Can You Kill Raccoons in Minnesota? What State Law Actually Allows

Raccoons are resourceful, adaptable, and extremely common across Minnesota — from rural farmsteads to the backyards of Minneapolis and St. Paul. When one tears up your garden, raids your garbage, or takes up residence in your attic, your first instinct might be to reach for a firearm or a trap. But before you act, you need to understand exactly what Minnesota law permits — and what it does not.

The short answer is yes, you can legally kill raccoons in Minnesota under certain conditions. The longer answer involves state statutes, hunting seasons, local ordinances, reporting requirements, and restrictions on methods that vary significantly depending on where you live and why you want the animal gone. This guide walks you through everything you need to know before taking action.

Are Raccoons Protected in Minnesota?

Raccoons are classified as a wild furbearer in Minnesota and are considered a game species under state law. That means they do carry some legal protections — but they are not federally protected, and the state does allow both hunting and damage-control killing under specific circumstances.

According to Minnesota Statute 97A.501, a person may not take, buy, sell, transport, or possess a protected wild animal unless allowed by the game and fish laws. Raccoons fall under this framework, which is why you cannot simply kill one at will without understanding the applicable rules.

In Minnesota, raccoons are considered a game species. There is a season for hunting and trapping, which generally runs from around October to March. Outside of that season, additional restrictions apply — though property owners retain important damage-control rights year-round.

Raccoons are common inhabitants of urban and semi-urban areas in Minnesota. Because local ordinances provide raccoons with near-total protection in many areas, dealing with damage or nuisance situations in those settings presents some unique problems. This is a critical point: state law sets the floor, but your city or county may impose tighter restrictions on top of it.

Key Insight: Raccoons in Minnesota are not federally protected, but they are regulated as a game and furbearer species by the Minnesota DNR. Both hunting and damage-control killing are permitted — but each comes with its own set of rules.

When Can You Legally Kill a Raccoon in Minnesota?

Minnesota law creates two distinct pathways for legally killing a raccoon: during the open hunting and trapping season, and year-round under the property damage provision.

During Open Hunting and Trapping Season

Raccoons may be taken statewide with legal firearms, bow and arrow, and by trapping from 9:00 a.m. on the Saturday nearest October 22, except in the North Mink/Muskrat/Beaver/Otter Zone, where raccoon may be taken beginning at 9:00 a.m. on the Saturday nearest October 17. The season ends March 15. According to a hunting resources site, the 2025–2026 season ran from October 18, 2025, through March 15, 2026, statewide — always verify current dates with the Minnesota DNR before heading out.

Raccoons may be taken and possessed without limit during the open season, meaning there is no bag limit. However, a valid small-game hunting license is required for recreational hunting. If you were born after December 31, 1979, and you are 12 years of age or older, you must obtain a valid Minnesota Firearm Safety Certificate to purchase a Minnesota hunting license. Anyone 16 years old or older who shoots small game in Minnesota must have a small game hunting permit.

Year-Round: The Property Damage Provision

This is the rule most homeowners and landowners will rely on. A person may take mink, squirrel, rabbit, hare, raccoon, bobcat, fox, opossum, muskrat, or beaver on land owned or occupied by the person where the animal is causing damage. The person may take the animal without a license and in any manner except by poison, or artificial lights in the closed season.

The key phrase here is “causing damage.” You must be the landowner, manager, or occupant of the property, and the raccoon must be actively causing damage — not simply passing through. A person that kills a raccoon under this subdivision must notify a conservation officer or employee of the Wildlife Division within 24 hours after the animal is killed. Skipping that call is a violation of state law, even if the killing itself was lawful.

Important Note: The 24-hour reporting requirement applies any time you kill a raccoon under the property damage provision. Contact your local DNR Conservation Officer — not animal control — to make that report.

Legal Methods for Killing Raccoons in Minnesota

Minnesota law is specific about which methods are permitted and which are strictly off-limits. Getting this wrong can turn a legal action into a criminal one.

Permitted Methods

• Firearms: You can take an animal using any method except poison, artificial lights, or a motor vehicle. The most common methods for taking an animal are by firearm or bow and arrow. During open season, a person may use a handgun or rifle capable of firing only rimfire cartridges of .17 or .22 caliber.
• Bow and arrow: Legal during the open season statewide.
• Trapping: The following furbearers may be legally taken with a trap in Minnesota: raccoon, red fox, gray fox, badger, opossum, weasel, bobcat, fisher, pine marten, mink, muskrat, beaver, and otter.
• Dogs: A person may use dogs to pursue and tree raccoons without killing or capturing the raccoons during the closed season and a license is not required. During open season, dogs may be used to tree raccoons before shooting them.
• Artificial lights with dogs: A person may use an artificial light to locate, attempt to locate, or shoot a raccoon only if the raccoon has been treed or put at bay by dogs.

Prohibited Methods

• Poison: Explicitly banned under Minnesota Statute 97B.655 for taking raccoons under the damage provision — and not a legal method for recreational hunting either.
• Artificial lights (without dogs): Illegal during the closed season and when not used in conjunction with dogs during open season.
• Motor vehicles: You may not use a vehicle to take a raccoon.
• Shooting in cities and towns: Although shooting is often an effective control technique in rural areas, it is prohibited in towns and cities. This is one of the most commonly overlooked restrictions.

Common Mistake: Many property owners assume they can shoot a nuisance raccoon in their suburban backyard. In most Minnesota cities and towns, discharging a firearm is prohibited by local ordinance regardless of the raccoon’s behavior. Live trapping is typically your only lawful option in those areas.

Trapping Raccoons in Minnesota: Rules and Restrictions

Trapping is the most practical option for most Minnesota residents dealing with nuisance raccoons, especially in suburban and urban settings. However, it comes with its own set of rules that differ depending on whether you are trapping for damage control or as a licensed trapper during the regular season.

Trap Types and Sizing

In urban and suburban areas, cage or box traps are generally the most practical removal devices. Foot traps may be used in some areas, especially if they can be set in water. The Minnesota DNR recommends a live trap that is at least 10″ x 12″ x 32″. It can be baited with fish, chicken, fish-flavored cat food, or canned tuna. The mesh must be small enough so the raccoon cannot reach through the wire and get the bait — one-half inch or smaller will be adequate.

If you choose to use a foothold trap, a number one and one-half coil spring or “stop-loss” trap should be used, preferably in a drowning set. These traps are best confined to water in semi-urban areas, and may be illegal in some areas.

Trap-Tending Requirements

Any trap, except a body-gripping or “conibear” type trap, capable of capturing a protected wild animal and not capable of drowning the animal must be tended at least once each calendar day and any animal captured must be removed from the trap. A body-gripping or “conibear” type trap need not be tended more frequently than once every third calendar day, and any animal captured must be removed from the trap.

License Requirements for Trapping

If you are trapping as a property owner or occupant under the damage provision, state law allows property owners to control raccoons that are causing damage or injury on their property, and they may control these animals without a trapping license or permit. If you are trapping recreationally during the open season, a trapper education course is required to obtain a trapping license in most cases.

Pro Tip: Before setting any trap, contact your city or county to confirm which trap types are permitted in your area. Some municipalities ban foothold and conibear traps outright, leaving cage traps as your only legal option.

Can You Relocate a Raccoon Instead of Killing It in Minnesota?

Many people prefer relocation over lethal control, but Minnesota law takes a restrictive stance on this option — and for good reason.

Once you catch the animal, you may choose to destroy or relocate it. If you relocate a captured wild animal, make sure you take it 10 to 15 miles away from where it was captured. This helps ensure that it does not return. You must get permission from the governing agency or landowner of the property before releasing the animal.

That said, relocation is strongly discouraged by wildlife professionals in Minnesota. The professional will also have the means to euthanize the animals, since releasing them elsewhere is prohibited by law in some interpretations. Released animals may return or present a problem to someone else. Release of animals is a major factor in the dissemination of numerous diseases to other animals.

There are also practical health concerns. A common roundworm parasite called Baylisascaris procyonis can cause human health problems under certain circumstances. These parasites live in the raccoon intestine and shed microscopic eggs which are passed in the raccoon feces. These eggs can become infective to people or other animals after about 30 days. Moving a potentially infected animal to a new location spreads that risk. You can learn more about what threatens raccoon populations and the ecological role these animals play before deciding on a course of action.

If you do choose relocation, confirm with the DNR and the destination landowner before releasing the animal. Releasing a raccoon on public land or another person’s property without permission is unlawful.

Hiring a Licensed Wildlife Control Operator in Minnesota

If you are not comfortable handling the situation yourself — or if local ordinances restrict what you can legally do on your own — hiring a licensed wildlife control operator (WCO) is often the safest and most legally straightforward path.

Be aware that if you need help at your home or property with a raccoon conflict, no free agency will come to your house to take care of the problem for you. You must hire a local licensed wildlife control operator. These companies do charge for their services.

Licensed operators have the training and legal authority to use methods that may not be available to the general public, and they are familiar with both state regulations and local ordinances. If you are unable to resolve the problem on your own and need raccoon removal services from a professional, research local companies carefully before you hire. Just because a company claims to perform raccoon control humanely, it does not hurt to double check their methods first, over the phone, before you hire.

One important caution: never hire a pest control company that uses poisons to address the problem. Poison is illegal for raccoon control in Minnesota and poses significant risks to pets, children, and non-target wildlife. You can find contact information for the Minnesota DNR’s wildlife division at 651-296-6157 — they can point you toward registered wildlife control companies operating in your area.

For additional context on how Minnesota handles other wildlife-related legal questions, see the state’s roadkill laws in Minnesota, which address what you can and cannot do with animals found dead on public roads.

Local Ordinances That May Override State Law in Minnesota

State law establishes the baseline framework, but Minnesota cities and counties have broad authority to pass local ordinances that are more restrictive than state rules. This is one of the most important — and most overlooked — aspects of raccoon control in the state.

Some cities have ordinances prohibiting the use of certain types of traps, so local authorities should be contacted before any removal efforts are begun. In practice, this means that what is legal in a rural township may be completely prohibited in a nearby suburb.

Before you take an animal, make sure you check the local laws. In many urban areas or areas regulated by local ordinance, you may be restricted to live trapping. Cities like Minneapolis, St. Paul, and many of their suburbs have discharge ordinances that effectively ban shooting raccoons within city limits, regardless of the damage they are causing.

Raccoons are common inhabitants of urban and semi-urban areas in Minnesota. Because local ordinances provide raccoons with near-total protection in many areas, dealing with damage or nuisance situations in those settings presents some unique problems.

Setting	Shooting Allowed?	Trapping Allowed?	License Required?
Rural private land (damage control)	Yes (no poison, no artificial lights in closed season)	Yes (cage, foothold, conibear)	No (must report kill within 24 hrs)
Suburban/urban areas	Generally prohibited by local ordinance	Cage traps typically allowed; foothold/conibear may be banned	No for damage control; yes for recreational trapping
Open hunting season (statewide)	Yes, with small-game license	Yes, with trapping license	Yes
National Wildlife Refuges (e.g., MN Valley)	During designated hours and areas only	By special use permit only	Yes; refuge rules supersede state rules

The practical takeaway: always call your city or county before taking any action. A quick phone call to your local animal control office or city hall can clarify exactly which methods are permitted in your jurisdiction and save you from an unintentional violation.

If you are dealing with raccoons and want to explore non-lethal deterrents first, consider reviewing plants that repel raccoons as a preventative measure. Understanding what animals eat raccoons can also give you broader context on how these animals fit into Minnesota’s ecosystem. For those curious about the different types of raccoons, Minnesota is home to the common raccoon (Procyon lotor), the only species found in the state.

Minnesota law gives property owners real authority to protect their land from raccoon damage — but that authority comes with clear boundaries. Know your local rules, report any kills within 24 hours, avoid poison under all circumstances, and when in doubt, call a licensed wildlife control operator or the Minnesota DNR directly.