Dropped off elk at the Butcher. Got back beef

[Stone C. Killer]

Not sure what's going on. Dropped off a 340lb cow elk late December to butcher. Was in a rush throwing it in the freezer when I picked it up. Now I see about half the packages are labled "beef" none say elk on them but some are definitely elk. Ate some elk steaks that were amazing. Ate a pack that said beef on it tonight. It was beef. Nasty. Got 60lbs of sausage made out of it too. All the sausage is amazing and tastes like elk. Some packages have the lable "beef" crossed off. It a lot of effort to eat everything to tell what's what. And then can't do anything. Any suggestions on what to do? I picked it up like a month ago so if there was a issue I would like to think the Butcher would realize it and give me a call. I hate beef.

[604redneck]

Thats brutal id be going back and atleast get any money back you gave him whether he wants to pay or not

[keoke]

Wow, i am sure glad to have an honest butcher, with all the stories i have heard on this site There are some pretty shady ones out there.

[The Dawg]

Which butcher is this?

[tomahawk]

Meat cutters sometimes use what stamps they have for beef to stamp game, not unusal for this to happen. Usually they cross off the "Beef" name , they use the stamps for identifying what cut of meat you are opening. I would expect that the packages that had the "beef " stamp also had the cut of meat stamped below or above it as well? However it is possible that there was a mix up. Call him and ask him why it says beef, easy solution!!

[birdee]

mistakes happen ask then you will know.

[Steeleco]

It's not like they can use "hunting season" as an excuse for the mistake.

[Stone C. Killer]

Well I've taken the time to weigh it. Total elk meat I got back is 135 lbs. This includes the elk in the sausage based at .8 elk and .2 pork as per what he charged me. This also includes the wrapping. Total packages clearly labled beef = 40 lbs.

[bc_buckshot]

Curious which butcher was it

[zippermouth]

Well I've taken the time to weigh it. Total elk meat I got back is 135 lbs. This includes the elk in the sausage based at .8 elk and .2 pork as per what he charged me. This also includes the wrapping. Total packages clearly labled beef = 40 lbs.

the 340 pound cow was hanging weight skinned and gutted? how many packages have you ate so far? 135 seems fairly close to what it should have been? with a few variables, like shot placement, how long it hung to determine how much trim there was etc. I would call the butcher up and see what the deal is, if he screwed up you should be reimbursed for a good chunk of what you paid.

[Caribou_lou]

This is why I'm my own butcher.

[Stone C. Killer]

The Butcher bill was far from cheap. $612. There was no major meat loss from shots. 340lbs was the basis of the bill. Skinned, gutted, head off. The 135lbs includes what we have ate. It was frozen solid when I dropped it off. I'll give him a call tomorrow and see if he can enlighten me. We took 2 more cow elk to a different butcher and will be picking them up this Saturday. That bill will be $530 with 30lbs of sausage. I bit better I'd say.

[bc_buckshot]

So who is the butcher then!

[Stone C. Killer]

Haha. I'll let you know when it's done

[russm86]

Meat cutters sometimes use what stamps they have for beef to stamp game, not unusal for this to happen. Usually they cross off the "Beef" name , they use the stamps for identifying what cut of meat you are opening. I would expect that the packages that had the "beef " stamp also had the cut of meat stamped below or above it as well? However it is possible that there was a mix up. Call him and ask him why it says beef, easy solution!!

You sure it's actually beef? I too know of a few professional/commercial butchers that stamp all the game as beef or something common as they don't have stickers/labels/stamps for elk, deer, moose, bear, bison, etc. but it's always been the game we dropped off. I have never seen them cross out the "Beef" part on the labels as tomahawk mentioned. Now if half are marked one thing and the other marked something else, I might be more suspicious...

[Sofa King]

You sure it's actually beef? I too know of a few professional/commercial butchers that stamp all the game as beef or something common as they don't have stickers/labels/stamps for elk, deer, moose, bear, bison, etc. but it's always been the game we dropped off. I have never seen them cross out the "Beef" part on the labels as tomahawk mentioned. Now if half are marked one thing and the other marked something else, I might be more suspicious...

thats pretty weak if a butcher only has a "beef" stamp.
i wouldnt use someone like that, who is too damn cheap to have proper labelling, makes one wonder where else they might be trying to cut costs.
like maybe substituting someone's elk with beef.

[d6dan]

You sure it's actually beef? I too know of a few professional/commercial butchers that stamp all the game as beef or something common as they don't have stickers/labels/stamps for elk, deer, moose, bear, bison, etc. but it's always been the game we dropped off. I have never seen them cross out the "Beef" part on the labels as tomahawk mentioned. Now if half are marked one thing and the other marked something else, I might be more suspicious...

I dropped off some moose trim to be made into sausage and when I picked it up, it was stamped "elk meat". But I knew what it was..

[Stone C. Killer]

The one package I ate marked beef was 100% beef. All the packages that I believe are elk have a "E" stamped on them. But so do some of the ones that say beef on them....everything I guess would have been fine if I got all elk back not beef mixed in.

[Sofa King]

The one package I ate marked beef was 100% beef. All the packages that I believe are elk have a "E" stamped on them. But so do some of the ones that say beef on them....everything I guess would have been fine if I got all elk back not beef mixed in.

dont let them give you bullshit excuses.
you paid good money and dropped off an incredible animal, mislabelling is unacceptable and stealing some of it, or "making a mistake" is even more unacceptable.
make them accountable 100% for this.
if they dont want to take "resident hunters" meat seriously, then im sure us resident hunters can ensure that revenue source for themvanishes.

[randymac]

when my step daughter was young she helped label the packages as the meat was butchered and wrapped.
ended up with a freezer full of Mouse Burger

[Stone C. Killer]

If my calculations are any where near accurate the butcher ripped me off big time. We just picked up the other 2 cow elk from the good butcher and got 265lbs of meat off each elk which averaged 325lbs each on the hook. I will re weigh all the meat to make sure I'm not making any false accusations but this is starting to smell very fishy.

[huntcoop]

I'm willing to bet he f*cked you over big time. IF he doesn't come clean and sort you out I'd smear his name EVERYWHERE.

[Coachman]

Sounds like my deer experience this year. Two separate butchers. The smaller deer was nearly double the price and they chose to butcher the deer to what they wanted instead of the way i asked. I ended up with twice as much coil and no Italian sausage. The owner shrugged his shoulders and walked away, leaving the young girl at the counter to deal with it. They refused to adjust my bill. 40th avenue sound familiar...?

[The Dawg]

If my calculations are any where near accurate the butcher ripped me off big time. We just picked up the other 2 cow elk from the good butcher and got 265lbs of meat off each elk which averaged 325lbs each on the hook. I will re weigh all the meat to make sure I'm not making any false accusations but this is starting to smell very fishy.

265lbs of deboned off of 325lbs bone in sounds about right?

[Stone C. Killer]

Yes I requested bone out on all the cuts

[Stone C. Killer]

Personally I'm not a fan of the 40th ave one but it's looking like I have way more beef with the other one up the street

[scoutlt1]

Head over there, insist on speaking with the owner, and try and get it sorted out.

Then prepare for next fall. Learn how to butcher your own meat. Once you've done it, you'll never go back!

[zippermouth]

I don't know what I was thinking when I said 135 pounds of boned out meat the first time Is what to expect. I normally would say 70-80% of the hanging weight. there's lots of bones, fat and hard outer crust is what you loose. sounds like you got Fu*&(7*. sorry to hear that as it is a ton of work not to get the meat you put your time and effort into getting. hopefully the butcher takes accountability of this screw up. if not huntcoop is right on the money.

[Stone C. Killer]

I talked to the Butcher last week. Seems like he has a vague memory. Asked if it was dirty ect.... said I should have got at least 200 lbs off it. He wants me to bring by the beef. I will eventually. Just need to figure out exactly what's going on. Which is hard to do without cooking all the meat. The meat I ate had a "e" stamp on it as well as marked beef. He made it very confusing. I talked to my preferred butcher today, he mentioned this guy is starting to get a reputation for selling game out the back door. I think cow elk is the best so far..... If I'm missing over 100 lbs of prime cuts that's some good money. Just for the record all 3 elk I dropped off were whole and clean as can be.

[huntcoop]

He f*ucked you plain and simple, I'd be seeking vengeance.

[bc_buckshot]

So again who is this butcher. We should all be aware if this for the future. If you dont feel like saying it either didnt happen or your covering up

[Stone C. Killer]

Well lets look at the cuts I have as the are labled. Keep in mind they all have a "E" stamped on them but the "beef striploin" pack I ate was beef:

Beef bottom round= 15.4lbs in 5 packages
Beef Striploin= 9.5lbs in 10 packages
Beef Top Round= 15.8lbs in 6 Packages
Hamburger= 32.2lbs in 30 Packages
Rib Steak= 9.4lbs in 9 Packages
Sirloin Steak= 10.3lbs in 7 Packages
Sirloin Tip= 14.4lbs in 7 Packages
Stew= 17.4lbs in 15 Packages
Whole Tenderloin= 4lbs in 2 Packages
A Generous 50lbs for Sausage

Total Amount of Meat Back (including the pork he cut into the ground and the elk that is beef)= 178.76lbs

Total Elk Meat I should have received= 275lbs easy

Total Meat Short= at least 96lbs

Butcher Bill= $612 cash

If you guys have any more insight into this let me know. Obviously we all know the time and effort hunting takes and to leave it to a butcher to make a innocent or not innocent mistake is unacceptable.

[Stone C. Killer]

I am slow to slander people on-line. I want to be sure it is his mistake not mine before I will state his name. I will re weight the meat soon with a different scale just in case. Not that I think anything is wrong with my scale. The weights I have so far are on a fairly new digital scale and all the packages were weighed individually with the wrapping paper included in the weight.

[LongTines_TightLines]

Sounds like the beginning of a bad joke.

[Ambush]

If you took in a skinned, whole elk and it weighed 350 pounds on the hook then you should get back about about 60% of that weight in boneless meat. Possibly less.

Even if you don't butcher yourself, you should always take off the front legs and bone out the ribs, neck and loins [back straps]. Take in only the hinds intact, front legs and the bagged meat. Why pay for bone that is going to be thrown out. Next time you kill an animal, remove all the meat from the front and separate it from the hinds. Now pick that boned out front up and see how much it ways.

The more mature the animal the better the meat to bone ration is. Young animals are the most costly to have butchered for amount of returned meat.

[bc_buckshot]

I am slow to slander people on-line. I want to be sure it is his mistake not mine before I will state his name. I will re weight the meat soon with a different scale just in case. Not that I think anything is wrong with my scale. The weights I have so far are on a fairly new digital scale and all the packages were weighed individually with the wrapping paper included in the weight.

Im not saying you have to slander im saying just say who you delt with. And if your so quick to claim that the butcher messed up your order and cheaped you out and put it on HBC why cant you be so quick let people know hey i delt with this butcher and had a bad expierance. Maybe someone else delt with him and never noticed it. I dunno if this was a first time you delt with them but i have delt with the same butcher for 12 years and never had an issue. I
have also delt with a butcher who happens to be my neighbour that i have no issue saying he cant cut game worth shit and i fed his pepperoni to the dogs. Thats why i will drive 45 away to my normal butcher.

[Beaverhunter]

Penguin meats?

[crazy ducker]

I am slow to slander people on-line. I want to be sure it is his mistake not mine before I will state his name. how is it your mistake did you shot a beef cow by mistake

[Stone C. Killer]

No not penguin meats.

[Stone C. Killer]

I'm not too concerned with the bill compared to the expense to go hunting in the first place. I would like to get the most meat back and have the animal aged for 2 weeks or so if possible. Especially when butchers are willing to age it while they are not that busy. I figure the more meat that is de boned the more meat loss there will be due to trim. This is why I generally try to bring in my animals whole. So I can get it nicely aged in conjunction with the best possible yield.

[Stone C. Killer]

I would like to agree with the 60% but the other 2 elk we just had done yielded 82% with the same instructions. I know the 2nd butcher aged them for 2 weeks. I don't know about the first one but it took a while to thaw as it was frozen solid when dropped off.

[j270wsm]

On average the bull elk I've shot weighed 430-465 at the butchers. Id guess I only ever got 220lbs of de-boned meat from each elk. I've been usin the same butcher for 15yrs. best things about this butcher is he charges a flat rate of $150 for elk/moose, $35 deer, and I watch/help him butcher every animal I take him so I know I'm getting my animal.

[Stone C. Killer]

Wow, that's like 51%

[Stone C. Killer]

And really cheap too. You must live in the kootenays or something. Must be nice. I'm in the LM

[celticwolf]

On average the bull elk I've shot weighed 430-465 at the butchers. Id guess I only ever got 220lbs of boned meat from each elk. I've been usin the same butcher for 15yrs. best things about this butcher is he charges a flat rate of $150 for elk/moose, $35 deer, and I watch/help him butcher every animal I take him so I know I'm getting my animal.

Where's this? Id like to give them my money lol

[Whonnock Boy]

I completely agree with this statement. I've been part of, or completely been butchering my own game for almost 15 years. De-boned, fat completely removed, and the entire animal skimmed yields 50 to 55%. Four does last year on a group draw averaging 85 pounds a piece netted 170 pounds of meat. Just saying....


you should get back about about 60% of that weight in boneless meat. Possibly less.

[Rhyno]

I remember getting about 160lb of meat from the last cow elk I shot, average size. The yield you got off the other 2 animals is huge! Was that just cuts or sausage too?

[Stone C. Killer]

That included all the trim for sausage. Butcher said larger animals like cow elk have a better meat/bone ratio than deer. I was blown away by how much meat I got off my moose and caribou this year compared to the deer

[M.Dean]

On average the bull elk I've shot weighed 430-465 at the butchers. Id guess I only ever got 220lbs of boned meat from each elk. I've been usin the same butcher for 15yrs. best things about this butcher is he charges a flat rate of $150 for elk/moose, $35 deer, and I watch/help him butcher every animal I take him so I know I'm getting my animal. Holy Cow! I charge 15 bucks a day just to hang a Moose, Elk or Beef! For a 150 bucks I'd be wiser to take my own Moose and Deer to this guy to butcher for me!

[Stone C. Killer]

Most butchers around here would tell me to f off if I asked to help them

[j270wsm]

Local guy ( mor - jerky in elkford ) is awesome, but he doesn't hang wild game. We hang in in the meat cooler at the union hall( $3/day for union members, $7/day for non union ) He works a 4x4 shift at the coal mine then butchers all 4 of his days off. Iirc, last fall my elk ( butchered cost with 30# sausages ) was around $230.

[yama49]

I Think your expecting to much meat back from a cow elk, bull elk i shot this year was around 240lbs.

[ianwuzhere]

over 80% cut and wrapped off a whole animal? that seems pretty high cuz bones are pretty heavy.. 60% seems about correct, i agree with ambush. Unless your getting cuts with bone in them.