Oglethorpe County wasn’t among the top counties in Georgia for total deer harvested for the first time in five years. Game warden Phillip Nelson has experienced 24 deer seasons in Oglethorpe County, but hasn’t seen a year quite like 2025.
“This was a weird season, probably the weirdest one in my career,” Nelson said.
According to the Georgia Department of Natural Resources, hunters brought down 2,877 deer during the 2025-26 hunting season spanning from Sept. 13, 2025 through Jan. 11, nearly 1,000 less than last year.
In 2024-25, hunters harvested 3,650 deer, placing the county in the top five in Georgia for deer season. This year, there was a 21% decrease in total deer harvested, keeping Oglethorpe County out of the top 15.
“When it comes to hunting, you just have those years,” Nelson said.
Nelson said deer were seen moving more at night or in the middle of the day, opposed to early morning and dusk, when hunters typically hunt.
The weather this fall was also atypical.
The county experienced 3.75 inches of rain in October, compared to the 2.5 inches it received the final two months of 2025, according to the National Weather Service.
This differs largely from 2024, when there was less than half an inch of rain in October compared to over 6 inches in November and December.
When it doesn’t rain, the dry environment makes it more difficult for deer to smell, Nelson said, making them more cautious.
He also credited the low harvest to a strong acorn crop. Instead of coming to food plots set out by hunters, deer didn’t have to leave the woods to eat.
“If you weren’t at the hardwoods, you weren’t seeing deer,” Nelson said.
Byron Fleeman, the owner of Pop’s Deer Processing, said his business had a successful season, despite the low numbers.
Fleeman and his wife, Reene, run Pop’s in a barn they built on their property outside of Maxeys. This is only their second year in operation, but they have already exceeded expectations set for the business.
“So last year, my goal was 200 (deer processed), and I got 550,” Fleeman said. “So this year, I didn’t set a goal, and we are at right about 1,000.”