Natural Resources. Numbers are copied from the DNR and the federal sources above, or measured from their maps; nothing on this page is estimated by FilledTag.
Indiana hunting Adams County Wells County Delaware County Randolph County Blackford County