Is It Legal To Grill Roadkill In Illinois Or Iowa?

You really think we're gonna be wasteful in this economy?

At some point or another we've all seen some kind of unfortunate critter laying on the road, likely with guts galore splattered everywhere.

Roadkill can run the animal kingdom gamut-armadillos, deer, foxes, birds, and more.

But if you were to hit a deer or animal, putting it in the car to take home for a dinner might seem like the moral thing to do, right?

Illinois' Very Specific Law

Before you lose your minds, eating roadkill can be perfectly healthy, according to experts. It's just not in the wrapped chicken containers you're used to seeing at the grocery store.

In Illinois, to claim roadkill, you have to have a furbearer license. And if you hit a deer on the road and decide to take it with you, you have to report it to the Illinois DNR within 24 hours.

But according to Chicago station WGN, non-Illinois residents cannot claim roadkill deer.

Iowa's Roadkill Laws

Meanwhile, Iowa's laws on claiming roadkill aren't as specific.

If you hit an animal you want to take with you, you need to find the nearest conservation officer, Iowa State Trooper, or sheriff's department and request a salvage tag for the animal.

But, if you're the kind with a hustle mindset, your bubble will get burst with this one. You can't trade or sell roadkill game animals. 

Recent stats show that Iowa ranks 7th in the states most likely for deer/car collisions, according to State Farm.

Besides deer, other edible roadkill we might see around here include pheasants, fox, bear, raccoon, or squirrel. Chefs have done posts on how to tell if a roadkill animal you found is safe to consume.

But if you do decide to grill up some roadkill this summer, maybe wait until everyone at the cookout has had their plate before you tell them what the meat actually was.