Eating roadkill

We have a roadkill list for moose up here in Alaska and although I’ve never put myself on it, I have had moose that was roadkill, and it tasted great. I think that most moose that are hit up here are killed in the winter, so dealing with warm temperatures is not an issue and they’re usually processed very quickly.


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I’ve picked up 2 deer, but I saw the cop finish them off. No issues.

My uncle used to drive a county snow plow and would occasionally get one.
You just pitch the busted up stuff.
 
yep a few.

Tad and i were headed to deer camp and he was griping about being hungry and what we going to eat. we had passed more than one dead one. so the next one i yelled for him to stop. it was still warm and we got the backstraps.

got to camp told the guys we were cooking the straps and gather round. they all left us to go to town and we ate all we could.
 
Couple of years ago a guy I work with called me one morning on the way to work and said the dude in front of him hit a doe if I wanted to have it. She wasn't busted up too bad and tasted just fine.
 
I never pass up free meat if the chance is there. I’ve cut up animals that were shot in the meat shop worse than a lot of the road kills.

As Troutbum mentioned, the roadkill list is solid in AK, they want them off the road right now, so why pay someone to do it when you get the labor for free?


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Years ago, I was dirt ass poor and I ate roadkill. No shame for me. In fact, The best piece of meat I ever got, was back in like 06, a young cow moose. Sheriff deputy was trying to put it down with a 9mm. I had a .223 and gave him some assistance and got a moose. 🤣 best stop I ever made!
 
Please stop with the name calling now. I've cleaned up this thread so everyone else can carry on.

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I have 4 kids. Our monthly grocery bill is more than our mortgage. I’ve picked up 2 deer so far. Cut away the bruised and it’s just fine.

Now that I work from home full time it actually makes sense to do a few miles of driving in the mornings. I could get 4 species of ungulate.
 
In some states you have to have a permit/license to pick up road kill. Nothing wrong with it at all. Why let an animal go to waste?
 
My roommate saw a whitetail get hit one time. He threw it in his truck and we cut her up hanging from the clothes line. No problem at all.

Another night, I almost stopped for an elk that looked fresh but I didn't have much of a knife at hand.

A couple years ago, between job sites, my companion pointed out a pheasant on the road and I noticed another on the shoulder that had been hit. I asked if he wanted the tail feathers and he said he did. I noticed that rooster was in good shape and super fresh. So I breasted him at the next job and kept him in my lunch cooler for dinner. The only damage internally was a cracked breastbone.

I wouldn't give it a second thought to keep anything fresh that didn't get hammered.
 
Few years ago I had heart surgery and was told no backcountry hunting that year. Put myself in the local list. Ended up with a bear, antelope and elk from the local game wardens. All ate great. I’ve also salvaged an antelope and several deer. All were fantastic because I knew they were hit within 1 hour of when I grabbed them.
 
Seems like something poor people would do.
Lol, I did a fair bit growing up. The sheriff would call the house and my Dad would go pick them up. I got to go a few times thought it was pretty cool. And yes we were on the poorer side. The PD I work for has a call list of people who will come pick them up now. If no one answers I will still take one occasionally.
I have got a few looks from people as I’m loading up the deer they just hit into my patrol pickup.
 
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This weekend I got a roadkill elk. I don't know exactly when it was killed, but there as no gas in her belly, rigor was just starting to set in, her eyes were still clear, and there were no bad smells inside or out. I imagine she had been dead about an hour. I processed her quickly and only kept meat that was not bloodshot. I don't know how bad her internal injuries were because I did not gut her, but she really wasn't beaten up that badly. Her lower legs were broken and she had a busted up head, but the majority of her shoulders, rump, and backstrap were fine. Does anyone have experience eating a roadkill animal? I am thinking she will taste no different than a shot elk. Am I wrong?
To paraphrase a classic American saying - collect roadkill first, ask questions later.
 
Lol, I did a fair bit growing up. The sheriff would call the house and my Dad would go pick them up. I got to go a few times thought it was pretty cool. And yes we were on the poorer side. The PD I work for has a call list of people who will come pick them up now. If no one answers I will still take one occasionally.
I have got a few looks from people as I’m loading up the deer they just hit into my patrol pickup.

They do it for moose here in the wintertime.
 
I hit one last night. A whitetail fawn but wasn’t going very fast. Maybe about 15 miles an hour by the time I slowed down. Ran right over her front half with the passenger front tire. I pulled off to the right a little ways up that had room. Got out and checked the Tahoe out and didn’t see any damage. Turned back around to go get her and she was still laying in the road. Was going to stop and finish her off, but when I slowed down next to her, she jumped up and ran off lol. Would have been my first road kill. Had the knife and cooler ready.
 
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