First time hunting this early (Sept. 15th) and was curious if anyone had tips on keeping the meat from spoiling if i have to keep it overnight. Do I keep the skin on before I take it in? I have heard to throw bags of ice inside the cavity but thats it. thanks for any advice
I usually butcher with family but I don't have the skills to do it on my own yet. Taking it in most likely
Stuff the cavity with ice and keep changing it as it starts to melt until you can get it in a cooler.
The possibility of not having time to skin, quarter, and get it in the fridge has kept me from going hunting. I have to be able to get it cool or I don't go. Letting it spoil just seems unethical to me. Of course the ice has got to help somewhat, seems like you'd have to buy a helluva lot of ice and just completely cover the carcass. just my $0.02
Hi mate, if i drop something and recover the carcass when its still warm in hot weather i will gut the animal, then hang it under a tree in the shade by the back legs. I will then immediately skin it. The animal is a little easier to skin being that it is still warm and the fat hasnt congealed. Another good reason to do this (although its not always necessary) is if the animal has any parasites in the skin i dont want them to move into the carcass. The most important thing to remember is to keep the carcass dry and clean, it needs to cool down and if its in the shade and there is a little breeze you can be right for a while. I always carry old pillow cases or a sheet with me and cover it immediately after skinning it. This allows the meat to breathe but keeps it covered so that insects cant get to it. If you cover the meat with things that dont breathe it will sweat which isnt good for it. After a few hours of it sitting in the shade just keep your eyes and nose on the meat, stick your head into the cavity and smell just like you would do for meat from the fridge thats been sitting a bit to check it. It can hang a while and if the nights are still cool then all night, just keep an eye on it and get it in the fridge as soon as you can. hope that helps, good hunting!
Try hanging it and skinning it, then quarter it and put the meat in coolers and pack with ice. I did this last year and let it sit in the ice for 3 days. I usually like to let my deer hang for 3 or 4 days to let the blood all drain and age a little. As the ice melted it seemed to help pull the blod out this way, too.
ill be watching this thread too. because early season in central il. will still be warm during the day and get down to high 40s at night.
Cooling the cavity is a must. Use lots of ice, but use double or triple bags around the ice so the meat does not spoil from being water logged. Quartering (as mentioned is best) is best, as long you ilsolate the meat from getting wet when the Ice melts. If you can't do any of the above, and still need to stay out; you can try moving the deer to a shaded area filling the cavity with ice and then wraping the body with a plastic tarp. This may buy you some time; if for example, you wanted to remain overnight to catch the morning hunt.
Las year, my doe, I let hang overnight. It was somewhat warm out but I believe the night got down to upper 40s, maybe low 50s. I just gutted it, hung it (in a shaded shed), and propped the chest cavity open wide so it could breathe good. I took it to the meat locker first thing the next morning. Meat was fine...
Old home made ice box. Go buy a few 2X4s and plywood. Build a box big enough to hold the deer. Line it with a tarp. Toss in a few bags of ice and then deer then cover with more ice and then cover with a lid.
