My 9 year old shot his 2nd deer of the season this morning around 930 with the x bow. I gutted it asap and stuffed a 20lb bag of ice in the chest. I split the ribs nd pelvis but between the drag and its now 3 before im ready to skin and quarter getting it on ice.

The high is to hit 50. Low low 30s. Since its so late now im thinking about just lettung it hang in tbe barn in the shade.


Whats the hightes temps you are ok with?

For me, 50°F is too hot to feel comfortable with it. I prefer 30-40°F.

50 is a little warm, but I think you'll be OK. Congrats on the deer.

If it's going down into the low thirties tonight it will be fine to hang overnight. Maybe throw another bag of ice in the cavity until temps start to drop after sunset.

My buddy and his crew will let them hang nearly all week in gun season, most days warm enough to make me cringe when I think about it. A lot of our deer season can see temps 70 or higher and then 20's at night. I don't like leaving meat in fluctuating temps like that. They also pull the hides off most times and by the time they get around to skin them, the entire carcass looks nearly black. Not my cup of tea. It only takes a few minutes for me to hang and quarter a deer. I have my "deer fridge" right by the skinner. I even put the quarters in tubs or plastic bags while in the fridge to keep the air from discoloring the meat. I have left them in the fridge for max 5 days, no longer before processing.

In the shade 50 should be ok if it's cold at night.
Fluctuating temperatures is just automatic tenderizing!

As long as its 30s or lower at night its fine inside a building. I’ve let them hang well into the 60s for a day or two as long as nights are cold.

Thanks for the quick replys. Im normally close to home and if its above 40-45 i will get them on ice fast. Today with the manual drag on public ground and getting our gear out im out of shape for that hill country so it took a while. Then we were over an hour from home. I was a little worried. But now its so late it will start cooling off so figured why rush now but wanted to check here. Spome day jopefully soom im going to get a walk in cooler. I could not justify it just for 5-10 deer a year but can now that my wife can use it for produce and cut flowers the rest of the year.


Thanks for the congrats. I believe its his 8th deer. Its the 2nd time he picked the woods and location to sit and been sucessfull. At least thry still need dad for the ride and bull work.

The quicker you get the critter cooled the better. After that it is fine. You did the right thing. Gutting. Icing. Splitting the rib cage. I spent a week in the bush with a moose quartered and . Hung. Above 50 during the day low 30 to 40s at night. Wrapped in white sheets to keep flies and dirt off meat.

X2

Double tap..

My bigest consern was the hour and half or so in the sun on the way home but sounds like im good. Someday i will pick a picture hosting sight and post pictures.

If you first get it cold all the way through, a warm spell is not so bad. But if it has never been chilled, it bothers me for a carcass to stay warm. Air movement is good. Washing out with a water hose takes away a lot of heat.

We have a walk-in cooler at my club. The air movement is what cools the deer carcass. Doubt you can have too much fan.

what lugnut said!

I would get the hide off as soon as I had it hung up. It will still steam in the morning if you skin it then. Animals will not cool down with the hide on very well.

You don't need a picture hosting site. You can post directly from your phone or computer.

White Dog is right, just download a picture resizer and you can upload it directly here.

Here is a big Kansas doe my boy took, I wish I had ran her access the scales at the grain elevator. If she wasn't 200 pounds she would have been close. It got warm the day he took her so I quartered her up and aged her in an old fridge

The reason it turned black is because the air dried it out. I have ate deer meat that was aged for a few days where it turned black but didn't get too warm on the meat. Cut off the black part and cook it too your liking. Delicious!

I knew a fella that let a deer hang until the flies ate the eyeballs out and still ate it.....................

Gary

I skined it tonight. It was very cold all the way through to the back strip where the ice was about like it had been in the fridge. Suprised me. Hams were not near as cool but were not warm inder the skin. Its 43 and should get down to 29. Im going to have cold hands in the morning.