bugsNbows

I've been processing my own for over 40 years. That way I ensure I get what I want and it also seems to be appropriate... ya know from field to table all by me.

Teach Deer

For the past ten years, I have processed all of my own deer. More recently however, my processing has improved greatly due to a video...

"How to butcher deer"...available from the Kentucky Department of Fish and Wildlife (google KY Fish and Wildlife) for a modest amount. It features a professional butcher explaining the process to Tim Farmer, host of Kentucky Afield, a PBS show, the oldest sporting show still produced...been on the air since the 1950s.

Shoulder Strap

I have a real neat trick for skinning a deer. If it is cold out and the deer has hung for very long at all , skinning can be very cold on the fingers not to mention the hyde doesnt just fall off. With that being said, first, with your deer hanging on a strong branch of a tree, use a saw or in my case a hatchet and knife to remove the front leg just above the knee. Now starting at the backof the deer at the base of the neck cut around the neck and straight down to each front leg you removed. Skin the back of the neck down about 12". Nows where the fun begins. Take a rock or baseball or something about fist sized maybe smaller. Rap the hyde at the base of the neck around your rock and with the hyde inside out loop a lariat rope around the hyde holding your rock and draw up tight next take the other end of your rope and tie around the ball of your truck and proceed to skinning with ease. Carefull not to pull in half if shot in the mid section with a large rifle. You will definitly enjoy the experience. One more hint. While cutting around the neck cut from the inside out . This will avoid getting hair all over your meat. Your friends will laugh but might just start doing it their self.

1eyebuck

I have always cut them up myself. I use my hunting knife and debone the meat right on the deer on the ground. I don't take the front sholders or neck because where I live the deer are small and that's a waste of time, you rarely get a hamburger out of it. What I mean by on the ground, you start cuting the fur right above the tenderloins and go down and out reveling the meat. Then debone it and put in a bag, this usually takes about 15 minutes to do. Then discard the deer whole, no fuss no muss. Then I flash freeze the meat for 30 minutes to make the outside hard enough to shave of the film and ligaments. This allows the meat to be very tasty. I make my own hamburger using beef fat and my own sausage using pig fat and seasoning from cabelas. The stakes are so good everyone that had any of mine are rushing back for more. I always vacume pack them up. Some of the things I make are philidelphia cheese stakes using very thin sliced meat. Blackened steaks using blacken seasoning. Corned venison using corning seasoning. Hotdogs and hot sticks, both of these I pay for, we have a german butcher that does this, the venison is the 1/3 byproduct and they are great. Italian hot and sweet sausage. Bratwurst sausage. Breakfast sausage. Meatballs. There is no limit to what you can make and enjoy. I have been doing this since I was 10. I was blessed with some hunting property that was overbundent of deer and the state let us have a nusense permit. They wanted every deer seen shot. We left the bucks and only shot the does, this allowed the neighboring properties hunters to harvest the bucks and they didn't mind the permit so much. I really like the meat and eat it every chance I get. Hope this helps.

cardeeer

No, I give some to the my church needy and the rest I get fancy stuff made of it. I get the meat prepared ways I dont have the time or equipment to do. I use a Amish butcher. He is cheap and after spending 4000 a year to feed the deer whats the big deal paying for 2 deer to be processed. Adds up to 29.00 a pound