Field Dressing
 

Having been a deer hunter all my life, one question has always bugged me.

What are the temperature/timeline guides for field dressed deer sized game in the field(hanging and protected)?

Example: 24hr @ 50*
48hr @ 35*

I was looking for just a general guidline.

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RE: Field Dressing
 

I have hung deer for over a week as long as the night time low never gets below 20 and the daytime high never breaks 45 for to long, I hang them in a shed which keeps any unwanted critters messing with them, now if it is warm I hang over night and butcher the next day. I am sure you can find real guidelines, but what I mentioned above has worked well for me for years.

RE: Field Dressing
 

So what about when it is warmer out? Should a deer be hung at all when temperatures are hot...say 65 degrees or higher?

RE: Field Dressing
 

If the temperature is to high the meat will start to spoil. It has to be processed as soon as possible or hung in a cooler. One fall I had gotten a buck during archery season and it was hot. We had nowhere to hang it so I butchered it that late afternoon. We had deer steak that night and boy was it good and nice and tender. It hadn’t tasted any different then before when the meat would be hung for a week...Since then I will hang the meat for just a couple of days at the most.

RE: Field Dressing
 

Never hung mine, shoot, kill, field dress, get home, skin, then butcher, and in frez. I know a guy that left his in the back of his truck a couple of years ago. It was about 60-70 degrees, he left it there for a week, even started to turn a greenish color. The last I heard he cut it up and threw it in the frez.(YUM YUM)I' m not sure if he ate it or if he gave it to the dog.[X(]

RE: Field Dressing
 

I think what TAZ says makes a lot of sense. As long as the temp doesn' t get much higher than 40 and it gets below freezing at night.....that' s ideal for us. We hang ours with the hide still on and the meat never freezes even when the temp drops to the mid-upper 20' s. I still follow the old rule....." when in doubt, start cutting" ...(I just made that up).

RE: Field Dressing
 

like M722 I shoot, dress, and butcher rght away as long as I have the time. Last year a friend let his hang for 2 months but it was in a garage at around 15 degree avgerage temp during the day and he ate well into the spring with it.

RE: Field Dressing
 

When at all possible I am field dressing when it is still kicking. It is cut up and headed to the freezer the same day. If I want aged rotten meat I will go to the grocery store

RE: Field Dressing
 

Here are some guide lines I use

Let your nose be the judge.

Hang Time

65-70 degrees- 24-36 hrs.
50 degrees- 3-4 days
35-40 degrees- 7-10 days