Archery Deer Hunters Must Care For Meat Properly

Archery Deer Season Is Open, Hunters Must Care For Meat Properly In Warm Weather

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Nebraska’s archery deer season opened Sept. 15 and daytime temperatures are still in 80s, which makes properly caring for the game you take a necessity.

How you care for the your game from the moment you pull the trigger until you pack the meat into the freezer has a great effect on its quality when it reaches your table.

The deer should be field dressed as soon as possible after it is killed. Open the body cavity and remove the viscera quickly to allow the meat to cool as rapidly as possible.

Removing the viscera also reduces the animal’s weight by about 25 percent, which makes the deer easier to drag out of the field.

Place the heart and liver in a plastic bag for transport. Some hunters also save the kidneys. When all of the innards have been removed, turn the animal on its side and allow blood remaining in the body cavity to drain away. Then wipe the cavity clean with a clean, dry cloth, but don’t wash the body cavity with water because you risk introducing bacteria to the meat.

Prop the body open with stout sticks to allow air to circulate and cool the meat. It is wise to drape the animal with hunter orange while it is being dragged or carried from the field, so other hunters who see it moving through the brush won’t mistake it and you for game.

“Life begins over 40” is the rule for transporting and aging deer and other game. From field dressing to processing, maintain meat temperatures of less than 40 degrees to discourage bacterial growth and meat spoilage.

Hang or store big game in a cool area for 10-12 hours after it is taken to let the meat go through rigor mortis – the stiffening of muscles after death, which is caused by coagulating muscle protein – before it is frozen or butchered. Otherwise, the meat will contract when thawed or cut and it will be tough when it reaches the table.

A field-dressed deer, even with the hide on, can be sufficiently cooled if hung overnight in colder weather. The chilled carcass can even be maintained in camp for several days if it is placed in the shade during the day and hung out of reach of dogs and other predators.

Deer hunters are divided in their opinions about the need to skin a deer immediately after it is taken, but a strong argument can be made for leaving the skin on as long as possible – if the carcass can be cooled quickly after field dressing. The hide helps keep the meat clean, and also helps prevent drying and glazing of meat exposed to the air. If a dried, glazed coating is allowed to develop, it is usually removed when butchering, requiring the carcass be “skinned” twice.

In September and October, temperature often remain too high to safely hang big game outdoors. Most experienced archers quickly have their animal checked through the check station, then butcher it and put the meat on ice in Styrofoam coolers to keep it cool while transporting it home.

Whenever possible, transport game inside a vehicle or trailer. If the carcass must be carried in a roof rack or elsewhere outside the vehicle, wrap it. Heat from the sun can be detrimental to the meat, and the display of dead animals is offensive to many people.

Small game animals should also be gutted and cooled quickly. An ice chest in the vehicle will pay big dividends at the table.

Game birds killed in hot weather spoil rapidly if special care is not taken in the field. Cleaning and cooling birds immediately helps ensure the meat retains its flavor and is safe to eat. Opening the body cavity and removing the entrails allows the meat to cool and helps eliminate the chance that viscera punctured by shot will fill the body cavity with blood and digestives fluids that can taint the meat.

Remove the innards and wipe the body cavity with a clean dry cloth. In hot weather hang birds from a strap on your belt rather than carrying them in a game pouch where air circulation is poor. Some hunters carry their birds in a free hand as they walk back to their vehicle. Keep an ice chest in the vehicle so birds can be put on ice as quickly as possible.

The time and care you take to properly care for game in the field and during processing will pay huge dividends when it reaches the table.

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