How long should it take to butcher a deer?

On average, five to seven days is the ideal length of time to let the meat age. An aging process of five to seven days will allow the meat time to cool, move past rigor mortis, and let collagen begin to break down. This will result in meat that is both tender and flavorful.

Can you butcher a deer immediately?

you can let them hang if the temp. is just above freezing 35-40 if you have a cool dry place . young deer 2-3 days old bucks 4-5 days BUT THE TEMP HAS TO BE RIGHT! or YOU CAN TAKE IT TO SOMEONE WHO HAS A COOLER. some will skin it out and hang them for you or do the butchering job also.

Can you take a deer to a butcher?

If it’s cold enough, you can leave the deer to hang for a couple of days (some hunters and meat processors recommend longer). If it’s above 40 degrees, you can either take it to a meat processor or quarter your kill and put it in the refrigerator.

How much does it cost to process a deer?

Processing: Basic deer processing typically costs $75 to $120, but it varies with each processor. If you order jerky and sausage, the cost will increase, generally at per-pound rates.

How long after shooting a deer do you have to gut it?

If you wait too long to recover the deer, the blood will spoil and ruin the meat. The old bowhunters’ rule is to wait eight to 12 hours before following a gut-shot deer. If you wait that long when it’s 50 degrees or above, your intentions may be good, but there’s a good chance you will lose that meat.

How long is a deer good for after you shoot it?

So, the conditions of the environment and the deer both help determine the time between shot and recovery without spoiling venison. If the air temperature is 50 degrees, we have three to six hours to recover a deer after it dies.

Is it necessary to hang a deer?

Venison, particularly deer meat, lacks the fat and connective tissue to break down over a longer period of time. This means that it should never be hung longer than a week under controlled temperatures, and it many cases, it would’ve fared better if it had been butchered right after being shot.

Is Doe meat better than Buck?

A deer fattened on corn and soybeans will taste better than a big timber deer scraping by on twigs and browse. That’s just a fact of life. Hold out for a Year-and-a-Half-Old Doe. This is a deer to kill in the early season if you can.

How many pounds of meat can you get from a deer?

The deer’s realistic meat yield is about 58.15 pounds. Because waste can vary between deer, we suggest using the “realistic” figure as a gauge. In the above example, the buck’s realistic meat yield would range form 58 to 68 pounds.

What happens to meat when you butcher a deer?

Butchering Deer – The aging process. After killing and field dressing the deer, it is time to age the meat. After a deer is killed, it goes into a rigor mortis state in which the muscles are contracted and stiff. Butchering deer while in this state will result in tough meat.

How long should deer be aged before butchering?

You should age young deer at least two days while older deer should be aged between 5 and 7 days. Remember, the most important thing is to keep the meat between 32 and 42 degrees. Once aged, its time to start butchering deer. Before butchering deer, we must take the hide off.

How to cut a deer for deer meat?

If you’ve hung your deer by its head, it could be ideal to make your cut around its shoulders or along the neck. This will depend on the amount of neck meat you need to save. Skinning process is a way of separating your deer’s hide from its muscles using the edge of a sharp knife. The next step involves quartering.

How hard is it to quarter a deer?

Quartering a deer isn’t difficult, but it can be intimidating. Because of that, mistakes are often made. With some basic anatomy knowledge, you can take a deer apart with a sharp pocket knife in a few minutes, but many hunters ignore that and instead tear into the deer’s bones with a saw.