Deer processing. Do it yourself, or have it done?

[jonny4523]

It not only saves money but you know what you are getting. The guy at the packing house doesn't care about what you are going to eat in the same way that you care about it. This is why home made sausage, salami and jerky often tastes better; the person who made it was going to eat it themselves. If you process your own deer then you can do it the way you like and if something looks/feels/smells a little odd then you aren't going to throw it in the grinder.

That's a good point that I guess I didn't really think about before. So how many people here live in a suburb neighborhood and process in their shed? Cause that'd probably be my only option.

 

[disengaged]

Well, I gave it another shot this weekend at my hunting buddy's - cousin's house. He has his garage set up for processing and it went much smoother than last time. I think that I'm a new convert to doing it yourself.

 

[Eddie]

Once you get it checked.

Once you get your deer checked, skin and quarter it. All you need is a knife and maybe a bone saw and you can do this from a tree in your yard. Take the hams, backstraps and ribs (if you process the ribs, some don't) and put them in the fridge. You can do the rest in your kitchen. I've seen guys get three properly quartered deer in a regular refrigerator.

 

[jonny4523]

So if you process it yourself, what do you do with the carcass?

 

[Eddie]

Anything I don't use

Gets fed to the coyotes, but that ain't much.

 

[jonny4523]

Well I guess in my case, where I live in a neighborhood, I'm not sure where I'd put it. I wouldn't want to take it out to the country and just dump it somewhere in someone else's woods. If I chop it and put in the trash in today's society, I'd probably get arrested for suspicion of murder.

 

[disengaged]

So if you process it yourself, what do you do with the carcass?

Whatever is left goes to the other side of the woods. Another guy that we know has a burn pile.

We pretty much processed ours right away, but I have heard that if it's not too warm - it's better to let them hang overnight. What do you think?

 

[Bigswin]

Seems like too much of a hassle for me, I'm willing to pay to have it done.

 

[HICKMAN]

I'll pay to have it done by our INGO member here, as I don't have a place to do it.

 

[HICKMAN]

for those wanting to give it a try, or at least see it done.

Keep in mind, this is not a professionally done video, this is done to educate people so they'd have an idea of how to do it in a survival situation.

Part 1
YouTube - Utilizing Resources (Processing a Whitetail Deer) Part 1

Part 2
YouTube - Utilizing Resources (Processing a Whitetail Deer) Part 2

 

[redneckpastor]

Absolutely! its cheaper and you know exactly what your getting. Its not that hard and if you get a few doing it, great fellowship!