After the kill....?

[PAhunter86]

After you field dress a deer, and bring it home, what do you do with it? Does it need to be aged? Do you have to skin it before you bring it to the butcher? Obviously, I' ve never shot a deer before. Thanks

[rebel wolf]

if it' s going to be warm you will want to process it immediately if the weather is cooler say day time high around 40 you could hang it to age. Alot of people perfer to age their venison with me the weather will dictate how soon I' ll process it. Just remember to hang it and rinse out the cavity as soon as possible with cold water this helps in the cooling down process and helps the spread of germs. Hanging inside or outside the thing to remember is to keep the carcass cool. Hope this helps good luck....

[Sitter]

Good advice rebel. If its warm and you cant get to the processor pack the chest cavity with ice. This will keep things cool enough until you can get it cut up. No you dont have to skin it before taking it in. You do have to field dress it though(get all the insides out). Do a search and you' ll find some great instructions.
Good luck getting your first deer!

[Pro-Line]

I process my own...completely, and I' ve never worried about them rotting by letting them hang overnight, regardless of the temp if they' re cleaned out CORRECTLY.

I gut mine, and then when I get back to camp or my house, I clean the inside out completely and wash. Then I skin immdediately...many do not...I then hang them for as long as possible according to the temp, up to about 5 days if it' s really cool.

If you get rid of the blood/entrails many of the BAD bacteria are gone. Bacteria is what breaks the meat down and make it tender during aging...but too much bacteria will rot the meat prematurely. That' s why aging the deer in cool temps works the best.

Hope this helps!