Dealing with animal hair

[Sniperdan]

Okay, so how does everyone else deal with hair on their meat? I know I go out to the game pole every day and pick hair off and it is a pain in the Ass! So I am sitting here thinking...what if I picked up a set of cordless livestock clippers? Then when I get an animal on the ground, before I start field dressing, give a quick shave to the area I am about to cut. Anybody ever tried this? Maybe you have livestock and have used the clippers. Think this would be worthwhile? I know there will still be hair to deal with, but if you can clean it all off and get rid of it before you start cutting then there is nothing for it to stick to. I am interested in hearing opinions.

[Drillbit]

Not sure what you are doing, but there isn't that much for us.

Usually after everything is hanging we stand around and BS about the hunt and pick the hairs that have stuck. Mainly just along the gutting line.

How much hair are you dealing with to think you need to shave things before skinning?

[squamishhunter]

Vinegar and a rag

[wideopenthrottle]

skin ankles back before hanging
always cut skin from inward out not through the hair
keep your knife hand and knife clean wipe frequently onto the nice clean hide lower down
keep hair side of the hide rolling away from the meat as you go
flush out gut cavity well

[Whonnock Boy]

I've witnessed a few new hunters cutting the outside of the hide when attempting to open the animal up, and continue on with the same technique throughout the entire animal, actually cutting the hair. It's everywhere! The trick is to cut from the inside out, sliding your knife up and under the hide away from you. Very little hair falls out, and what does along the way should be wiped off through the whole process.

[Sniperdan]

I have skinned a lot of game I know how to cut from inside to reduce hair. Maybe I am just a little anal-retentive and OCD but I hate having even a single hair on my meat. Just contemplating an easier method particularly on Moose since I usually quarter it before I skin the hide off which results in extra hair on the meat.

[Whonnock Boy]

Fair enough. I think everyone has to pick hair, and I don't believe there is an easier method.

[skibum]

skin ankles back before hanging



This is a good tip

[Gateholio]

Don 't get it on the meat in the first place. Do the gutless method, and pick off the few hairs that get on the meat.

[Sharpish]

Scrape it off with the side of a knife or a loop of stiff banding. I always scrape everything, takes off hair and blood clots and dirt. Works wonders

[BCBear]

a horse brush gets most of it off but will have to pick as well to get the strays.

[landphil]

A quick wave of a propane torch will singe the hair so it's easily brushed off. Or do like I did with the last animal to two when I hung them in my shop - vacuum with the shop vac and clean / freshly washed hose. Worked awesome!

[Frango]

Fair enough. I think everyone has to pick hair, and I don't believe there is an easier method.
Yes picking hair is a choir we all do. You just need to be extra diligent in the quartering process .As someone mentioned when it is hanging crack a beer and enjoy the group clean up. It's what makes good hunting partners. A brush and vinegar makes for a clean animal. I have dropped off animals at the butcher at the same time others have and have seen how bad an animal is delivered to a butcher can get. Doing it right is easy and appreciated. Some don't get the concept.

[.264winmag]

Pressure wash as soon as hide is off. Or as said s stiff brush once set up.

[J_T]

I don't think shaving an animal before handling it would be wise. You'd have so much lose hair it would be comical.

Vinegar and a rag is standard in camp.
A small propane torch and just burn them off is fast.

Agree with the above. if done right, you shouldn't have too much hair. This can also be trimmed off once the meat has set. I find the bigger issue is having something to put large quarters on as you are quartering, and getting the quarters out of thick bush without having leaves and needles attach to the quarters as you fight your way through the bush and fall and roll on the forest floor with a heavy pack. Last year I had an elk that looked like I had put forest herbs all over it. When butchering, just take a knife and take the thin outside layer off.

[BTF]

You can also use the tongue of the animal to wipe the hair off, dip it in a pail of water to rid the tongue of hair and repeat. works great on moose.

[Onesock]

Make sure when you're skinningyou cut from the inside of the hide. Dont cut the hair.

[.264winmag]

You can also use the tongue of the animal to wipe the hair off, dip it in a pail of water to rid the tongue of hair and repeat. works great on moose.
Yessssssss

[SR80]

bear hair is such a pain in the ass!

[Backwoods]

Lol I stole a spare set of tweezers from the ol' lady to pick any pieces of hair off, works great nice and quick!! I have a few friends that pressure wash the meat once skinned and hanging but I choice not to get any water on the meat due to water creating bactiria really quickly on your meat, a butcher once told me to never ever have water contact the meat! Not even bags of ice leaking on the meat, better to have it dry!! So in done my best to sit and have a beer remember the hunt and clean any hairs off with tweezers!!! Give it a try

[Glenny]

You can also use the tongue of the animal to wipe the hair off, dip it in a pail of water to rid the tongue of hair and repeat. works great on moose.

This technique is amazeballs. Works like a hot damn...what ever that is. lol

[Xenomorph]

Lol I stole a spare set of tweezers from the ol' lady to pick any pieces of hair off, works great nice and quick!! I have a few friends that pressure wash the meat once skinned and hanging but I choice not to get any water on the meat due to water creating bactiria really quickly on your meat, a butcher once told me to never ever have water contact the meat! Not even bags of ice leaking on the meat, better to have it dry!! So in done my best to sit and have a beer remember the hunt and clean any hairs off with tweezers!!! Give it a try


What he said, I'd rather have a dried layer with/out random hairs then water on the meat. I bring with me clean rags, once it's hung up and drying I can take the rag and try to pick, wipe any dirt/hair that might still be there.

I don't find it as a chore though, with a nice large portion of scotch/cognac it's a pleasure to feel the sweet smell of the meat as you're going at it. Great outdoors, good drinks, good company, something to do to keep occupied?

Anyway, keep doing what you're doing man, think of the poor guys out there wanting "hair problems" but never getting to see one :)

[Good2bCanadian]

1st. Try to be clean and limit hair to the minimum.
2nd. Small propane torch to singe the hair and a dry clean rag or 3 to wipe off.

[Iron Glove]

You can also use the tongue of the animal to wipe the hair off, dip it in a pail of water to rid the tongue of hair and repeat. works great on moose.

That's exactly what I did when I got my first deer - worked like a charm.
Had to quell the stomach a bit as my buddy / mentor tossed me the fresh tongue but got used to it pretty quick. :grin:

[sausage lover]

Vinegar and a ragWe do this aswell,works and helps keep flies away.

[wideopenthrottle]

my hunting partners dad (my other hunting partner) is 75 he is old school and keeps tongues, hearts, livers, and even lungs...I draw the line at lungs but like liver and heart and can handle a tongue (I actually enjoy a little tongue once in awhile...er..heheheh)

[Glenny]

WTF WOT? Any good lung recipes? I hear they can be breathtaking. ohhhhh! OK that was lame. :roll:

[barry1974w]

I used a torch for the first time on a couple elk last season. Worked awesome. I did one right after the hide came off, and one after the surface of the meat had time to dry. Both worked, but it seemed to me the dried one worked the best, quick once over with the torch (I used a tiger torch), then what was left I just brushed off with my hands.

[wideopenthrottle]

WTF WOT? Any good lung recipes? I hear they can be breathtaking. ohhhhh! OK that was lame. :roll:
the lungs all get chopped up and thrown in with tongue and heart with a kind of gravy......the bits of lung float in the stew...I was not interested in trying it and I am pretty adventurous with food.....when I was offered it at his house, I asked his son (my age) "what do you think of it?" he replied "I don't eat that shit"...heheheheh so I declined...

[Xenomorph]

my hunting partners dad (my other hunting partner) is 75 he is old school and keeps tongues, hearts, livers, and even lungs...I draw the line at lungs but like liver and heart and can handle a tongue (I actually enjoy a little tongue once in awhile...er..heheheh)

My parents make a pate, ridiculously good.

Organs (liver, hearts, lungs ...no tongue) boiled with spices, grounded, salted and spiced again, casing used is the thick pork intestines. Now, once in casings you bring a big pot up to boil, I think you're only supposed to dip, or few minutes - anyway, they've always kicked me out of the kitchen at this step because "I'm taking the space"

Then my dad dries and smokes them. Needless to say, it's delicious, that on toast or with fresh veggies and toast ...or rake some garlic on toasted bread, drip some olive oil and spread some pate.

Anyone else hungry?

[wideopenthrottle]

I have made pate with liver before.... it turned out awesome..it was about 2/3 liver 1/3 uncut bacon slab, lots of garlic and sage...cooked in a double boiler in the oven...yum yum..i'll have to try and find the recipe again for next year

[Z71]

I don't think I'd try shaving any hair off the animal before making the first cut to open it up, there'd be so much loose hair lying around you'd end up with more on the meat for sure that way...we always gut the animal (deer mostly) in the field, then peel the hide off once hanging back at camp.. give it a good wipedown with vinegar and a rag, that will get the dust, blood and most of the hair off.

theres always going to be a few stray hairs stuck to the carcass but once it starts to tack-up go back and brush them off with the flat of your knife while admiring your success!

[wideopenthrottle]

http://nourishingjoy.com/three-pates-to-satisfy-every-palate/

here are a few pate recipes... they look pretty easy and make something awesome instead of critter food...I will try to find my pate recipe and post it too

[sawmill]

Okay, so how does everyone else deal with hair on their meat? I know I go out to the game pole every day and pick hair off and it is a pain in the Ass! So I am sitting here thinking...what if I picked up a set of cordless livestock clippers? Then when I get an animal on the ground, before I start field dressing, give a quick shave to the area I am about to cut. Anybody ever tried this? Maybe you have livestock and have used the clippers. Think this would be worthwhile? I know there will still be hair to deal with, but if you can clean it all off and get rid of it before you start cutting then there is nothing for it to stick to. I am interested in hearing opinions.

I use the welders trick, clamp the negative to the azz and the positive to the nose and hit the switch.BANG !!!!
Seriously,use a sharp knife and pay attention. Easy, just common sense. When it`s tacky you can brush off any hairs wearing a leather glove or wire brush. Just be carefull and don`t use your knife every inch of the way, you can peel 80% of the hide off clean.

[Rhyno]

Agree with the above. if done right, you shouldn't have too much hair. This can also be trimmed off once the meat has set. I find the bigger issue is having something to put large quarters on as you are quartering, and getting the quarters out of thick bush without having leaves and needles attach to the quarters as you fight your way through the bush and fall and roll on the forest floor with a heavy pack. Last year I had an elk that looked like I had put forest herbs all over it. When butchering, just take a knife and take the thin outside layer off.

I saw a picture of that Jim, your pack horse sent it to me...game bags man, game bags. Not the cheap cheese cloth from CT, I have a reusable set made from heavy cotton, old sheets also work well.

[Glenny]

the lungs all get chopped up and thrown in with tongue and heart with a kind of gravy......the bits of lung float in the stew...I was not interested in trying it and I am pretty adventurous with food.....when I was offered it at his house, I asked his son (my age) "what do you think of it?" he replied "I don't eat that shit"...heheheheh so I declined...

Cripes I think I would have said I think i left the iron on and got out qvik! Aah who am I kidding I would have tried it. I don't know about that moose nose recipe from Newfounland though.. Maybe we can hear about it on the innerdz thread.

[Slinky Pickle]

When I have deer or bear hanging in my shop I just let it sit over night and then give it a blast of air from my compressor. Just run the nozzle around and watch the bits all come off. It works way better than you might think.

[Glenny]

When I have deer or bear hanging in my shop I just let it sit over night and then give it a blast of air from my compressor. Just run the nozzle around and watch the bits all come off. It works way better than you might think.

Wow thats a good one.

[4x4]

http://nourishingjoy.com/three-pates-to-satisfy-every-palate/

here are a few pate recipes... they look pretty easy and make something awesome instead of critter food...I will try to find my pate recipe and post it too


Thx for this.
I'm going to try to make some after our fall Whitetail hunt. I'm a rookie hunter and didn't keep any organs from my first ever hunt last year.

We were gone for 5 days. So how do you keep the liver? Will it be ok in a cooler for that long or should I freeze it after gutting the animal?

[elknut]

Backwoods.....Have you ever been in a butcher shop when an animal is killed and the guts dropped out?...They then skin the animal and then wash the entire carcass ...My butcher told me washing the meat in vinegar and baking soda in hot water ...then after scrubbing dry completely ....A little air circulating around the meat and a skin will form ...You then can bag the quarters in good quality meat bags to keep the meat clean ...I also scrub the ribs and inside area with a stiff bristle brush...Also when skinning it helps to pull the hide off as much as you can..Being doing this for 50 years and my butcher says I have some of the cleanest meat ..Just my 2 bits to the subject ...Dennis

[redthorn]

It all sounds like too much work so far. Or messy. Just use a clean nozzle (4" wide) on the shop vac. So fast and not a hair in site. We use it on all our animals and it cleans it up in a single pass.

[35rem]

Shaving will make things worse as now you have hair that is not attached anymore and will fly all over the place.

[Backwoods]

Backwoods.....Have you ever been in a butcher shop when an animal is killed and the guts dropped out?...They then skin the animal and then wash the entire carcass ...My butcher told me washing the meat in vinegar and baking soda in hot water ...then after scrubbing dry completely ....A little air circulating around the meat and a skin will form ...You then can bag the quarters in good quality meat bags to keep the meat clean ...I also scrub the ribs and inside area with a stiff bristle brush...Also when skinning it helps to pull the hide off as much as you can..Being doing this for 50 years and my butcher says I have some of the cleanest meat ..Just my 2 bits to the subject ...Dennis
Yes have been in many many butcher shops, I believe everyone has their own way of doing things, I've been told from more than one butcher it is not good to have water contacting the meat due to bacteria growing quicker on the meat, I have never needed to wash my meat off with water, ussually just a few hairs to pick off. Also if it is getting washed in the butcher shop, it's in a good clean cold environment. Clean wash and roll the hanger into the cooler.

[M.Dean]

You can also use the tongue of the animal to wipe the hair off, dip it in a pail of water to rid the tongue of hair and repeat. works great on moose. Oh yea, great bloody tip here BTF!!! I tried that a few years ago after I read it on here, that buck god dam near killed me when I started to pull his tongue out to wipe away the hair on his hind quarters!!! He had me pinned to the ground with his horns for a good 20 minutes until the rest of his guts finally fell out!!! I pressure wash now and use a "Concrete" brush, it's way bloody safer let me tell you!

[Norwestalta]

I find when you start the opening cut cant your knife about 5 degrees. A sharp knife makes a heckuva difference as well. Generally we skin the brisket back and split it, skin the hocks. We skin first then drop the guts. A tractor with a loader makes this very easy.

[markomoose]

I usually get my animal first day and have the rest of the week to pick hair while my buddies are trying to fill their tag.Unfortunately you become "CAMP B*TCH"

[Machinist]

As mentioned earlier in this thread , We just fire up the Tiger torch and run it quickly across the quarters and singe the hair off , its quick and easy and does a fantastic job , An old butcher showed us this method and we have been doing it for over 20 years.

[Buckmeister]

When I used to hang my own meat I used the propane tiger torch. Some guys I know use compressed air. However, I just take my animals straight to my butcher now. He has a nicely set up shop where he lives. We hang it up and skin it right there. He hoses the carcass down with the hottest water he can muster, towel dry then hang in the cooler for a week or so. Nicest meat I've ever had. His day job is butchering for a big grocery chain store. He says the major big time butcher shops use near scalding hot water to hose down the meat. If done right away the skin that forms on the carcass is very light, so there is very little waste when needing to cut this skin away when cutting.

[wideopenthrottle]

Thx for this.
I'm going to try to make some after our fall Whitetail hunt. I'm a rookie hunter and didn't keep any organs from my first ever hunt last year.

We were gone for 5 days. So how do you keep the liver? Will it be ok in a cooler for that long or should I freeze it after gutting the animal?
i always carry a good strong plastic bag to put the liver in after i lay it on the snow/somewhere clean to drain.. then cool it asap or freeze it for pate later if you have to