The reason for prompt field dressing and skin removal are understood by most people, but unfortunately, some people get lazy. It's often easier to wait until tomorrow to handle a messy job, and then the table quality of a whitetail deer can suffer. Just remember, proper care of wild game like whitetails which will be used for tasty table fare begins in the field.
The flesh of most game animals begins to deteriorate as soon as the animal dies. The broadhead of an arrow, or a rifled shotgun slug, buckshot or rifle bullet enter living flesh, and causes extensive bleeding and shock. Severe blood loss through hemorrhage and organ or tissue destruction causes a nearly irreversible chain of unpleasant events to begin unless the hunter takes immediate steps.
Bacteria can enter the animal through the entrance and/or exit wound, and since the abdominal cavity and skin retains heat from the thick skin and a covering of hair, it doesn't take long for meat to begin spoiling. Fast field dressing after prompt game recovery can delay this inevitable process.
There are ways to avoid problems when handling big game in the field and at home. The faster each procedure is handled the finer eating you will have.
Big game must be field dressed promptly to ensure quality meat. This means removing internal organs within minutes of the deer's death, and remove the hide quickly. Wear rubber gloves to prevent possible Lyme disease.
Roll small deer onto their back. One man can easily handle the average whitetail but a large animal that weighs over 200 pounds may require some help at certain stages of the field dressing and skinning procedure.
Spread the hind legs, and make one shallow cut from the external sex organ to the rib cage. Do not cut through the membrane that separates the skin and the internal organs, and do not puncture the stomach or intestines.
Make a deep circular cut around the anus, and a shallow cut around the sex organ. A shallow cut from the sex organ back the anus completes these first cuts.
Carefully skin the abdominal hide to either side away from the first cut. This helps prevent hair from falling into the opened chest cavity.
Gently cut through the membrane covering the abdominal cavity to expose the internal organs. Continue the cut through the rib cage-sternum area and back around the sex organ to the anus. A sharp knife or small hatchet will help split the pelvic bone, and a sharp downward thrust on the inside of each hind leg will help open this area for removal of the bladder. Do not puncture the bladder, and many hunters prefer using string to tie off the bladder to prevent it from leaking urine into the meat.
Reach as high up as possible into the chest cavity, and cut the windpipe of the animal. Once this is done, pull the windpipe slowly towards the rear legs. Judicious cutting will make it easy to slice away areas where the diaphragm attaches to the inside of the rib cage. Continue pulling, and all internal organs will come free.
Set heart and liver aside to cool, and wipe the abdominal cavity with clean paper towels. Try to remove excess blood to prevent spoilage.
Use clean, fresh water to rinse the abdominal cavity free of as much blood as possible. This reduces any chance of bacterial breakdown and meat spoilage.
Hind removal is important to producing fine venison. Opening the abdominal cavity helps to remove internal heat, and skin removal also hastens meat cooling.
Some hunters like to hang antlered game by the antlers. To skin the animal, cut along the inside of the front and back legs to the abdominal incision. A circular cut around the lower leg bones near the knee enables a hunter to begin skinning from that point.
A circular cut through the skin at the base of the skull and down the throat also gives the hunter a place to start peeling the skin down from the head. Judicious use of a sharp knife allows easy pulling of skin from the flesh, and a fresh-killed whitetail is easier to skin than one that has hung for several days.
The trick to skinning is to keep hair from the vertical and circular skinning cuts from touching the flesh. Deer hair that touches the flesh will stick like glue.
Peel the skin down from the neck, over the front shoulders, down the back and off the hips and back legs.
Rinse the abdominal cavity well, and remove any hair stuck to the meat. Prop the abdominal cavity open with a stick to increase air circulation, and store in a cool dark place for up to seven days. Hanging venison allows it to age, and aging can help tenderize the meat while improving the taste.
You can hang your deer in a garage and do not keep vehicles in the garage while the deer is hanging in there. This prevents covering the meat with exhaust fumes. Deer can be hung and aged outdoors, but sportsmen should choose a shady location.
If insects pose a problem cover the carcass with cheese cloth or a mesh bag. Flies and other insects can and will attach themselves to unprotected meat, lay eggs and can destroy the meat of fine game animal in warm weather.
Aging is a matter of preference. You can hang your deer from anywhere from four to seven days if the weather is cool. If the weather is too warm to hang the deer at home or in a hunting camp, transport the deer to a locker plant where it can hang in cold storage for several days.
Before hanging and aging deer, carefully trim away all bloodshot tissue. Entrance and exit holes from an arrow or bullet destroys muscle tissue, and causes extensive bleeding. This tissue must be cut away to avoid bacterial breakdown.
Trim away all exces
Article written by David Richey
October,1998 issue of Woods-N-Water News Michigan's Premier Outdoor Publication
