Hanging deer

[bogwalker]

Years ago when a hunter shot a deer they would hang it in a tree or somewhere in the yard. It was interesting seeing what other hunters got and seeing if there were any nice bucks.

[Musky Buck]

I would tend to think this still is happening a lot it's just I don't spend much time driving by, I'm on location till after dark generally. Got to realize years ago we had cooler seasons and the last decade many times people needed to get the animals cooled down quickly, skinned, etc. Last year muzzleloading I had to get the deer taken care of quickly, need to let (rigormortous) lol set in on them from what I've heard/read.

[bogwalker]

I wondered about temperatures too. I can't remember the last time I saw hanging deer in a yard or open garage. Used to be something you saw frequently all throughout rifle season.

[96trigger]

I still frequently see deer hanging in garages. The last 2 out 3 years, there has been a deer hanging at house that is across the street from the high school I teach at. Everybody can see it when the go to the school and its right across from the faculty parking lot. It will sometimes hang for a week.

[pulleye16]

We've since put ours in the garage now after one bad year of a certain "aminal" getting to it at night!

Since we are taking about hanging deer, do you guys hang them buy the rear or by the head? All pics in magazines hang them by the rear legs. We hang by the head to keep everything from running all over our meat...any reasons?

[creepworm]

Hang ours by the head, unless the head is heading to the taxidermist.

[reinhard1]

i hang them legs up on large meat hooks. this is the way i skin them also. just the way i have done it for years. good luck.

[lovebigbluegills]

I hang them by the legs, as my dad taught me. Seems like the logical thing to do--easy enough to skin, and all of the blood doesn't end up in the hind quarters.

[lovebigbluegills]

It's probably a six of one, half dozen of another type deal.

Some of you hang them by the head, as you were taught to do. And you've gotten used to skinning them starting at the head instead of the hind quarters.

I'm not sure that one way is better than the other, it's just what you're used to doing.

[MUSKY18]

We have our "meat pole" right in camp and every single deer that gets harvested goes on it. Nobody can see it as we are 1/4 off the road. Depending upon the weather temps, we will sking them within minutes of them being hung to cool them off, but in colder years, we don't. We also hang them by their heads, as this is how we have all learned how to skin them. My daddy did it, my grand daddy did it, my great grand daddy did it, etc.!

[Big-Al]

Has anyone ever seen a domestic animal hung by the head? if there is any blood left in the meat and you hang them from the head it will be left in the hind quarters. To me it is a no brainer.

[96trigger]

I've done both, and see no difference whatsoever.

[Musky Buck]

We've always gone legs first just I think for the reason then once skun to the neck we can take the coconut off half them and then put them back on the meat hooks in the walk in cooler. Then we roll up the capes, line up the buck heads and snap a few photo's.

[CANOPY SAM]

Hang mine by the head. Skin em' while they're still warm - much easier to remove the hide this way. If you let em' cool down before removing the cape it can be a lot more work.

I always hang mine in the garage. With doors shut the temp remains reasonably constant inside during the late fall.

If temps cooperate, stays under 45 degrees in the garage, I'll let mine hang four days with cape off. When the meat squishes easily between my fingers it's ready. If the temps stay much above 45 they'll only hang a day, or maybe two. Really prefer to let them age though.

Nothing my wife loves more than walking around a couple deer carcasses hanging in the garage for a few days!!!

[gurkster]

We hang them on the meat pole by the head. All deer go up there for a nice picture at the end of the hunt. I always thought hanging them by the head lets the blood drain out of the chest cavity more??? Just the way I was taught I guess.

[student]

I guess I've done both. I've found that the deer skins easier if hung hind end up. I also think that it is easier to work on quartering or cutting the meat off when hung this way. I guess it's your own personal preference.

By hanging them hind end up, a person can use the chest cavity to hold waste/trimmings which makes for an easier disposal.

[Boar]

When I hung a deer by the head I would get alot more hair in the meat when skinnin, learned along time ago when hung by the legs the flesh is already exposed at the hind quarters so no cutting thru hide to start the skining process as appossed to cutting around the neck an down the chest to start teh cape. How do you head hangers start the hide, after 31 years am I missing something. Boar

[paul pachowicz]

Hanging them by the hind legs allows the heat from the chest cavity to escape faster and easier without any blockage from a closed up or unopened sternum to throat when hung head up. I tell customers when elk hunting or even deer hunting when it's warm to make a cut from between the ears down to between the shoulder blades and cut the hide part way around the neck and the shoulders to create flaps so heat can escape. The shoulder area will retain more heat then the hinds. I have one particular customer that lets his hang with the hide on for 7-9 days. He lives in the higher elevs so it is cooler up there. The reason carcasses are hung from the hinds in slaughter houses is that it is easier to split the spine down thru the neck then starting at the neck.

[creepworm]

We hose out our deer to wash everything such as blood out, therefore, the chest cavity is cooled down then.