Landowners, more than most Virginians, understand the importance of managing deer populations at stable, healthy population levels.  When deer populations increase, landowners often begin to realize the consequences with damage to agricultural crops, gardens, landscaping plants; an increase in the number of ticks; or vehicle collisions.  Deer populations can be considered too high in many locations in Virginia especially in areas without hunting or were hunting is limited.  The best way for landowners who believe they have too many deer to solve their problem is to find qualified hunters and allow them to help manage deer populations at stable levels that minimize damage to personal property.

The Hunter Finder (H-Finder) application is the Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources’ (DWR) initiative to help connect landowners with qualified and experienced hunters to assist in meeting their deer management goals.  This application is a tool for landowners to identify and initiate communication with hunters that are willing to hunt on their property.  Hunters enter their own information online and DWR acts as a conduit for the list of hunters.

How Does H-Finder Work?  

• The H-Finder program provides a list of hunters willing to harvest wildlife on private land and provides a means for landowners to contact those hunters directly. Hunters enter their own information online and the DWR acts only as a conduit to connect landowners with hunters. We do not endorse or recommend any individual, group or club.
• Virginia law protects landowners who do not charge a fee for hunting or other recreational uses on their property from liability from injury to a hunter caused by any condition, structure, or personal property on the land. Should a landowner choose to charge a fee; however, they are no longer protected from liability under this State law
• Landowners interested in finding hunters willing to help manage wildlife populations must create an account with the H-Finder application and then query the database for hunters meeting the criteria specified.

Disclaimer

The Virginia Department of Wildlife Resources makes no claims, promises, or guarantees about the absolute accuracy, completeness, or adequacy of the contents of this website and expressly disclaims liability for errors and omissions in the contents of this website. Individuals accessing this website will make their own determination of how suitable the information and data is for their usage and intent. In no event will the State be responsible for damages resulting from the use or reliance upon this information and data.