Kentucky · Squirrel · 2026–27 Edition
Kentucky Squirrel Season 2026–27: Dates & Bag Limits
01 — Seasons
| Season | Zone | Dates |
|---|---|---|
| Fall segment 1 | Statewide | Aug 15 – Nov 13 |
| Fall segment 2 | Statewide | Nov 16 – Feb 28 |
| Spring season | Statewide | May 16 – Jun 14 |
02 — Bag limits
| Daily | 6, fox and gray squirrel combined. NOT read from a primary source. KDFWR's official 2026-27 Hunting Poster is dates-only and carries no limits, and the Kentucky Hunting Guide PDF (fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/huntingguideentire.pdf) could not be retrieved on 2026-08-27 - fw.ky.gov answers 403 to direct fetches, and the text-extraction proxy that works for the poster returned an empty document for the guide. Read the guide's small game table to close this |
|---|---|
| Possession | 12. NOT read from a primary source. KDFWR's official 2026-27 Hunting Poster is dates-only and carries no limits, and the Kentucky Hunting Guide PDF (fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/huntingguideentire.pdf) could not be retrieved on 2026-08-27 - fw.ky.gov answers 403 to direct fetches, and the text-extraction proxy that works for the poster returned an empty document for the guide. Read the guide's small game table to close this |
| Closure | Closed November 14–15, 2026 — a two-day gap that coincides with the modern gun deer season opener, a long-standing Kentucky pattern |
03 — Shooting hours
Legal light on opening day (August 15, 2026) 06:28 — 21:03
Rule: Thirty minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset — the Kentucky Hunting Guide's general rule, which lists its exceptions (waterfowl, migratory birds, raccoons, coyotes, turtles, frogs) and does not except squirrel. Sunrise/sunset shift daily — the times above are computed for opening day; use your local Kentucky sun times for any other date.
04 — License
Squirrel hunters in Kentucky need a Kentucky hunting license.
Kentucky hunting license cost →
Where to hunt public land in Kentucky — WMAs by county & access rules →
05 — FAQ
When does squirrel season start in Kentucky?
The 2026–27 opener is August 15, 2026. See the table above for the full window.
When does squirrel season end in Kentucky?
The 2026–27 closing date is June 14, 2027.
Is there a difference between fox and gray squirrel rules in Kentucky?
See the bag limit table above — most states run one combined limit across both species, but this is worth confirming against Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources before you hunt.
How many squirrels can you shoot in Kentucky per day?
2026–27 bag limits: Daily — 6, fox and gray squirrel combined. NOT read from a primary source. KDFWR's official 2026-27 Hunting Poster is dates-only and carries no limits, and the Kentucky Hunting Guide PDF (fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/huntingguideentire.pdf) could not be retrieved on 2026-08-27 - fw.ky.gov answers 403 to direct fetches, and the text-extraction proxy that works for the poster returned an empty document for the guide. Read the guide's small game table to close this. Possession — 12. NOT read from a primary source. KDFWR's official 2026-27 Hunting Poster is dates-only and carries no limits, and the Kentucky Hunting Guide PDF (fw.ky.gov/Hunt/Documents/huntingguideentire.pdf) could not be retrieved on 2026-08-27 - fw.ky.gov answers 403 to direct fetches, and the text-extraction proxy that works for the poster returned an empty document for the guide. Read the guide's small game table to close this. Closure — Closed November 14–15, 2026 — a two-day gap that coincides with the modern gun deer season opener, a long-standing Kentucky pattern. Limits are set per zone and per permit — check the agency's own regulations before you hunt.
What time can you start shooting squirrel in Kentucky?
On opening day (August 15, 2026) legal light runs 06:28 to 21:03. The rule is: Thirty minutes before sunrise to 30 minutes after sunset — the Kentucky Hunting Guide's general rule, which lists its exceptions (waterfowl, migratory birds, raccoons, coyotes, turtles, frogs) and does not except squirrel. Sunrise and sunset shift daily, so work the offset against your local Kentucky sun times for any other date.
Can I hunt squirrels on my own land in Kentucky without a license?
Kentucky resident farmland owners — or their spouse or dependent children — may hunt (not trap) and fish that land without a license; resident tenants living there and their dependent children get the same right. Season dates, zone rules, bag limits, and telecheck reporting still apply.
Verified · Kentucky Department of Fish & Wildlife Resources · Last verified 2026-08-13
Publisher's note. Official 2026-27 Hunting Poster PDF; fw.ky.gov blocked direct automated fetch (403), so the PDF was read via a text-extraction proxy of the same official URL and cross-checked against two independent secondary summaries citing the same guide. Season dates are solid. The daily bag (6, fox and gray combined) and possession limit (12) come from a secondary source citing fw.ky.gov, not the poster text itself (which lists dates only, no limits) — confirm these two numbers directly with KDFWR before relying on them. Kentucky's license year runs March–February; the spring 2027 segment (May 16–June 14) sits in the next license year but is confirmed on the same poster. UPDATE 2026-08-27: chased again, still not from a primary source, and now labelled that way in the data rather than carrying a soft caveat. The official 2026-27 Hunting Poster confirms the season dates but is a dates-only document with no limits column. The Kentucky Hunting Guide PDF, which does carry the small game table, could not be retrieved: fw.ky.gov answers 403 to direct fetches with a browser user agent, and the text-extraction proxy that reads the poster fine returned an empty document for the guide on two attempts. The daily 6 and possession 12 therefore stand on a secondary source and are marked as such on the page.