The Cost Of Ignorance ... Cool It Man !

[ydouask]

:evil:
This rant can't help but make me sound very self righteous, mea culpa, mea culpa, but, after knowing of three ELK ruined this season because of hunter neglect, here goes....
For years now many inexperienced hunters and those inexperienced in killing and processing animals for food have been watching rented hunting videos and WILD TV. Both venues I think are guilty of perpetrating the myth that leaving animals overnight without gutting, skinning and cooling is normal proceedure. Well, it might be if;

You only want the antlers and are donating the meat to an orphanage
or,
Your goal is to get good bright video footage... to sell, or,

You are afraid of the dark, or,
You can't find your way in the dark ( no compass) ( no GPS)
You don't know the first thing about gutting, skinning, quartering. or,
You can't afford a flashlight, Petzl,
You are Out of cell range, no radio...
I'm sure you can think of lots more excuses, but there isn't one good reason to leave a dead animal which you have found, with its's hide on , in less than six pieces, on the ground all day or overnight. THE MEAT WILL SPOIL.

So, if you must hunt in the late afternoon and be there for that golden hour that's great. But BE PREPARED FOR AN ALL NIGHTER... working , packing, skinning , hanging, or cooling out meat.
Failing these preparations you WILL eventually have your turn to hear these words from the butcher. " Get it out of here ! It is bone sour, it has turned green ".
What a WASTE. Most Unethical behaviour in my books, should be an indictable offense.:twisted:
Fortunately, ignorance can be cured with some education. Stupidity on the other hand....
There, I'm done with the rant. Feel better already. Now, how can more emphasis be put on the need to get that hide off and get it into about six pieces to cool as quickly as possible???:cry:

[eastkoot]

Think that's bad?? I came across a very legal 6 point carcase today 50 yards from the road in plain site. Could have backed the truck up to it for G's sake. .. Buzzards and a G bear have all but cleaned it up but geez, it's beside the road in plain site. Guess they wanted to see it fall and had no tag, no other reason I can think of...

[lip_ripper00]

Good post,I have spent many long nights recovering skining cleaning and quartering. Doesent matter what time of day the animal is taken nobody rests untill it is hung and washed. Once saw a bull moose in the back of a P/U on the Port Mann, pulled head first in to the box tailgate down.......... It was not gutted:cry:

[lilhoss]

Agreed with all of that.I've seen of few posts on here where "they lost daylight" and went back to retrieve it another day.If it ain't gutted,it is garbage.It's a full package,this hunting thing,not just about the pictures.

[PointMan]

I agree 100%, when I dropped my buck the other day, as excited as I was and even though I had neve gutted an animal before, all I could think was; "It's afternoon, it's warm and the flies are already on it, I need to get this animal gutted and get it cool or it's no good to anyone." It was a lot of work and not a little intimidating, but leaving it for later never entered my mind for a second.

[knockturnal]

2 weeks ago, i shot a nice whitetail buck at last light at 170 yards away. I grab a flashlight and head right to where i hit him. All that i found was a patch of hair and that was it. As i got to the spot, i heard the sound of deer running away from me. I figure, shit, maybe i should have left him longer then the 10 min that it took me to grab a flashlight and go to the spot of the shot. I looked for the next 2 hours in pitch black in the thickest, skankiest bush that ive ever had to deal with. I couldnt find any blood or anything!!! its like he dissapeared into the bush. I spent the whole night laying in bed replaying the shot in my head. Barely slept. Got up the next morning and took the girlfriend and my lab out to keep on looking. Got there at 6am and the dog found it 2 hours later roughly 75 yards from the kill spot wedged inbetween 2 logs. We must have walked within 10 ft of it multiple times. but until the dog got a whiff of it, it was lost to me. So, what im saying is, what if you do everything possible and you have no choice but to leave it over night?? Im sure some people would jsut give up if they cant find it that night, but its the hunters job to expend their efforts until he/she is sure that they will not find the animal.

That was the first animal that i have had to leave over night and i DO AGREE with you on the ruining of meat. I did all that i could do and my butcher told me that it reminded him of a wet dog as he cut it up. Lets just say that my parents husky/wolf cross is eating well.

[Mauser7x57]

AGREE 100%: Pulling the trigger is the easiest part of the hunt and what those shows neglect to show you is the production involved in processing that animal. Unfortunately Hollywood only cares about the amount of bone sticking out of its head:)....Happy Hunting season...

[fozzy]

Great post! I know an older fellow that in their group shot 4 Moose in one day last year. They got one out that day, the other three bone soured. Disgusting! My wife shot her moose near the end of the day last year and I stayed up until about 3:30 until it was quartered and hanging. Whatever it takes is my feeling in the matter.

[Rattler]

I think it needs to be stressed that the hide must come off even if you quartered your animal. Keep the hide on to keep the meat clean, but then when your back at home/camp take the hide off.

[slowkey]

Have shot a couple animals (elk, moose) late in the day. Alway recovered and gutted. I have left the skinning until first thing in the morning and have not had any issues with meat going sour.

I agree with knockturnal sometimes you just can't find it until day light and I think his statement but its the hunters job to expend their efforts until he/she is sure that they will not find the animal. is dead on!

on a side note the only time I've had issue with bone sour was from bullet damage (didn't get it all cut out)

[ydouask]

Yes knockturnal, sometimes even when you do your best , the outcome isn't quite the way one would like it.... hunt long enough there will be circumstances that you would just as soon stay forgotten. I'm sure you realise that isn't what I'm driving at here.

[hotload]

The wife and I have already shot a Mulie each in the last light of day and after the animals were retrieved and we drove home and,gutted,skinned, joints separated for proper cool down it was well into the A.M. The better part of the days after the kill were taken up with the process of cutting and vacuum sealing. Ethically, it is our responsibility to retrieve these animals however, wherever. It is not just about pulling the trigger.

[ianwuzhere]

good thread ydouask- the chances are very high of spoiled meat-including bone sour. ive often wondered about the hunters on tv(especially bow hunters) leaving the animal overnite in warm weather-even in cool weather not skinning a thick hide animal will lead to spoilage--gut and skin asap- headlamps are your best friend on evening hunts-every hunter should have one with them...

[M.Dean]

I'd bet money that the reason a lot of animals are left in the bush over night is because the brave hunters are afraid of the dark! Yes, there's lots of guys that trek out in the dark and return after dark, but there's more that shit there pants at every sound or crunch they hear after the lights go out! If the truth be known most ruff and tuff guys couldn't find there truck after dark, never mind looking for wounded or a downed animal! Every time you go out for a evening hunt be prepared for a night time recovery, take a few good flashlites, glow sticks work wonders also, if you get to the animal, gut it and do what you can alone, hang a few light sticks up high around the downed game and maybe one or two on the trail in, if you can, tape the easiest root in, then go get help. As mentioned a head lamp is the cats ass for working at night, be it gutting or fixing your ride!

[Brambles]

Just pack the elk out in one trip, saves the hassel of coming back for it:mrgreen:

[showtimebc]

Great thread and an issue that is really over looked by many hunters imo! Pullin the trigger is always the easy part of the game.

[mcrae]

Just pack the elk out in one trip, saves the hassle of coming back for it:mrgreen:

You should come tomorrow I will let you pack it out in one trip for me:-D


I shot a big fat bear about three weeks ago at last light. I hesitated on shooting several times cause I knew it was gonna be a long night if I pulled the trigger.... But an empty freezer was calling this bears number...It was a bitch to say the least because I had to quarter him and pack him out to the ATV. When I got home I had to finish skinning out the quarters and get the meat in the freezer. It was 2am before I crawled into bed... You know you have been working at it when the hands are cramped shut LOL....

Sure I coulda have left it and come back in the AM but I actually want to eat the meat...

[Bowzone_Mikey]

Persoanlly I have left 2 animals overnight in the woods with their piles still inside ... Both were whitetails that I made a marginal shot shot on (both shot a bit far back but both caught the liver.... ) I knew i had hit em both a bit back ... rather than push a bad situation I left them overnight and took up the trail in the morning ... they both had bedded not 100 yards from where the arrow went through them ... and both deer were fine.

A person must also know their quarry ... if I were searching for those deer all night they might have been found in the next county... the same can be said for elk ... if pushed whiteys and elk will go miles and miles on adreniline alone ... ... Mulies typically will sprint away for about 200 yards then turn to look at you if they dont hear you behind them ....Moose will bed down within 100 Yards if they get a hangnail ....

Now that said ... I left my moose overnight in the woods this year ... but it was gutted and open and cooled well ... the decition to leave it overnight was a personal safety one ... and in my opinion the right one ... to pack it to the road the terrain that needed to be crossed was good for a couple of broken legs .... we gutted it ... moved the gut pile about 20 feet away ... used ratchet straps to trees to keep it open ... hung my coat and a couple of rubber gloves off of it ... nothing touched it overnight
Came back the next morning with a quad ... we quartered and deboned it .. at 10 am the bike came off the trailer and it was loaded and headed for the hangin' shack.

the best thing of that whole deal was my Friend, Chris, was mentoring a Newbie,Jordan, on processing and quartering etc ... so not only was there lots of hands there ... another person is now hooked on Hunting

[BlacktailStalker]

The amount of guys who are scared of the dark or bears blows me away... these are often the ones afraid to deal with an afternoon shot elk.

[Farmer]

It can happen in cool weather too. 25 or so years ago my brother shot a cow elk near dusk. We gutted it and propped it open to let it cool as the temp was getting well below 0 at night. It froze pretty good overnight, but the cavity had closed up. The elk had frost on the hair and was still steaming from the body cavity. I would not have believed it beforehand. We had never lost meat before from bone souring before and we didn't know that this meat was spoiled until we got it skinned and split open. We just filled the body cavity with ice and headed for home. Never again will we leave a animal on the ground overnight. Skinned and strung up is the way it has to be.

[Jelvis]

That's why I don't hunt late except for deer. Moose I hunt early morning right after light .. I don't hunt in afternoon for moose.
JP .. And from what some of you are saying, that's why I would not eat any game except what I shot myself.

[mcrae]

The amount of guys who are scared of the dark or bears blows me away... these are often the ones afraid to deal with an afternoon shot elk.

In the W.Koots bears are a big concern so its understandable for some guys to be nervous about working in the dark. I went back the next day to retrieve the knife I left behind:rolleyes:( always seem to do that ) and a grizz had already cleaned up most of the leftovers...

That being said though if it scares you to work in the dark just don't shoot at last light. I am not gonna pretend to be the macho guy here I have shot allot of game at last light and dealt with it alone and I keep my senses sharp for things that go bump in the night:eek:...

[Jelvis]

Can you imagine a butcher leaving the guts in a cow after killing it?
J .. I don't think so lol .. He'd be shut down promptly ..

[Shooter]

Call me silly... but what "is" bone sour? I have heard of it but have never experienced it. Is it a look? A smell? A taste? How do you know when it has been affected?

[gorillaboy]

Great thread
talked to my butcher last year when i dropped off my leh "rosie", and he told me that he knew of four leh rosies with significant loss due to bone sour, remember this is on the island where getting a elk draw is similar to winning the 649 and these guys wasted most if not all of a majestic animal who thousands of ethical hunters would give their left nut for an opportunity to harvest. my butcher also said that elk is the fastest game animal to spoil if not cooled down quickly.

[Jelvis]

Bone sour? Bone sour happens when an animal is not cooled out properly.
.. Some people hang the animal in fairly cool temperature but not cool enough, hence it feels cool to touch on the out side, but inside near the bone it is warm, rotting slowly, it gets a sour smell, and has a sticky feeling.
.. You now have major prob lay mo .. my friend .. rotting near the bone ..
Hi$ Jellyne$$ .. ( Bad to the Bone ) .. Sour puss .. lol .. a greeney slimey sour sticky smelly mess .. you blew it!

[BlacktailStalker]

In the W.Koots bears are a big concern so its understandable for some guys to be nervous about working in the dark. I went back the next day to retrieve the knife I left behind:rolleyes:( always seem to do that ) and a grizz had already cleaned up most of the leftovers...

That being said though if it scares you to work in the dark just don't shoot at last light. I am not gonna pretend to be the macho guy here I have shot allot of game at last light and dealt with it alone and I keep my senses sharp for things that go bump in the night:eek:...

For sure I know what you're saying, I'm not speaking on the assumption I dont know about G bears.
I've shot many animals in the WK and NW and worked into or through the night on them.
Where I hunt elk there is no LEH and bears are a huge problem, but not big enough to make me worry.
When dealing with downed game we're always in pairs (or more) and just be aware, really, the odds of getting smucked by a G bear are slim and to worry about it is unnecessary stress IMO.
I usually split up when I hunt but plan to meet after dark at a prearranged location. If somebody has an animal down, WE go deal with it.
I've had grizz encounters up close and personal but none have been on downed game.
Once I had gone to pack out a friends elk in the a.m in the NW which he had shot at last light.
He had come in to camp after dark that night as there was multiple grizz tracks on the trail behind camp when we arrived so prefered to have somebody there while balls deep in the elk (pairs) after dark.
We arrived to find it nearly completely devoured and carcass buried by a G bear sow and sub adult cub but they were content laughing at us from 100 yards away before coming in for round two. *******s.
The thought is always there,especially with a bloody pack and I wont lie, when coming out with my goat this year, wind at my back into a creek bed valley for several hours, I'm not sure if I stepped over more rocks or grizzly digs, so the possibility was there.
All you can do is make a mental note, be aware & keep trucking.

[mark]

:evil:
This rant can't help but make me sound very self righteous, mea culpa, mea culpa, but, after knowing of three ELK ruined this season because of hunter neglect, here goes....
For years now many inexperienced hunters and those inexperienced in killing and processing animals for food have been watching rented hunting videos and WILD TV. Both venues I think are guilty of perpetrating the myth that leaving animals overnight without gutting, skinning and cooling is normal proceedure. Well, it might be if;

You only want the antlers and are donating the meat to an orphanage
or,
Your goal is to get good bright video footage... to sell, or,

You are afraid of the dark, or,
You can't find your way in the dark ( no compass) ( no GPS)
You don't know the first thing about gutting, skinning, quartering. or,
You can't afford a flashlight, Petzl,
You are Out of cell range, no radio...
I'm sure you can think of lots more excuses, but there isn't one good reason to leave a dead animal which you have found, with its's hide on , in less than six pieces, on the ground all day or overnight. THE MEAT WILL SPOIL.

So, if you must hunt in the late afternoon and be there for that golden hour that's great. But BE PREPARED FOR AN ALL NIGHTER... working , packing, skinning , hanging, or cooling out meat.
Failing these preparations you WILL eventually have your turn to hear these words from the butcher. " Get it out of here ! It is bone sour, it has turned green ".
What a WASTE. Most Unethical behaviour in my books, should be an indictable offense.:twisted:
Fortunately, ignorance can be cured with some education. Stupidity on the other hand....
There, I'm done with the rant. Feel better already. Now, how can more emphasis be put on the need to get that hide off and get it into about six pieces to cool as quickly as possible???:cry:


Ill start by saying that I havnt read all the replies.......You state boldly "the meat will spoil" I have to say that is bull$h!t!
It may spoil, but its not a given!
Several times I have or have seen moose and elk "fully gutted" but left overnight for retrieval and had no problems at all!

Last year both my buddies, and my wife's deer, taken by archery at last light, wern't recovered till next morn. Given it was quite cold out, but had no issues!

I certainly do agree that every effort should be made to recover and process meat as soon as possible!

[ydouask]

Shooter, guess you wouldn't ask a question if you knew the answer( unless you're one of those lawyer types !) That isn't silly, it is how we learn, eh?
Jelvis is right. When a large , well insulated animal doesn't cool out fast enough the meat starts to spoil from the middle... or where it is warmest, like next to the bone. The bacterial growth is very rapid and produces an "off" smell, greenish tinge to the bones and meat. Seems to me it might even be kind of slimy.
This is NOT about how long game is hung and that whole other issue BUT letting the internal heat escape asap.
There are lots of variables in the natural world. It wouldn't be any surprise at all to learn that an animal's body temperature can vary enormously depending on the circumstances of it's death... like brain or spine shot as opposed to heart/lung shot and so on. Again, why take chances with all that beautiful meat? COOL IT MAN!

[ydouask]

Hey Mark.... easy now. I would have been more correct had I said MAY spoil. My bad.
I can't explain why this process doesn't happen ALL THE TIME, but I do know how to greatly increase your odds of spoiling that Elk or Moose. We all have and know friends whose animals weren't recovered in a timely fashion and got away with it... go ahead... take your chances.
I have a friend who some years ago shot a Cow Elk late in the season, late in the day. They gutted it, Skidded it into the truck ON TOP OF FIVE INCHES OF SNOW and drove home with it propped open. They got home about 1:00AM, needed the truck for work , so hung the Cow in their unheated shop. In the morning they went to work and stated skinning on that Elk at 4:00P.M.that afternoon. A half an hour later they took EVERY OUNCE TO THE DUMP.... don't choke on the word Bullshit please, it is BONE SOUR.

[mark]

Hey Mark.... easy now. I would have been more correct had I said MAY spoil. My bad.
I can't explain why this process doesn't happen ALL THE TIME, but I do know how to greatly increase your odds of spoiling that Elk or Moose. We all have and know friends whose animals weren't recovered in a timely fashion and got away with it... go ahead... take your chances.
I have a friend who some years ago shot a Cow Elk late in the season, late in the day. They gutted it, Skidded it into the truck ON TOP OF FIVE INCHES OF SNOW and drove home with it propped open. They got home about 1:00AM, needed the truck for work , so hung the Cow in their unheated shop. In the morning they went to work and stated skinning on that Elk at 4:00P.M.that afternoon. A half an hour later they took EVERY OUNCE TO THE DUMP.... don't choke on the word Bullshit please, it is BONE SOUR.


Im not suggesting that I agree with what IM about to say.....but when my grandfather used to hunt, they never skinned moose or deer till they got home, sometimes days later! My Dad also handled his game that way!
Many of my deer as a teen wern't skinned for a week! Great meat!
Never recall hearing of any bone sour, or meat loss stories!
Not saying I reccomend it to anyone, just saying.

For the record, I skin, take em apart ASAP. Sometimes cut wrap and freeze the same day! :)

[ydouask]

There are a few possible explanaitions for your Grandpa's and Dad's Game handling successes. In the OLD days people didn't have such great access to coolers, freezers and so on... and the hunting seasons commonly went into the Christmas holidays... yes, the end of December. So chances are good they didn't do too much slaughtering in Sept/Oct. If you can find a picture of that Moose hanging I'll bet you'll find that the neck was split from the brisket to the chin and the trachea and esophagus removed... greatly speeding up cooling. Once an animal is cold, the hanging with the hide on may( see, I'm learning!) keep the meat from drying out.
As far as Deer are concerned, most probably don't have the muscle mass and volume to retain enough heat to cause bone sour if they are hanging..... except for the massive neck on the Mule Deer I'm looking for this year!
Glad to read your "For the record..."

[Brambles]

I have a friend who some years ago shot a Cow Elk late in the season, late in the day. They gutted it, Skidded it into the truck ON TOP OF FIVE INCHES OF SNOW and drove home with it propped open. They got home about 1:00AM, needed the truck for work , so hung the Cow in their unheated shop. In the morning they went to work and stated skinning on that Elk at 4:00P.M.that afternoon. A half an hour later they took EVERY OUNCE TO THE DUMP.... don't choke on the word Bullshit please, it is BONE SOUR.


Sorry, and I hate to say it cause of who you are,,,,,, but under those circumstances and weather conditions I'd say your friend is full of crapolla. Something doesn't add up.

September, hide on, guts in and left for over 24 hours, yup you're definitly fighting off a gagging reflex, especially on meat insulated against the ground.
But Late season in the snow gutted, propped open and hung up so air can circulate all around it...you should be golden.

[Bistchen]

Why do you even care about what other hunters do with their own meat that they legally harvested?
I dont. Call me selfish, but I only care about how I harvest and retrieve my own meat. Dont give two hoots about anyone else. After all im the one that has to eat it.
Your little rant here proves that you probably fu(ked up one day in the bush with your own spoiled game and are trying to take out your anger to the general public with this open forum. Shame on you!
Many of men have left game, gutted or not out in the bush and retrieved it the next morning and it still was tasty as ever.
Its not about being scared of the dark. Ever had to climb out of the alpine in pitch black, over a raszor sharp rock quarry, nevermind pulling game out? Your own personal safety first.
Dont come on here with your little pussy rant and start hassling people with what and how they do there show. To each there own. Worry about yourself.

[lip_ripper00]

Why do you even care about what other hunters do with their own meat that they legally harvested?
I dont. Call me selfish, but I only care about how I harvest and retrieve my own meat. Dont give two hoots about anyone else. After all im the one that has to eat it.
Your little rant here proves that you probably fu(ked up one day in the bush with your own spoiled game and are trying to take out your anger to the general public with this open forum. Shame on you!
Many of men have left game, gutted or not out in the bush and retrieved it the next morning and it still was tasty as ever.
Its not about being scared of the dark. Ever had to climb out of the alpine in pitch black, over a raszor sharp rock quarry, nevermind pulling game out? Your own personal safety first.
Dont come on here with your little pussy rant and start hassling people with what and how they do there show. To each there own. Worry about yourself.


Wow what planet are you from!!! HBC..... About Hunters, For hunters, By Hunters!!

[ydouask]

Well Jeff, I wasn't there so I guess there could have been more to that story than was related to me. I rather doubt it though as the individual involved is a long time hunter( like 60+ years) and was most unhappy... my guess is that the TIME involved between the killing and the hanging is critical. I think that his Elk was bone sour by the time he got home with it in one piece with the hide on .... seven hours snuggled against a nice warm muffler and tailpipe. Shouldn't, wouldn't, couldn't? Did.

[Walksalot]

I have left elk quarters hanging in the shady side of the tree in early Sept. and fetched them the next day and they were fine. I have left the whole animal overnight and never lost an animal. However, I would never, if I could possibly help it, leave the entrails in the animal. Doing an evening hunt can be productive but one must be prepared to deal with the animal in the dark. I, a time or two, have gutted animals with a flashlight strapped to my head. If you are not fairly certain you can put the animal on the ground and are quickly loosing daylight then let it go.

[ydouask]

Well hi there Bistchen, sure nice to read of your caring attitude... that'll bring folks running to join our ranks. Oh, and the personal attack??? That was a nice touch too. Someone on this forum has a quote that goes something like... " For those who can understand no explanation is necessary, for those who can't understand no explanation is enough".

[Brian011]

its definitely too bad to hear about all the wasted animals, before you go hunting everyone should be prepared and give themselves enough time to properly take care of the animal they shoot, especially in warmer temperatures. I do agree with Mark though, in some cases we've left an animal over night and picked it up the next day and it was fine. That being said, first thing it was always gutted right away, then opened the animal as much as we could by putting a stick in the chest cavity, and with moose we would split the hump on its back too. This was also done in late october or november when the temperatures were way colder. we've also hung deer for a week before skinning it as well. one year we had a deer hang till spring cause it froze solid overnight so we waited till the weather was warm enough in the spring. the meat was just the same. I think as long as the animal is gutted and is able to cool down its alright, but for elk earlier in the fall when its warmer out it, everything should be dealt with as soon as possible.

[Bow Walker]

The "work" after the kill is part of the hunting routine. If you're not prepared to do what is necessary to ensure an edible product as a result of your hunting adventure, then you've got NO business being out there in the first place.

I have left an animal overnight and recovered it the next morning (at first light), but that was due to allowing sufficient time for the animal to die. When processed, it was perfectly edible and in fact, it was delicious.

[.330 Dakota]

Game bags are made to keep the meat cool and clean, hide must come off NOW, then hang it up, dont be afraid of the dark, its the same terrain in daytime

[308Lover]

My partners wife bagged a huge bull moose at dusk. It was cool outside but above freezing. We had the job of our lives getting that moose into his truck(no tailgate!) We raced back to camp and gutted him there onto a tarp. 5hours (Yes 5 bloody hours) of back-breaking work and he was halved and hung up covered with cheezecloth. We dumped the offal some km's away and went back to camp as snow began to fall. We celebrated with numerous cups of chicken noodle soup--still fully dressed, dirty and cold, too tired to clean up and go to bed--but man were we pumped! Not a chance would we have waited to do this job even for a second. It's partly about respect, but also it's the way I was raised. My uncle would pack out elk in winter, at night, with a fire halfway home for tea--sour meat? No way in Hell!

[1/2 slam]

[quote=308Lover;761480] We had the job of our lives getting that moose into his truck(no tailgate!) We raced back to camp and gutted him there onto a tarp. 5hours (Yes 5 bloody hours) of back-breaking work and he was halved and hung up covered with cheezecloth. We dumped the offal some km's away and went back to camp as snow began to fall. quote]

Why not just gut in the field? You made a lot more work than was required.

[308Lover]

Well 1/2 slam, it was already dark by the time we had used a chain hoist to drag him to the truck. Perhaps you'd like to gut him there and explain it all to a CO. Also, we were 5 km from camp, lots of lights, and a cleaner set up. He would have been just as heavy gutted or not--more or less. It was a judgement call, and normally we'd always gut in the field.

[peashooter]

i get the cleaner set up with lights but is there a rule in the book somewhere that says no gutting after dark? if questioned about it by a co, show him your canceled tag and go on with your life.

[Fraink]

I have left animals overnight a couple times, always gutted and open ( a stick between the belly flaps and the pelvic area cut to the bone so the legs stay open ). Once left a moose like that and also skinned it, and left it on its hide, we left clothes and remnants of a campfire to keep critters away. The meat was fine.
Last year my sons bison was skinned, cut in eight pieces and layed on a tarp in the snow overnight. The meat melted it's way through over a foot of snow but was in perfect condition the next day. Always worry about the boogeyman getting my meat ( friends have lost meat to griz ), but have never had it happen to me.
A man needs to judge for himself the temperatures and the situation, make the best choice he can. I too have heard the stories of wasted meat.

[elktracker1975]

Great post! I have heard of an elk here this year already that got thrown away, apparently he was parading around town with the hide on. Hear of one or two every year. Seems like alot of guys dont even know how to quarter a large animal such as elk, nor do they know the importance of getting the hide off. These are probably the same people who come back and complain to the butcher. My partner shot his elk this year in the evening, gutted it, rolled it over on its back, skinned both sides down as far as he could, and but spruce boughs over it for the night. We quartered it and cheeseclothed it the next morning. The meat is great!

[300H&H]

I spoke with James at Springfield meats and he tells me it happens every year. :?
Once he took in a animal that seemed fine but when he came into the cooler in the morning it smelled rotten. So he took that deer out & set it to the side and cleaned the whole cooler. called the guy to come get his animal.
What a waste. I have always believed we have a responsibility to the animal if we kill.

[308Lover]

You're probably right peashooter--may you never have a problem--wasn't my moose--wasn't my call. All ended happily.And we didn't have to crawl around with a flashlight. Ha! Ha!

[Jagermeister]

We have seen on this forum, a lot of novice hunters questions about hunting and where to find animals, but few about what to do after the quarry is down.

Ydouask's opening is an attempt to educate. It is not an attempt to belittle the hunter's loss of some mighty fine table fare due to the lack of knowledge, or ignorance.

New hunter's need to understand that once the animal is shot, the undaunting task of expediant animal recovery and dressing is the most paramount task that has to be done. Failing to do so may accelerate spoilage.

The thrill of the chase is over the moment the trigger is pulled. The work then begins.

[BlacktailStalker]

I see this as a good post, nothing wrong with bringing to attention ways to ensure quality meat... lots of new hunters on here and I would be willing to bet more than one didnt know about bone sour meat.
Now they know how to prevent it and will at least be aware of it.

[kishman]

Have shot a couple animals (elk, moose) late in the day. Alway recovered and gutted. I have left the skinning until first thing in the morning and have not had any issues with meat going sour.




The Mulie I shot this past weekend was handled in exactly this manor, with no issues. It was cut in half, skinned at first light. That night the temp. got down to about 5 degrees, so I'm sure that helped.