You’re not a hunter if you don’t know what to do with the kill

[MGnoob]

Dude off your meds again?

Yes

 

[Rat187]

My cousin is too, he'll be over in hour after calling me a righteous pr*** (meant for another pr***) Off his meds.... It will make you look sane on a bad day

 

[Broc]

Gutting a deer takes a few minutes.
Shot two deer with my buddy around 7:50.
Started gutting around 8:10.
By 8:50 we were back at his house (roughly 6 miles away).
By 9:00am we were on work conference calls.

So 40 minutes to gut 2 deer, load them on the truck, talk to the neighbor for a few minutes and get to his house.

 

[Broc]

If you’re lucky enough to not have the goddamn coyotes, steal the hide while you’re working on it, you gotta put it around a tree with some chicken wire so they can’t take it right down and it’s the perfect kill spot to thin out the herd. I don’t eat coyote.

LOL, what?

Only person I know that had an encounter with coyotes was my buddy out in MI. He called us, when we arrived he was on top of the dead deer, with his Glock, growling at the coyotes that were surrounding him.

 

[MGnoob]

I was cleaning my brother’s deer, winch the height off, gutted it and hung it in the shed. I went inside the shower, mostly the warm up because I was freezing before butchering it…

I couldn’t have been in my house more than 10 minutes and then that time the coyote must’ve gotten under my 8 foot chain-link fence and stole the hide.

I was looking around for it and I couldn’t find it. I couldn’t figure out what happened. We ended up finding some of the hide from the neck with a rock and a string around it, which is pulled it off the deer. Is that my cousins house about a quarter mile away maybe a little more.

I’ve found myself surrounded by coyotes before when I was out there with my night vision thermals, so I wasn’t really scared, but they didn’t realize I could see them. I was using myself as bait.

I’m not sure if I already said this, but I’m always a little sketchy when I see coyotes during the day that what I shot I want to look at it it looked like it had rabies for sure

 

[whacko]

LOL, what?

Only person I know that had an encounter with coyotes was my buddy out in MI. He called us, when we arrived he was on top of the dead deer, with his Glock, growling at the coyotes that were surrounding him.

My son had to chase a coyote off his deer 2 years ago. Deer went 60 yards and died. Blood trail wasn't great so took him about 15 minutes to find it and there was already a coyote tearing into it.....this was in Kingston nh.

 

[Broc]

I was cleaning my brother’s deer, winch the height off, gutted it and hung it in the shed. I went inside the shower, mostly the warm up because I was freezing before butchering it…

I couldn’t have been in my house more than 10 minutes and then that time the coyote must’ve gotten under my 8 foot chain-link fence and stole the hide.

I was looking around for it and I couldn’t find it. I couldn’t figure out what happened. We ended up finding some of the hide from the neck with a rock and a string around it, which is pulled it off the deer. Is that my cousins house about a quarter mile away maybe a little more.

I’ve found myself surrounded by coyotes before when I was out there with my night vision thermals, so I wasn’t really scared, but they didn’t realize I could see them. I was using myself as bait.

I’m not sure if I already said this, but I’m always a little sketchy when I see coyotes during the day that what I shot I want to look at it it looked like it had rabies for sure

Damn. Must have been a coyote used to people or a very brave/stupid animal.

Out in the middle of nowhere we could hear wolves and it was full of coyotes. We had 5 deer hanging outside the camp for 4 days, no animals touched them. We shot one 40 yards from the camp, gutted it right there and 2 days later the gut pile was still there.

The guys said the coyotes won't go where they know there are people.

But this also wasn't a heavily populated area.

 

[MGnoob]

Damn. Must have been a coyote used to people or a very brave/stupid animal.

Out in the middle of nowhere we could hear wolves and it was full of coyotes. We had 5 deer hanging outside the camp for 4 days, no animals touched them. We shot one 40 yards from the camp, gutted it right there and 2 days later the gut pile was still there.

The guys said the coyotes won't go where they know there are people.

But this also wasn't a heavily populated area.

I found it bizarre as well. Like if I was in the woods there have been one thing but in my backyard it’s pretty brazen.

I’m not sure if it’s like the Bears this year that we’re just out of control and people feeding them which is f***ing stupid.. or if was weather related when the stuff happens. But the wildlife this year has been extremely aggressive.

I mean when I’m armed to the teeth and I’m out there hunting that they don’t scare me at all but that one bear I had to deal with I had been carrying my gun in a while that was like f*** me man this thing is trying to kill me

 

[HorizontalHunter]

My son had to chase a coyote off his deer 2 years ago. Deer went 60 yards and died. Blood trail wasn't great so took him about 15 minutes to find it and there was already a coyote tearing into it.....this was in Kingston nh.

Throw your jacket over it if you need to go out to get a sled or a cart

Kill as many as you can. They are like pigs and we can’t hope to keep the population in check but we can at least put a dent in it.

 

[peterk123]

I would always leave a sweater or coat on my deer if I was going back for a sled. Basically anything with human scent on it will work.

 

[whacko]

Throw your jacket over it if you need to go out to get a sled or a cart

Kill as many as you can. They are like pigs and we can’t hope to keep the population in check but we can at least put a dent in it.

That's a great suggestion but my son wasn't even heading back to the truck first! That yote was on the deer less than 15 minutes from the gunshot.

 

[HorizontalHunter]

That's a great suggestion but my son wasn't even heading back to the truck first! That yote was on the deer less than 15 minutes from the gunshot.

Very fortunate, that place must be loaded with coyotes if they were on it that quick.

I understood that from your post but was just offering a suggestion that might be useful.

 

[Bigfudge16]

Gutting a deer takes a few minutes.
Shot two deer with my buddy around 7:50.
Started gutting around 8:10.
By 8:50 we were back at his house (roughly 6 miles away).
By 9:00am we were on work conference calls.

Substitute cranking to Mia Khalifa and my story is the same.

Had a friend hunting my spot adjacent to an apple orchard. He shot a doe and texted me to ask for help tracking. I told him to stay in the stand. 15 minutes later I was driving there and he texted me saying that he heard coyotes. I called him right up and told him to get out of the tree and run towards the doe. I got there and this is what we were looking at... they were on her less than 15 mins after the shot, and this was not the middle of no where.

 

[whacko]

Very fortunate, that place must be loaded with coyotes if they were on it that quick.

I understood that from your post but was just offering a suggestion that might be useful.

He had seen a yote walk thru the field he was sitting about an hour before sunup. He was texting me.....I was about 2 miles away sitting a different spot. Yotes don't freak him out and they don't bother me much either.....seen plenty in the woods over the years and they leave us alone so we leave them alone. Anyway he shot a smallish buck and no shit less than 15 minutes later he found his deer with a yote tearing into the back quarter. He just yelled and it ran away. He had his muzzle loader reloaded since the first shot so was ready to shoot it if it didn't run away. My opinion is the yote was trained to gunshots......hear a shot and there may be a dead deer nearby lol.

 

[HorizontalHunter]

My opinion is the yote was trained to gunshots......hear a shot and there may be a dead deer nearby lol.

I absolutely agree and believe this as well. By the time ML season has come around they have learned that gunfire means an easy meal. They either get the carcass or a gut pile. Easy calories either way.

Coyotes are wicked smart. The only way that farmers got ride of them before was to indiscriminately set out poisoned carcasses.

 

[Sparkey]

I find urban coyotes a lot more brazen. The few coyotes I have seen in the big woods very skittish.

 

[PappyM3]

I find urban coyotes a lot more brazen. The few coyotes I have seen in the big woods very skittish.

The coyotes around my suburban house, I can shoo them away back like 50 yards, then they just stop and continue to watch. They’re clearly avoiding risk, but aren’t scared.

 

[MisterHappy]

If he's hanging it to age - then he's obviously wanting the meat and not just the kill (not everyone thinks deer are "majestic", lol). I can see not knowing how to field dress it and waiting till you're home to get YouTube reception for the directions. But anyone with a room temp IQ should know that leaving the guts in it, especially if one or more are ruptured by the shot, is bad news for the meat. What happened to common sense?

Most people have never actually thought about where their food comes from.

I know that there are a bunch of people on here that use the when Hunter Ed is discussed, but if you're ignorant (not stupid, there's a difference) of how to deal with a carcass, you need to be told. If you did not grow up in a culture where this is a thing, "common sense" won't be common.

One of my kids went to Conservation Camp, and one day, chicken pot pie was on the menu. Like the Chinese Rabbit Stew recipe, "First, catch the rabbit," the first step was to kill and clean the chickens, which were clucking in a crate. Damn few people understand what need to be done.

 

[Bigfudge16]

Most people have never actually thought about where their food comes from.

I know that there are a bunch of people on here that use the when Hunter Ed is discussed, but if you're ignorant (not stupid, there's a difference) of how to deal with a carcass, you need to be told. If you did not grow up in a culture where this is a thing, "common sense" won't be common.

One of my kids went to Conservation Camp, and one day, chicken pot pie was on the menu. Like the Chinese Rabbit Stew recipe, "First, catch the rabbit," the first step was to kill and clean the chickens, which were clucking in a crate. Damn few people understand what need to be done.

My immediate family are not outdoorsman. I thank God regularly that I had my cousin later on in life to teach me the basics of hunting, cleaning, and butchering an animal. I fully intend to teach my kids, even if they don't stay interested I think it's a good life skill

 

[HorizontalHunter]

I know that there are a bunch of people on here that use the when Hunter Ed is discussed, but if you're ignorant (not stupid, there's a difference) of how to deal with a carcass, you need to be told. If you did not grow up in a culture where this is a thing, "common sense" won't be common.

100% agree.

Thanks for being part of the solution by volunteering your time teaching Hunters Ed.

 

[Dennis in MA]

I recall a chef on Meat Eater saying that he leaves his hides on for 2-3 days. I forget why. Maybe it changed the way the meat tasted. I've long since forgotten - it was a couple of years ago. But he did. And it was a guy that knew better. Maybe it aged better.

But not gutting it?????

 

[dhuze]

Substitute cranking to Mia Khalifa and my story is the same.

Had a friend hunting my spot adjacent to an apple orchard. He shot a doe and texted me to ask for help tracking. I told him to stay in the stand. 15 minutes later I was driving there and he texted me saying that he heard coyotes. I called him right up and told him to get out of the tree and run towards the doe. I got there and this is what we were looking at... they were on her less than 15 mins after the shot, and this was not the middle of no where.

View attachment 833973

I was hunting in Colorado with my brother years ago and he had gut shot a doe. We let it sit for a while and when we found it the ass end looked like that and the throat had teeth and claw marks in it. We assume a mountain lion finished it off and just started eating it when we came after it. When we went to get it half of the camp came also and we had a couple dogs with us so it must have scared the lion away.

 

[Broc]

I recall a chef on Meat Eater saying that he leaves his hides on for 2-3 days. I forget why. Maybe it changed the way the meat tasted. I've long since forgotten - it was a couple of years ago. But he did. And it was a guy that knew better. Maybe it aged better.

But not gutting it?????

I have heard the hide helps insulate the meat or prevent it from drying out ... something like that. Either way, it keeps the meat clean. You wouldn't want the meat to be thrown on tje ground, then back of a truck, then ground again ...
We had some deer hanging outside, with hides, for almost a week.

Worst case, stick a bag of ice where the guts used to be.

And just got a message from my buddy while typing this ...

 

[Mark from MA]

I can field dress a deer in about 15 minutes. I don't know why people don't do it in the woods either.... It's like - why do you want to carry or drag that extra 40 pounds of guts out of the woods? It helps the meat cool down quicker too, etc.

My only guess is that they don't carry the kit required to dress it while they're hunting. I don't either. But I go back to the truck and get it, along with the cart or sled. Not gutting it before the drag just seems like you're making more work for yourself...


There is one exception for me though. If I have to traverse some deep water, I'll wait until I cross it and gut it on the bank. That way I don't fill the cavity with some kind of nasty swamp water.

I think you have to look at it as what is the person's access to the deer once killed. Guys from most states in either farm country midwest or down south don't "drag" deer. They would laugh at what most of us up here do to not only shoot a deer, but get it out of the woods as well.

They drive up to it and load it in the truck or on an ATV or side by side. Typically, at hunting clubs down there and leases, they have a game cleaning station right on the property, where all the guts are kept for coyote baiting in the walk in, deer is hung gutted and thrown in a walk in cooler in like an hour. Can't argue with that as far as keeping meat good.

I do agree it the quicker the meat is cooled the better......but one can argue, they get the deer right in a walk in cooler well before we get a our gutted deer even hung up or out of the truck, and we are subject to temperature fluctuations if the weather isn't right.

I know a butcher that does a ton of deer in my area that doesn't even have a walk in cooler........he tries to do them in a day if its warm, then get the meat in the freezer.

 

[whacko]

I recall a chef on Meat Eater saying that he leaves his hides on for 2-3 days. I forget why. Maybe it changed the way the meat tasted. I've long since forgotten - it was a couple of years ago. But he did. And it was a guy that knew better. Maybe it aged better.

But not gutting it?????

The Hyde keeps the meat from drying out.

 

[Mark from MA]

The Hyde keeps the meat from drying out.

This......Ive used meat bags before when I wanted to skin and just hang quarters........they are OK....but you'll lose some meat to dryness.

 

[Docpk]

Dry aging tenderizes the meat

 

[arlow]

The Hyde keeps the meat from drying out.

Not only keeps it from drying out, it also keeps it dirt and debris free and it also facilitates gradual and even cooling to prevent what is called cold shortening of the meat fibers. What cold shortening is is when the meat is cooled too much too quickly and the meat becomes very tough as a result. If the temperatures are cold enough outside I always like to hang my deer with the hide on for a week if I can to age and tenderize the meat.