# A question as to the meat spoiling concerns...



## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Scenario: A friend brought you a whole deer freshly killed yet not gutted nor processed in any way...just let it bleed out is all that was done. It was too late to do anything with it as it was already nearing dark and the day had already worn me out; so will have to let it stay "as is" until the morning. This means about 21 hours before it can be gutted and cleaned for processing. 

Question: By the time I get to gut and clean it will the meat ruin? (It will remain outdoors and the temperature is 48 degrees that evening, getting a bit colder thru the night.) Can humans still eat it or should I just process it for the dogs?


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## crehberg (Mar 16, 2008)

Personally it would go to the dogs, unless I was in desperate straights. If you could at least gut it I might give it a shot...but at least around here deer are easy enough to come by it isn't worth the risk.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

crehberg said:


> Personally it would go to the dogs, unless I was in desperate straights. If you could at least gut it I might give it a shot...but at least around here deer are easy enough to come by it isn't worth the risk.


I agree completely.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

Take some to work and leave it in the break room fridge labeled "Help Yourself".
You should know by the next day if it is good for family consumption.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Thanks. This morning every water bucket outdoors had a thick layer of ice over it; so it got pretty cold last night. We processed the meat and it was more difficult due to its already being stiff; but it was not frozen...just cold as all get out. We gutted it and there was absolutely no bad smell at all. It was even easier to clean as all was so cold. The liver was quite healthy looking too. If the meat (especially liver) had some type of discoloration or smell I would not consider it for the family at all; however, I'm thinking this is actually quite good meat...I've processed out goats who looked as good as this dear!


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## altair (Jul 23, 2011)

I ate some shredded mozzarella yesterday that had a touch of mold in one spot and smelled like parmesan. It tasted fine and I am still alive to type. After your first meal of the meat, we'll keep looking for more posts to assume you lived to tell about it


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## Sebastian C (Jul 23, 2017)

If you cook it enough nothing will happen to you, it just might taste "funny". Put it in sausages with extra paprika, fennel and garlic powder, and smoke it twice as long as normal. Sell at the farmers market you don't usually go to. 

Ha ha just kidding


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

altair said:


> I ate some shredded mozzarella yesterday that had a touch of mold in one spot...


Moldy cheese is not at all comparable to meat contaminated with feces.
Cold does not kill bacteria. It just slows the metabolism. Once warm again, the bugs start to multiply again.

"Aging" meat is basically letting the meat sit long enough for bacteria (not fecal) to partially digest and soften the meat. It's a Goldilocks situation-- not too much; not too little.

The big problem here is that the carcass sat for a long time--The fecal bugs had a long time to multiply.

Maybe the meat will be OK...Maybe not...Are you willing to take the chance?


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

I sent my son to pick up milk the other day. He came back with two gallons. He told me the milk was almost sold out and there wasn't more than 8-10 gallons left in the store.
I poured a tall glass to go with a couple of left over doughnuts. It had a metallic bitter taste and smelled like sour cream. "Hey! Go check the expiration date on that milk you just bought."
"Uh oh," I heard him say. "It expired 8 days ago."
I was able to get thru about half the gallon before I just had to give it to the dog a few days later.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

Expiration dates are put on products mainly to encourage more sales. Most foods stay good for long after they've passed that date if stored properly. No science behind the dates.


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

I always thought warnings, expiration dates etc were intentionally overstated because the manufacturers were aware of the enormous moron demographic that climb a ladder not leveled and rated for 200lbs while weighing 275lbs.
Drinking gas straight from the can is still unavoidable in spite of the new pour spouts.
But lawyers are the cream that blends with the coffee.


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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

It probably won't kill you, but that is no way to handle good meat and kind of disrespectful in my opinion to kill an animal and not properly care for the meat.
Whoever killed it should have field dressed it and got the cooling process started. 

If you don't have time to skin, piece up and get the meat into refrigeration or an ice chest, it's a pretty simple matter to throw a few bags of ice inside the cavity and wrap it up in a plastic tarp with a bunch of ice.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

.....Updating.....
I cooked a part for me and David....

We processed this meat differently than we do our goats in that we took most of the meat off the bones. I took the entire hip bone (both sides) having only a little meat left on and boiled it with the only seasoning being a tiny amount of salt. Then I took the meat off the bone and placed it back into the juice. I brought that to a boil and added a small amount of pasta. Then I let it cool so any fat in the juice would come to the top, which I skimmed off. (This was about 1/8" thick.) It was late so I kept it over night in the refrigerator and heated it up at noon the following day. The only seasoning was this small amount of salt.

I dished us out a small bowl each and it smelled great!!! It tasted great too!!! I was still concerned due to all that has been said in this thread; so we both only ate that small bowl (maybe half a cup each) and then waited 1-1/2 hrs to see if I was going to have to dial 911. No kidding!!! Well I didn't and neither of us have had any bad effects from this. The rest has been consumed happily and was a great meal!

I'm in total agreement with posters here who said the animal should have been more respectfully treated, i.e. gutted on the spot and/or skinned and packed in ice. I'm feeling fortunate in that the weather was as cold as it was and the animal had been "head" shot. During the hours of processing this there was never a bad smell nor discoloration of any of the meat. (During the gutting process nothing was disturbed that would permit feces or urine on any of the meat inside; and the fur was not permitted contact either.) I'm feeling quite good about how David and I dealt with this; yet do not want to have this experience ever again!!!!

When we do our goats each year for the freezer, it is a much faster process without any of the anxiety I've had with this thing.


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## HDRider (Jul 21, 2011)

doc- said:


> Moldy cheese is not at all comparable to meat contaminated with feces.
> Cold does not kill bacteria. It just slows the metabolism. Once warm again, the bugs start to multiply again.
> 
> "Aging" meat is basically letting the meat sit long enough for bacteria (not fecal) to partially digest and soften the meat. It's a Goldilocks situation-- not too much; not too little.
> ...


Dang, I ate deer (a few times) we could not find at dusk, and found the next morning.


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## thesedays (Feb 25, 2011)

doc- said:


> Expiration dates are put on products mainly to encourage more sales. Most foods stay good for long after they've passed that date if stored properly. No science behind the dates.


I'd recommend sticking with the e-dates if you're dealing with fresh milk or meat.


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## doc- (Jun 26, 2015)

thesedays said:


> I'd recommend sticking with the e-dates if you're dealing with fresh milk or meat.


Milk doesn't curdle the way it used to. It lasts in the fridge much longer now than it did 60 y/a. Is the handling in the milking parlor or at the processing plant that makes the difference? I dunno.

With meat, I'd go by the feel rather than the date...As meat gets old, it gets a slimy feel on the surface.--That's the mucous coat on the Gram negative bacteria you're feeling....It's probably (wanna take a chance?) not toxic. If I were starving, I'd eat it.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

if it froze and the gut never broke , your fine , of course you already know this 

I like to get them gutted any time most people around here wouldn't drop you off one without gutting it just taught in out behavior I guess a deer gets gutted as soon as you find it.

gutting takes just 5 minutes or so once you get good at it but if your already worn out and not so experienced it could be project.

we bone out all our deer in WI the DNR has been telling us to do this for about 18 years.

not sure if you split the pelvis or not I no longer do I cut around the anus and it can be pulled through without splitting the pelvis.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

With out goats we always split the pelvis because we usually separate the hind quarters for roasting; however, with this deer we did not split the pelvis. I cut around the anus, pull all the stuff out and then washed the entire area out with a pressure hose...


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

motdaugrnds said:


> With out goats we always split the pelvis because we usually separate the hind quarters for roasting; however, with this deer we did not split the pelvis. I cut around the anus, pull all the stuff out and then washed the entire area out with a pressure hose...


for me it was less to carry in the field used to have little folding saws in out kits , they are nice but when you forget them at the truck , change in procedure was easier.

now just a pair of gloves in a pocket is easier to carry I carry some 550 para cord also loops tied at both ends.

where we hunt changed so now I am carrying lunch and a 12 inch manchette and all my water for the day also. used to be we were back at the truck or house every hour or two I fit everything in a orange game vest now and the manchette on my belt is knew but handy for when the trail gets tight with vines and canes.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

Pete what you're doing sounds like something my son would enjoy as he loves the brush and all its critters. I can enjoy such trips now only via the experiences of others. I too love the wilder parts of America but these old bones aren't what they use to be.....

Here on the homestead David rigged us up some pulleys with metal bars and paracord and it helps a lot; however, doing our goats the last time neither of us (even together) could pull the un-gutted carcasses up high enough to work on them. Won't be doing goats again until next year but we're thinking of the possibility of using a come-along to do the pulling. Just not sure yet how to rig it to go with the pulleys...


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

I built this for skinning raccoons and such several years ago , but found it worked ok on deer also a simple hand crank boat trailer winch makes easy cranking out of this buck that my son and I found hard to lift into the back of the truck as we need to get above tailgate height.

I have given this a fair amount of thought least expensive way to make a very usable skinning lift , basically build a big saw horse and ad a boat winch 

would take 9 2x4-8 studs to make one about 7'6" feet tall a littel threaded rod and it could lift the biggest deer and goats very easily before lumber prices doubled this year it would have been about 25 dollars in wood. 

with a 2x4 now 5 dollars each instead of 3 it would be 45 in lumber 24 for a hand winch , and some assorted hardware and pullys 

what you may not be able to see here is that orange above the deer's head is a ratchet strap down across that trailer to keep it from tipping towards me and the base is up against the side of the trailer.

it worked and I as able to put that trash can under it and catch the ofal


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## Fishindude (May 19, 2015)

Yea, those boat winches crank a deer up quite easily.
I built a big tall "saw horse shaped" skinning rack at the hunting cabin. It's all built of treated lumber, roughly 11' tall to the horizontal hanging point with a pair of winches on it so we can work on two deer at a time. Built it in my shop at home, no pieces longer than 6'-6" so they could fit in my truck bed, then assembled it at the cabin. Went together pretty slick and works real well.


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

I also have a gambrel on a come-a-long 

if you have a tree toss a line over and the only weight that you are hauling up is the come-a-long then the gambrel is hooked right to the come-a-long so the lever is always just above the deer's legs it also lifts a deer easily.


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## motdaugrnds (Jul 3, 2002)

We have our slaughter "pen" set up with 4 pulleys attached to "doubled" rafter braces (the extra long boards going under all the rafters and set onto heavy duty studs). So will look into the boat winch (maybe find it at Lowe's???) I'll google it too to see what it actually looks like. 

Since the foundation for this lifting is secure all we are needing is a way to pull the weight up getting it off the floor of the pen. (Sure wish I were a man at such times with lots of strength.)


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

places that have trailer or boat trailer parts tend to have them

looks like some home depots carry them TowSmart 600 lbs. Manual Trailer Winch-795 - The Home Depot

lowes looks like it may be an order to store item https://www.lowes.com/pd/TR-Industrial-600-lb-Trailer-W-in/1002331120

bolt the winch to a post and you can crank the goat up by the back legs and keep it right where it is comfortable to work as you skin you just keep cranking it up a little so it is always at your comfortable working height


I did a Ewe and a very small runt hog this weekend


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## GREENCOUNTYPETE (Jul 25, 2006)

major hand saving tool if you don't have one

a meat hook Amazon.com: Dexter Russell Cutlery AX-AY-ABHI-03491 Dexter Russell S193H Sani-Safe Orange Handle 4" Bone Hook: Coat Hooks: Kitchen & Dining

I like the 4 inch for lamb , hog, deer, size animals it keeps the blade away from your hand and when you have nearly fozen meat it keeps your hand much warmer also. so much easier on the hand than holding a slipper 1/4 use it to hook and pull the hide also while skinning.


there were my go-to combo now I use a different knife that holds it's edge better a little straighter wider blade also the hook is the same


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