RE: Hanging deer meet-how long?
I leave the skin on till I'm ready to cut up the deer. Left them hanging this way over a week before without a problem so long as its cold enough. Just take the tenderloins out right away as theyre exposed & will dry out. If I'm afraid a deer might freeze I'll quater it & put it in the fridge till I can finish. I dont actually age them on purpose its more of a time thing for me & if I have the time I'll do it right away.
Its not hard at all really to butcher them yourself if you have a couple sharp knives. I learned watching my uncle. We been gun hunting together with his brother for years & split everything 3 ways regardless of who kills what. Uncle Richie always cuts the meat & Bobby wraps while I skin & bring in hunks. Basically what we do is seperate the big muscle groups & cut them into steaks. Everything else gets cut into chunks for stew or burger.
Since I started bowhunting I had to do it alone mostly But it still aint tough because I can spread it out if need be. I now leave alot of big pieces whole & freeze them. Then I can cut them into steaks if I want or make it into a roast. We had one butchered up in NY this year & made the whole thing into sausage but I'v done 3 bowkills so far. I myself, like it better if I do it.