concern about meat quality?

[willyqbc]

Yesterday my wife got her first bear, you can see it on another thread here. It had a cinch style snare around its neck and was so tight it was all the way through the hide and sunk about an inch into the meat of his neck. There was a god awful yellow green infection oozing nasty stuff for the full cicumference of his neck and the smell was almost enough to make me puke! I cut the neck/head off back at the front of the shoulders and thought no more about it until a few guys mentioned that that level of infection would most likely be in the bloodstream and would ruin the meat? I have a call in to a veteranarian to get an opinion but he hasn't gotten back to me yet. Just wondering if anyone knows anything about how this type of injury/infection will effect the meat?

Thanks
Chris

[rocksteady]

Without any scientific basis on this one, I would say, don't eat it....It may be fine, but would you really want to run the risk of an illness, or more than likely have the mental thought of the mess over-riding your taste buds....

I don't think I could chow down on it and not do a dry heave and say "tasty"....

I am not sure if thats fair to Sammy either....

[dana]

I shot a whitey a couple years back that had a broken lower jaw. Looked like he got $hit kicked by a bigger buck. The wound had a slight tinge of smell to it and I thought it wouldn't have affected the meat quality much as he looked to be in good health other wise. Man was I wrong. That was the toughest meat I've ever ate. Even cooking it for hours in the crook pot, it still was like chewing on leather.

[lip_ripper00]

When you posted the story last night I was wondering if the meat would be ok. Let us know what the vet has to say. good luck.

[Steeleco]

I'd cut it up as you normally do and freeze it till you get an answer. Was the rest of the animal bad looking on the inside? Silly me I should have read the whole story:frown::frown:
I recall other members saying there's a lab in Abbotsford that will test it for tric, I'd get that done to if the vet can't do it for you.

[willyqbc]

internally his organs looked very poor. besides the lungs which Sammy messed up :lol: , the heart was very soft and grey and not full and firm as you would normally see, the intestines were also a funny shade of light green with almost nothing in them.....depending on what the vet says i may go and butcher out a loin chop and try it before taking the time to butcher up the whole animal.

any more opinions?

Chris

[dana]

I personally don't like eating bear until it's been in the freezer a good long while. Make sure you cook those chops well before you bite into them. ;)

[tufferthandug]

I'd throw it out. Anything oozing crap out it's neck get's a trip to the dump.

It sounds way too gross to eat.

[Murder]

Wouldn't even think about it, knowing it was full of infection every time I bit into a piece. Would surely have me praying to the porcelain god. But that's just me. If you can handle the thought and have the meat tested, then power to you.

[Will]

I took a bEar one year that was FULL of some kinda Big Worms....
It was Nasty......I didn't eat it:|
You are Required to keep the "Edible" portions.........
The Term "Edible" is up to you...I'd turf it out.
You did the Bear a Huge Favour at the least8-)

Testing for Trich is useless......it's also found in Pork....if the Meat is Well cooked it's Harmless:wink:

[Schmaus]

You are Required to keep the "Edible" portions

You only have to bring them home then you can do whatever you want with them.

[jaeger]

If anything your wife took it out of its misery.
By the sound of your description i would not eat that Bear especially the way the Heart and liver looked like. Theese are major organs that would indicate if anything was wrong with the annimal. I am not a Vet, that is just my opinion. As long as she cut her tag report it to a C.O he will more then likely issue you another tag. Happened to a buddy of mine with a bad deer.

[NEEHAMA]

are you starving?........just kidn. don't eat it. damn snares.

[mtnmax]

Not worth taking a chance. There are more bears out there to eat. Go get a new one.

[Elkhound]

I would have a hard time eating that bear. every bite I would think about that green puss oozing out. Yuck

[Farmer]

I would dump it. We don't eat sick cows, so I wouldn't eat a sick bear. My brother and I shot a blacktail many years ago that as haywire also. It had big growths on its face. The liver was grey and a very soft heart as well. We dragged it back to the truck and then dumped it. It is not worth putting poor meat in the freezer. I agree with Jaeger - ask the CO for a new tag.

Gord

[RiverOtter]

I took a bEar one year that was FULL of some kinda Big Worms....
It was Nasty......I didn't eat it:|
You are Required to keep the "Edible" portions.........
The Term "Edible" is up to you...I'd turf it out.
You did the Bear a Huge Favour at the least8-)

Testing for Trich is useless......it's also found in Pork....if the Meat is Well cooked it's Harmless:wink:


Actually you are only required to removed the edible portions of a black bear to a proccessor or your place of consumption(your house). After that, you can turn right around and take it back into the bush.

You did the bear a huge favour by ending its suffering. You don't need to suffer through eating it. I wouldn't, and anyone who would say different can arrange to pick it up and eat it themselves.

RO

[tooty]

I'm part of the elk relocation program on the sunshine coast.We put down an elk that had the crap kicked out of him by another bull.He had lots of deep pus wounds on him.So we cut him up anyways....the dogs would not touch the meat.The meat was going to be donated,but it got tossed.I don't think you should eat the bear .If it smells like poo ,chances are - it's poo.Know what I mean.

[Hal]

Sounds like you did that bear a favour.If it was me I wouldn't take a chance.

[mikek blacktail]

I wouln't want to eat it call the C.Officer he can decide ,my buddy got a bear that had already been shot the year before it smelled horrible he got permission to chuck it

[bsa30-06]

When you posted the story last night I was wondering if the meat would be ok. Let us know what the vet has to say. good luck.

This is exactly what i thought when i read the story the other night.If it was as bad as you say i wouldn't think it would be safe for human consumption.Please keep us posted, and let us know what the vet says.Any idea why this bear had a snare type trap around his neck.?

[boxhitch]

I wouldn't eat it either. Call it a mercy killing (too bad for the first timer) There are lots more where he came from.

Any idea why this bear had a snare type trap around his neck.?
Because he was strong enough to break off of the anchor, which may have been setup poorly ???

[quadrakid]

my guess is it will taste like a pus filled going downhill soft hearted piece of crap, reminds of a day a few years ago,ran into a fellow in campbell river with a nice big cow elk in back of his truck,his dreams of a freezer full of tasty cow elk were dashed as he field dressed it, some sort of disease had turned the flesh green and unfit to eat, he had the co looking in to getting another tag which i personally feel is his due as these tags are for meat hungry folks as well as a population control tool. anyways you did that poor bear a favor. side note, saw a nice herd of elk back of cr today,herd bull6by7, stood broadside looking at me in my fuel truck for a good minute,awesome critter

[sako7mm]

I just talked this over with my wife, she's an Animal Health Technologist, basically due to the condition of the organs it sounds like it has septicemia (bacterial infection in the blood system infecting the rest of the body). The best part would be the hide :| and you have met the requirements anyways to bring out the meat to your permanent residence so it can be disposed of lawfully. You did this guy a favour by dispatching him, it would have been a long and painful death this winter.

[BlacktailStalker]

Good call on looking into it instead of just assuming its unedible, definitely the right thing to do. Either way you did it a favour and maybe you'll get to film the next one ;)

[willyqbc]

well thanks for the advice all, have heard several times now that this type of infection would go "septic" very quickly and spread throughout the entire body due to the liver not being able to filter out the bad stuff in the blood fast enough. So as much asI hate to do it, this bear is gonna become coyote bait (if they'll even touch it). Its unfortunate that this had to taint an absolutely great bear for my wife's first...the hide was unuseable for a rug, and the meat is inedible so all she is gonna end up with is the skull and claws. I will try and think of something extra special to do with the skull for her and try to salvage some kind of souvenier for her. Any ideas?

Thanks again
Chris

[Will]

I will try and think of something extra special to do with the skull for her and try to salvage some kind of souvenier for her. Any ideas?
I Love these types of Plaques....Great way to "Show" a skull !
8)
http://www.skulltaxidermy.com/image/gbearwalb.jpg

[willyqbc]

thanks Will that looks great...was thinking of something like that with a place in the back plaque for a picture of her with the bear, would like to incorperate the snare into it somehow as well. how is the skull attached....if its screws, what part of the skull do you go into?

Chris

[twoSevenO]

I would have a hard time eating that bear. every bite I would think about that green puss oozing out. Yuck

good post. I don't think anyone should be desperate enough to actually eat this bear.

[bsa30-06]

Its unfortunate that this had to taint an absolutely great bear for my wife's first...the hide was unuseable for a rug, and the meat is inedible so all she is gonna end up with is the skull and claws. I will try and think of something extra special to do with the skull for her and try to salvage some kind of souvenier for her. Any ideas?

Thanks again
Chris[/quote]

Don't forget the memory of taking a great bear for her first, i'm sure she will remember this for for along time.

[Nooker77]

I wouldnt eat it either...I'm sure the infection is thru the entire animal...not worth the risk...you did make an effort to take the meat so dont feel bad about it...I agree you did the poor beast a favour...wouldnt have made winter for sure!! Just my 2cents!:frown:

[Elkhound]

Chris. A full rug may be no good but how about just getting the hide tanned for her. Would make a nice throw rug on the couch, or on the floor by the bed. Would keep her feet warm when she got out of bed. You can get it tanned with the legs (no claws, or head attatched) or done in an oval rug with no legs. Just an idea. Mainland Hunter is doing up my bear hide for me from the spring. Just a nice throw rug

[mapguy]

didn't your pappy teach you right . if it smeels bad leave it alone .