transferring elk stink to the meat

[rclouse79]

I beg to differ. Elk smell is my favorite smell in the world. I have never had a problem with tainted meat.

 

[kyleds8]

Do the gutless method, which keeps your cuts and hands away from the belly that is covered in urine and stench. I have found that this is important because it will transfer the smell and taste to the meat. Several pairs of gloves would work too, but I don't carry any.

I went gutless method for my first time today with a buck I shot last night just before losing light. Opened his back up to cool off last night pulling skin off midway down each shoulder, came back this morning and something had ripped his guts out behind the ribs all over the meat... first attempt backfired, may go back to gutting asap. So far a lot of the meat has that guts smell even after rinsed, will see how it tastes but might be dogfood.

 

[Jardo]

why would you leave it overnight on the ground. they have these new things called flashlights. raccoons, coyotes, skunks, etc will take advantage of the free meal.

no disrespect but what a waste that could have been avoided.


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[kyleds8]

why would you leave it overnight on the ground. they have these new things called flashlights. raccoons, coyotes, skunks, etc will take advantage of the free meal.

no disrespect but what a waste that could have been avoided.


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don't worry, none of the meat will be wasted. I left it because with poor light from headlamp, exhaustion of a long day, and hands numb from cold, I figured I'd be more efficient, safer, and happier butchering in the morning. Seeing as below freezing didn't seem like a big deal, do you always butcher and packout whole animal if you shoot at dusk?

 

[JPD350]

Thanks for all your input guys. My theory that this is contamination from the hide is still panning out, but I'm also wondering if I could be dealing with a bit of widespread spoilage as well. We shot this bull mid afternoon in mid September in AZ and did not find it til next morning. Temps at night were colder and it was shaded all day, not baking in the sun...but it is still a dead elk in September with the guts punctured. The degree of nasty tasting meat is still hit or miss, but I am wondering if what I am tasting is the start of meat spoilage since it seems to be somewhat wide spread. Everything smelled fine while we were field butchering. I just don't know what the start of meat spoilage tastes like and the taste is so much like how the hide smelled. Every deer, bear, and pig I have shot has been recovered within a few hours, so I haven't dealt with spoilage before.

I've been doing warm weather elk in NM for a long time (40 yrs) and your meat had a very high probability of having bone sour and to top it off you say he was gut shot which can also taint the meat.

It would have to be pretty chilly to have saved the top half of that meat from sour but even if it was cold that night gut juices and gases were flowing, a perfect storm.

 

[SliverShooter]

I’m in Montana, much cooler than MN. My experience, if possible, we never leave a game animal over night (especially elk) if we can avoid it. I have seen Elk meat sour overnight when the temperature was less than -20. An elks hide is a great insulator and will hold the heat in. At minimum, if we have to leave an elk overnight, we gut it, prop open the rib cage and cut the hide from the base of the skull to the tail to allow heat to escape from the neck, back straps, and hind Quarters. Wipe it down with snow when available, but don’t leave the snow inside, it prevents the heat from escaping. I personally have never seen an elk that did not sour if left overnight and it wasn’t gutted and opened up. I have seen, or should I say smelled, a few that were gutted and left over night in 45-65 degree weather that did sour.

 

[Ucsdryder]

I went gutless method for my first time today with a buck I shot last night just before losing light. Opened his back up to cool off last night pulling skin off midway down each shoulder, came back this morning and something had ripped his guts out behind the ribs all over the meat... first attempt backfired, may go back to gutting asap. So far a lot of the meat has that guts smell even after rinsed, will see how it tastes but might be dogfood.

Second person today on here saying they left an animal laying overnight that they found. If you’re little fingers get to cold to process it and hang it in a tree away from the carcass then don’t shoot them in the evening.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Thanks for all your input guys. My theory that this is contamination from the hide is still panning out, but I'm also wondering if I could be dealing with a bit of widespread spoilage as well. We shot this bull mid afternoon in mid September in AZ and did not find it til next morning. Temps at night were colder and it was shaded all day, not baking in the sun...but it is still a dead elk in September with the guts punctured. The degree of nasty tasting meat is still hit or miss, but I am wondering if what I am tasting is the start of meat spoilage since it seems to be somewhat wide spread. Everything smelled fine while we were field butchering. I just don't know what the start of meat spoilage tastes like and the taste is so much like how the hide smelled. Every deer, bear, and pig I have shot has been recovered within a few hours, so I haven't dealt with spoilage before.

This is a year old but it wasn’t the stink from the hide. You had some tainted meat. It’ll stink up a kitchen after being cooked. Something about the process of cooking brings out the smell. A bull left overnight will have spoilage. Neck, ball joints, tenderloins.

 

[TauPhi111]

This is a year old but it wasn’t the stink from the hide. You had some tainted meat. It’ll stink up a kitchen after being cooked. Something about the process of cooking brings out the smell. A bull left overnight will have spoilage. Neck, ball joints, tenderloins.

yeah that is what I have come to conclude. Lessons learned.

 

[rbljack]

I agree with JPD and the others who suspect meat spoilage and bone souring. I had this happen on a white tail buck my son shot. We couldn't locate the deer after shooting him in the morning. Then temps climbed. we looked all morning and found him late in the afternoon, BUT the temps were way up there (west texas). It was 85 in the afternoon. So..we did the best we could but that deer had an off smell that we just couldn't swallow...literally. Really sucked to loose the meat like that. I see a lot of these guys on TV and youtube say to "let him rest and we will come back tomorrow to get him". Well...I suspect they come back the next morning to a lot of bone sour meat, but you never hear that part. Anyways....hope that helps. Maybe add the gloves to your kill kit as an extra precaution too..they don't weight much.

 

[wildhorsetrail]

Strange maybe, but the worst tasting elk I ever had was a cow shot in the snow in December. I have consistently had better flavor with rutting bulls in September than some of those older cows.

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[bac078]

As with others... ive only shot one... but i had latex gloves... changed them often and took my time. Havent had this problem

 

[cmwhitmoyer]

Rbljack,
A lot of the guys on the shows don't care about the meat. Many of them kill more then they can eat so they donate it to food banks.

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[peterk123]

I agree that spoilage is probably the culprit. I shot a deer last thursday near last light. 65 degree temps. Sweated to death dragging her up the hill and to the truck. Drove straight to the liquor store and purchased fifteen pounds of ice. Stuffed her with the ice then took the other bags and placed it on her then wrapped her in a blanket. I was butchering it in the morning. Most of her was nice and cool but it was amazing that certain areas, specifically in the hind rear quarters, were still warm.

I can't even imagine a larger animal with thicker fir, more fat and meat. There is always that discussion of how long to hang/age an animal. My rule of thumb; the warmer it is the quicker you process. If it's above 50 degrees I butcher as soon as I can. Forget aging. I can't imagine the challenges you guys face that kill an animal in the backcountry. For me a long hike is 3/4 of a mile, at best.

 

[HoughLePuff]

Do the gutless method, which keeps your cuts and hands away from the belly that is covered in urine and stench. I have found that this is important because it will transfer the smell and taste to the meat. Several pairs of gloves would work too, but I don't carry any.

Do you have any tips on keeping a testical on each ham when doing the gutless method for evidence of sex?

 

[wytx]

Second person today on here saying they left an animal laying overnight that they found. If you’re little fingers get to cold to process it and hang it in a tree away from the carcass then don’t shoot them in the evening.

Sorry but have quartered and left many an elk overnight in the filed, no problems. Sometimes you just have to. Take care of the carcass and no problems. Left a gutted cow once overnight and quartered it next morning, no issues as well. get the guts out and prop it open and you'll be fine, no need top pack in the dark.

 

[Ucsdryder]

Sorry but have quartered and left many an elk overnight in the filed, no problems. Sometimes you just have to. Take care of the carcass and no problems. Left a gutted cow once overnight and quartered it next morning, no issues as well. get the guts out and prop it open and you'll be fine, no need top pack in the dark.

quartering an animal and leaving overnight is not what I was referring to in my post. I specifically said “if your little fingers are too cold to process...”. Process = quarter and hang. I was referring to people who find the animal and leave it as it lays and come back the next day like the OP did.

 

[hunter4life]

Hough, everywhere I have hunted requires the antlers for males, or the scalp on cow elk. I have never left the testicles attached.

Elk will be fine if skinned, quartered and left overnight. I have done that many times.
If just gutted and left on the ground overnight you are just asking to lose a bunch of meat to spoilage. The hide is so thick that the meat will not cool. My brother worked at a game processor for several years. They processed 250 or so elk a year. In winter guys would kill a cow elk near the road in the morning, gut it and load it in the pickup, then hunt the rest of the day and bring it in that evening or the next morning. The shanks would be frozen solid, but the neck and center of the hams would still be hot and already starting to stink and go bone sour. Anyone who tells you otherwise is lying or has never dealt with elk.

 

[HoughLePuff]

Hough, everywhere I have hunted requires the antlers for males, or the scalp on cow elk. I have never left the testicles attached.

Elk will be fine if skinned, quartered and left overnight. I have done that many times.
If just gutted and left on the ground overnight you are just asking to lose a bunch of meat to spoilage. The hide is so thick that the meat will not cool. My brother worked at a game processor for several years. They processed 250 or so elk a year. In winter guys would kill a cow elk near the road in the morning, gut it and load it in the pickup, then hunt the rest of the day and bring it in that evening or the next morning. The shanks would be frozen solid, but the neck and center of the hams would still be hot and already starting to stink and go bone sour. Anyone who tells you otherwise is lying or has never dealt with elk.

A couple buddies and I hunted Colorado this year, thats why I ask. I believe once the head is detached from the carcus, the head is no longer sufficient evidence of sex.

 

[BoneTaco]

must be predominantly urine on skin getting on meat