how do you process a deer?

Question

need to cut meat from a deer

Answer 1

Best to do it this way in the field.

FIELD DRESSING
Dress your deer immediately.

Admittedly, the field dressing chore is not the most enjoyable part of the hunt, but the extra time spent taking care of the meat will pay dividends at the table. Field dressing takes effort, so your heavy hunting coat should be removed and your sleeves rolled up so they wont be soiled. Disposable vinyl or latex gloves lessen the chances of passing infectious diseases and make hand cleaning easier.

Blood and digestive juices from organs possibly penetrated by the shot must be removed from the body cavity quickly, and the sooner the organs, which deteriorate rapidly, are removed, the faster the meat will cool. Field dressing also eliminates dragging unnecessary weight when moving the animal.

Before starting the field-dressing process, keep in mind that it is important to keep dirt and foreign objects away from the exposed body cavity. Removing the scent glands is not considered necessary, but is done with care by many hunters. Some archery hunters save the glands for use as scent while hunting. Removing the glands carelessly can taint the meat.

Roll the carcass over on its back with the rump lower than the shoulders and spread the hind legs. Make a cut along the centerline of belly from breastbone to base of tail. First cut through the hide, then through belly muscle. Avoid cutting into the paunch and intestines by holding them away from the knife with the free hand while guiding the knife with the other.

Unless the head will be mounted, the cut should pass through the sternum and extend up the neck to the chin to allow removal of as much of the windpipe as possible. The windpipe sours rapidly and is a leading cause of tainted meat.





With a small sharp knife, cut around the anus and draw it into the body cavity, so lt comes free with the complete intestines. In doing this, avoid cutting or breaking the bladder. Loosen and roll out the stomach and intestines. Save liver. Split the pelvic or "aitch" bone to hasten cooling.
Cut around the edge of the diaphragm which separates the chest and stomach cavities, and split the breastbone. Then, reach forward to cut the windpipe and gullet ahead of the lungs. This should allow you to pull the lungs and heart from the chest cavity. Save heart. Drain excess blood from the body cavity by turning the body belly down or hanging animal head down. Prop the body cavity open with a stick to allow better air circulation and faster cooling.
A clean cloth may be useful to clean your hands. If you puncture the entrails with a bullet or your knife, wipe the body cavity as clean as possible or flush with water and dry with a cloth. Don't use water to wash out the body cavity unless the paunch or intestines are badly shot up.
Part of the satisfaction of the hunt comes with making a clean kill and in doing a neat job of field dressing your animal. Veteran hunters may have variations in the steps of field dressing. The important points are to remove the internal organs immediately after the kill without contaminating the body cavity with dirt, hair, or contents of the digestive tract and to drain all excess blood from the body cavity.
All parts damaged by gunshot should be trimmed away. If the weather is warm of if the animal is to be left in the field for a day or more, it may be skinned, except for the head, and washed clean of dirt and hair. It should be placed in a shroud sack or wrapped with porous cloth to cool (cheesecloth is ideal). The cloth covering should be porous enough to allow air circulation but firmly woven enough to give good protection from insects and dirt. Lacking porous cloth, hunters often coat the inside of the body cavity with black pepper to repel insects. Adequate cooling may take six hours or more, depending on weather conditions.


THE TRIP HOME
After the deer or antelope is checked and sealed, the head may be removed and the animal quartered for easy handling. A car top carrier is ideal to transport the kill home, or you may prefer to put it in the trunk. However, don't park in the sun or in a heated garage. Never tie the deer or antelope to the car where engine heat can cause deterioration. Warm meat spoils quickly.



AGING THE MEAT
Age the carcass in a cool, dry place. Aging of well cared for carcasses at correct temperatures yields better flavored, more tender meat. Best results are obtained in a near-constant temperature, preferably from 34 to 36 degrees Farenheit. Aging for one to two weeks is about right for the best quality venison, depending on the age and condition of the animal.



CUTTING THE CARCASS
If the carcass is to be placed in freezer or locker plant storage, it may be more convenient to use the services of an experienced butcher for the cutting and wrapping. If the intent is to gain experience by doing the job yourself, cut according to the diagram shown.





The first step is to saw the carcass down the center of the backbone, dividing it into two sides. If the neck is to be used for a pot roast, it should be removed before the carcass is split. Place the sides of venison inside down on a table and cut according to the chart. Trim excess bone and gristle and further cut meat into family-size packages

Answer 2

This is right up my alley as I have never had a deer processed for me and never will. Last year my son and I did 4. I make alot of venison jerky and my son loves hamburger. After you take the hide off you need to cut the legs off and wash them. Then feel for the bone and slice the biggest pieces you can. when you have the pieces cut then cut your steaks. we debone everything altho i do have a meat saw. the neck down to the ribs is a roast, and the tail bone is a roast. clean all the yucky stuff off with you knife. this leaves the rib cage. cut along the backbone all the way down to the bone from one end to the other. then cut along the ribs to meet this cut. you should come out with a piece of meat about two feet long and 2 inches or more thick. this is the backstrap and the best part of the deer. you'll have lots of little pieces left and this is what we make hamburger out of. If you do use only lean meat and add tallow from beef. you can buy this cheap from any butcher. if you don't want hamburger or have no grinder cut it into small pieces for stew meat. The ribs i generally put into the slow cooker with bar-b-q sause. They have too much fat on them and don't make good hamburger or anything else unless you have the time to seperate the meat from the fat. After one mess of ribs i feed the rest to the cats.

Answer 3

My son and I been cutting up our own deer for years for a couple reasons.one,years ago I took a deer to have it processed a very large buck.Was going to have the head mounted.They told me it somehow got lost.(wonder who's wall it is on now?)Plus as I said it was a large buck and when my wife went to pick it up it was in one small box about 20 lbs. of meat should have been much more from my experience cutting my own.They told me I lost a lot of meat from where I shot it.It was a head shot.Plus it cost me over 100.00 to have 20 lbs. of meat.Ever wonder where those samples of jerky and deer sticks come from in a processors business?

Answer 4

I would take it to an expierenced butcher. It's a really hard job and should be done by a professional. You dont want to ruin some perfectly good deer meat!

Answer 5

Get that ****ed deer skinned, gutted, and on ice in case you won't be able to get it right into a meat locker. For Pete's sake, guy. you won't be able to shop meat at fifty 5 levels. verify the temp interior your refrigerator. i will guess it is between 34 and 38 levels. could you % your refrigerator at fifty 5 levels? You pronounced you have a storage, so get something under the deer and get it gutted. Quarter it up and %. it in a cooler or 2 of ice. you already know, in case you could be a hunter, think of those issues out beforehand of time. Being a hunter would not end once you have something ineffective on the floor. you could desire to stick to by using. It died by using your hand and additionally you may desire to admire it sufficient to guard it somewhat than permit it smash. i will step off my cleansing soap field now.

Answer 6

call a butcher or something buddy thats a complicated job if you wanna get the most out of the deer. Take it to a processor and have them do it for you.