After the Kill (deer)

[Nube]

If anyone could give me a walk through on what they do after they kill a deer that would be great. I know pretty much how to field dress and skin the deer but is there a certain time that you should hang the deer for? I've heard of rubbing vinegar over the carcass afterwards to keep it fresh? Also is there a certain time that you should freeze the deer before you eat it? Is it bad to eat the meat fresh like at camp after the kill?

[3kills]

after its dead and u know its dead cut ur tag gut it and then get it home hang it skin it and then wash it up with water or water and viniger or even a lil bit of bleach..let it hang for a few days and then cut it up and eat it...u can cut a steak off as soon as its killed if u want

[DDD]

Wash the meat with bleach?

[bowhunterbruce]

once you have cleaned your animal get it into a cooler.hanging your animal in a cooler ages the meat (relaxes)it.on average most butchers will hang a deer for a week before butchering it and longer for animals like moose and elk.if your going to be in the bush for any period of time and depending on the time of year and tempature you should cover the animal with a game bag or 2 before you hang it in a cool shady place.the animal will develope a dried skin on it fairly quickly yet it will cool.as you can see the most important thing you need to do is get the animal cooled of as fast as possible and keep the flies off of it.after an animal is shot the tempature arond the heavier meat areas will start to accually cook themselfs from the inside out therefore distroying he meat.
as for eating your game,i have eatin the tenderloins for lunch over an open fire right after cleaning out the animal so i believe you shouldnt have any problems eating any part of a ungulate (hoofed animal) other then how tough it it or isnt.in fact at many many hunting camps it is tradition to have a meal of the harvested animal for dinner that night and no you dont have to wait for the meat to be frozen for any period of time

[Rock Doctor]

Wash the meat with bleach?

A very small amount won't hurt it.

[bowhunterbruce]

bleach wow now thats a new one im pretty sure thats gonna make someone real sick.after all bleach will kill everything

[Ron.C]

Never hear of mixing beach in with water to clean it??

I think the best thing to do if it's warm out, get the guts out and hide off as soon as you can to help the meat dissipate that body temp as quick as possible. As far as hanging and aging the deer, you'll hear lots of different opinions. I think you'll want to hang it at a minimum long enough to get the temperature down a couple degrees. But like posted above, alot of butchers hang deer for over a week. Not that it has to be, but it will keep just fine until they get to it. And it's easier to butcher once it's cooled down .

You don't need to feeze it before you eat some of it. There's nothing wrong with some great fresh tenderloin on the BBQ.

[Ddog]

bleach in small quantities is actually edible, thats why you pour it into wells to kill bacteria and to clean the water, however i have never washed my game meat with it.
i do however always wash my game, when its hanging, with a 50/50 solution water, vinegar. The reason for this is to kill any bacteria that has started or will start. The vinegar is not to keep the game fresh.

[dutchie]

I don't know if you ment how to feild dress the deer. It is outlined in the Core manual but there is a few different ways. (pretty much get the guts out any way possible to cool the deer down to avoid spoil)

1. First you need to cut the anus out and tie it shut. (some skip this step and then they are doing step 2 they cut the pelvic bone, with a saw, so you don't ruin your knife)

2. slice a small cut just above the penis and carfully make sure you do not cut open the innerds, and cut up to the rib cage. (you need to leave proof of sex so sometimes people leave the balls and penis on, but the rack is just as good of an indicator to the sex as the balls are)

3.you need to pull some of the guts out so you can cut the esophogus free from the body. (Some people cut the ribcage open to do this.)

4. try to get all the guts and junk out of the cavity, and you will want to take off the sent gland of the buck (back legs around the "knee" on the inside of the deer) as soon as possible because these can spoil meat.

then do as everyone else said, clean it out and hang it if you can. the absolute most important part is getting it cooled down

from what I undertand hanging a deer ages or tenderizes the meat before it is frozen. Angus beef is usually ages 10-12 days before it is frozen or sold.

A good friend of mine shot a deer on Halloween night, we butchared it and froze it that night and it still tastes amazing

I hope that makes sense

dutchie

[threedhunter]

bleach in solution with water kills all bacteria that cause mold to grow. i recommend to my students a mix of 1/4 cup bleach to 3or 4 liters of warm water to wash the gut cavity and any cut surfaces to get the blood off.
the acidic blood causes mold to grow, so clean it off, no mold.
hanging meat as previosly stated , ages(tenderizes)the meat so the longer you can hang it without drying the meat out, the better.just my .02.

[Rock Doctor]

bleach wow now thats a new one im pretty sure thats gonna make someone real sick.after all bleach will kill everything

In small quantities it's fine. We use it to clean/sterilize all kinds of things.
Water wells
Holding Tanks
Floors
Counters
Bathrooms
Dishes, Cups, Cutlery
Walls
ect

I have never used it when hanging meat, but I would not hesitate to do so if I thought it needed it:smile:

Personally, I can hardly stand the smell of the stuff, but sometimes things need to be sterilized (once a yr, or so)

RD

[yukon john]

a big feed of fresh game (i.e. same day) can give you the runs sometimes I have found this particularly true with caribou

[Manglinmike]

When I was a kid just starting to hunt with my dad, I asked him what I should do if I was lucky enough to get a deer when I was on my own?He replied to me as dads do ,well son you take everything thats on the inside and put it on the outside! All methods work some are just cleaner than others.

[quackquackbang]

when we shoot an animal and if flys are a problem we put pepper on the meat keeps the flys off!!! until you can get it somewhere where the flys cant get at it!!!!

[RustyRipper]

Anybody know whether it's okay to freeze the animal in question and then thaw it out for the butcher and then re-freeze it for the deep freezer at home? It must be okay as I have done it before (hanging deer in dawson creek when its -25 doesn't tenderize meat) but I've been told that as a rule meat should only be frozen once. Any truth to that?

[Mr. Dean]

Deer Processing 101.


It's a DVD that IMO, is INVALUABLE to the Hunter. It covers everything from the second after the trigger is squeezed, to closing the freezer door.

~ $25.00 in various hunting stores. :wink:

[kyleklassen]

In small quantities it's fine. We use it to clean/sterilize all kinds of things.
Water wells
Holding Tanks
Floors
Counters
Bathrooms
Dishes, Cups, Cutlery
Walls
ect


RDfish holds..

[randymac]

if its your first deer you gotta eat the heart (raw)

[RustyRipper]

fish holds..

As long as you don't mix it with rust be gone as I did when I was a youngen, only happened once though. Thought I was done for.

[Rock Doctor]

fish holds..

Starting to feel like I'm hijacking the thread, but .....Yes, it should not be a problem. I use it when I do our anual "Major Clean" on the 77gal fishtank at home. Just don't use too much, and make sure you feed the bottom feeders some alge tablets for a couple months after.


Sorry for getting off topic:redface:

RD

[spreerider]

bleach dissapates very rapidly when drying, it forms chlorine gass, that is the bleach smell. bleach in a 40:1 solution with water is safe to drink and bleach was used as disenfectant for water much like iodine tabs are used by hikers.
I have never myself used bleach on an animal hanging but i have used vinager for the same effect, just vinigar is more natural imo and works almost as good,
Viniger is a great cleaner for household use as well, especially for windows and fishtanks

[3kills]

Anybody know whether it's okay to freeze the animal in question and then thaw it out for the butcher and then re-freeze it for the deep freezer at home? It must be okay as I have done it before (hanging deer in dawson creek when its -25 doesn't tenderize meat) but I've been told that as a rule meat should only be frozen once. Any truth to that?

when sausage gets processed the meat is usualy froze and then thawed then refrozen...i wouldnt hesitate to do it i think refreezin meat is a wives tale..as long as its in proper conditions i think it will be fine

[3kills]

Wash the meat with bleach?

ya bleach..thats what we were taught in school...i m talkin like a cap full in a big bucket not like u just rub this stuff right on it...very lil bleach to lots of water..

[JeremyCarrano302]

if you use water and vinegar make sure its white vinegar not red wine or apple cider cuz it will sour your meat

[trapperRick]

Deer,Elk,Moose are like beef the longer you hang the meat, the better the meat, I like 14 days min and up to 21 if you can, thats good eats

[trapperRick]

As for refreezing meat for making sausage if you do do this, make sure you but the liquid thats there after you thaw the meat out back in the mix as that is the flavour of the meat and don't do it more than once

[Jehiah]

#1. Make sure you have a clean blade througout! Cut the scent glands out first; wash blade really really well or use a new knife. Cut the cavity open etc. and cut the bowel LAST.
#2. Get that sucker cold ASAP! Cut out all of the esophagus because it holds a lot of bacteria and can spoil the meat around the neck which is often thrown into the "burger bin" and can spoil a batch (obviously make sure you are super careful around the anus and colon for e. coli reasons and rinse the cavity out well).
#3. Keep in mind that all this tenderizing talk and hanging game meat for days like cattle should be contracted out to a liscenced butcher/game cooler as they can ensure longest aging time without risk of spoiling meat. (not to mention even they have cut and toss a lot of rotten flesh from the animal after aging before they butcher it.)

[870]

I like cutin out the ribs and bbq-ing them that night