Hunter service · Bear & elk
Where to Take a Bear or Elk in PA: Only 9 Processors List Bear
Pennsylvania hunters take thousands of black bears a year, mostly in the northern tier. Yet out of 306 processors in the state, only 9 say publicly that they process bear and 10 say they process elk. Not one of the bear processors is in the Northcentral Region, the heart of bear country. Many deer processors likely take bear and just don't say so.
9List bear processing
10List elk processing
0Bear processors, Northcentral
Nov 21Bear firearms opener
Statewide regular firearms bear season runs Nov. 21 to 24, 2026, the week before the deer opener (PGC season dates; confirm in the hunting digest). Call before the season. A 300-pound bear is not a deer, and shops that take them often limit how many.
Processors that list bear or elk
Questions to ask when you call
- Do you take bear this season, and is there a limit on how many?
- Skinned or whole? Some shops only take bear already skinned and quartered.
- What's the price, and is it by the animal or by the pound?
- For elk: can you handle a whole animal, or should it come in quartered?