Field Dressing Question - Keeping Cool
#11
Join Date: Nov 2003
Posts: 72
RE: Field Dressing Question - Keeping Cool
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
#12
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Iowa
Posts: 75
RE: Field Dressing Question - Keeping Cool
A friend of mine recommended rinsing out your used gallon milk jugs and filling them with water and freezing them. Then throw those in the back of your truck when you head out. When you bring your deer back to the truck put the frozen water filled gallon jugs in the chest cavity. You could use 1 liter and 2 liter soda bottles as well and stick those into tighter spaces like between the Hams as Bigway suggest.
#13
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jun 2004
Location: NW Ohio , 5 min from Ottawa National / Magee Marsh
Posts: 2,051
RE: Field Dressing Question - Keeping Cool
I have a large chest freezer that dosn't work ,most of the year it is a work bench . If I get a deer when it is to warm to hang it ,I can put the whole deer in it with several bags of ice and it will stay cool with only a extra bag a day till I can prossess it.
#14
RE: Field Dressing Question - Keeping Cool
This topic makes me think about shooting a deer and not looking/ finding it until the next day. If it were warm at night, wouldn't the deer be fine upon recovery?
Can't add much, except don't forget to get rid of the trach boys! I simply gut immediately and skin ASAP. If I can let it hang fine (always seperate the hams by way of cutting the pelvis prior to FDing the animal), if not I quarter it and cool anyway possible.
#15
RE: Field Dressing Question - Keeping Cool
Thanks for all the responses. I'm thinking of temperatures in the 60s and 70s. So I think I will freeze some milk and 2 liter pop jugs and put them into the cavity and then surround the outer body with some more of them -- the whole thing wrapped in a tarp until I can get it there the next morning.