BigWay

Being a butcher I can give you some pointers. There are a couple of things you can do to help the situation, that I have yet to see mentioned anywhere. Try to keep the hams (back legs) spread apart. This is the one area that has alot of muscle mass and retains the most heat especially when the legs are left together. From what I've seen this is the first place the meat will get funky if not cooled properly. The other thing you need to do is keep the damn flies off the meat. Cover up the deer with something to keep the flies off. You will be amazed at how quick a fly can lay eggs on your meat, and you know what a fly egg turns into. I've seen fly eggs on many early season deer especially around the pelvis if not properly taken care of. Ice in the chest cavity is a good idea. A deer or pieces of deer in a cooler with ice needs to be watched. Here's what happens, trust me I've seen it, you put pieces of hot or warm deer meat in a cooler with ice. Soon the ice melts, then the meat is floating around in bloody, dirty WATER not ice, that soon starts to smell a little funny. If the ice melts drain it and get fresh ice. keep the meat on ICE not water and get it into cold storage. Just a couple pointers, GOOD LUCK