Over the last couple weeks I've been off work and took a trip to see some friends who live hundreds of kilometres away up north and I also took the time to visit some of my partner's family who we don't see very often. On one of those visits we had a BBQ, some venison (deer) I'd shot several weeks earlier and brought for them; it was tasty.
One of the young lads, my partner's cousin, a non-shooter/hunter, expressed an interest in how I'd obtained the deer: Found, stalked, shot, field dressed, skinned and processed it to be able to present it in such a way it can be BBQ'd and consumed. We talked about it at length and it was cool to see the lad take an active interest in the processes rather than take it for granted that his food (meat) would simply materialise in front of him on a plate with a side of greens, potato salad and a slice of garlic bread.
Field dressing - Deer (or a hog)
I'll not go right into the full process but thought I'd outline just the field dressing stage. Just for the record, I don't like doing this, I find it objectionable, however as a responsible hunter and someone who values self-reliance it's something that needs to be done and so I learned how to do it a long time ago and make sure I do it well when it's required.
Field dressing is basically taking the insides of the deer out of the inside of the deer while in the field, usually at the spot the deer has been dispatched. One needs some equipment: Sharp hunting knife, a length of rope, (I use nylon cord as it packs down smaller than rope), clean cloths, plastic bags, disposable latex gloves (surgical gloves) and a stout heart.
Roll the deer over to its back - this takes effort if it is a large one - and ensure its rump is lower than the shoulders then spread the hind legs so you're looking at its undersection - A stick can be used through the hind legs to hold the legs apart. Make a cut from the breast bone down the centre of the belly to the base of the tail. You don't want to cut too deeply or you'll open internal organs which can be messy, smelly and all-round fucken terrible - You're basically cutting the hide only and then once that's done you're going to cut through the belly muscles (without cutting into the stomach or intestines.)
Cut around the anus and draw it back into the body cavity so it comes free while still connected to the intestines then roll the animal to its side and remove the stomach and intestines as a complete section. (Some save the liver but that's not my thing.)
Cut around the diaphragm separating the chest and stomach cavities then cut the esophagus and windpipe in front of the lungs. The heart and lungs will come free now and you can easily drain any blood from the now empty chest cavity. If you've been a nutbag and sliced into the stomach or intestines you'll need to wash out the body cavity with clear water at this stage - That's an important thing to remember.
Note: Some prefer to cut the pelvic and breast bone using a hand saw or maybe pruning sheers during the above process which helps lessen the risk of cutting into the large intestine and bladder and it makes the removal of some of the internal organs a little easier.
From there the carcass needs to be cooled so it's hung with the cavity propped open - This is ideally done in a walk-in cooler although there's none of those (generally unless one has a vehicle mounted cooler on a truck) in the field so a cool, shaded place is generally used. The venison I took for the BBQ was aged so hung (in a cool room) for about 15 days or so but the in-field cooling time is usually about three to four hours...and then it's ready to be carried out (on one's shoulders whole) or cut into smaller pieces and bagged. My suggestion is people get very familiar with food safety and proper meat-handling techniques, the net result of not doing so could be catastrophic.
That's pretty much it really, a process that, once mastered, doesn't take long at all. It's important to wear gloves when doing this work as the animal can potentially be infected with pathogens that can pose a health risk and after field dressing (or butchering also) a decent clean up is required, hot water and soap folks, not hand sanitiser.
I'm not really into field dressing hogs, they're filthy creatures and can carry disease however on the occasions I've had to (rarely) I burn the remains, the gloves and cloths and ensure to minimise any contact I actually have with the animal however I generally shoot those and leave them where they fall - They're a feral and invasive species here so are typically shot on sight.
I understand most people will never do this, but this process occurs for the meat you eat by someone. It would be convenient if meat simply materialised in little plastic trays in the supermarket or butcher's shop but the reality is that it has to be killed, dressed and butchered for human consumption and somebody has to do it.
Do you think you'd be able to do something like this if it came down to having to kill and dress your own meat? I guess many would say no and prefer to eat something else and many will simply want someone else to provide for them but me...well, I think it's responsible to know how to do these things and to be able to provide for myself and others and it was cool to see that lad I was discussing this with feel the same way - The world needs more self-reliant people.
Design and create your ideal life, tomorrow isn't promised - galenkp
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Sounds like a potentially very messy job. Can’t help but think of the meat processing plants and the issues they had during the pandemic (maybe still?).
Could I do it? If push comes to shove I sure would try. I don’t like it and dislike the smell of blood but necessity and all - yup.
There's some blood, I'll not lie, but it's minimal if done correctly; the problem comes I'd the organs are cut into...not advisable, although it sometimes happens. The smell of blood isn't as strong as you'd think ai guess, although when one gets up close and personal like this it's surely there.
I hope you're well, and a big happy new year to you and that fella of yours.
Thank you. Happy New Year to you and the missus, too! I'm doing okay as is the hubs and I hope your 2024 is off to a good start.
I remember someone getting offended when I suggested they should probably be vegetarian because they were unable to cope with this fact (they knew where meat came from but was determined to keep it all neatly abstracted away and got upset when confronted with it).
And they're also grossed out by the thought of lab meat so...?
I'm glad you covered field dressing so I didn't have to ask xD And it looks like it was what I thought it was, as per usual I never know the terms for things. Doing a deer sounds much harder than chickens x_x
Speaking from experience? x_x
People are really strange when it comes to meat...some get all uppity about others being a hunter or whatever, but they have no problems eating meat that someone has done exactly the same thing with as any hunter would do. It comes from the supermarket so it's ok apparently. Nutbags.
I'd rather do a deer than a chicken...all that fucking plucking. Lol.
Unfortunately, yes. One learns pretty quickly though. 😉
We had naked necks for a while as there was slightly less plucking to do, plus they're a funny looking chicken XD and the chicklets are soooooo cuuuuuuuuute.
We don't have naked necks anymore and only have a handful of chickens for eggs now.
Chickens for eggs, I'd really like some but I don't really have the room for any without taking out some of my garden which I'm not willing to do. I trade for eggs though so I have nice home-laid ones. :)
Trading is totally legit and I think a lot more sustainable than trying to do the rugged individualism thing.
It's all good if there's someone/people to trade with and one has products with value, fortunately I have both. 😉
Hi Galen, about whether I would be able to kill an animal to feed myself, I think the answer is yes. I have done things in life that I thought I would not be able to do and when the time came I did them. I am interested in the idea that I think is behind the text, there are people who do things for our sake and we don't want to know that they do them. We like to be "good people" but at the same time we take advantage of other people's work that we may criticize.
Best regards
People are too reliant upon others and that's causing skills to be lost, the skills that have advanced the human race to where we are now, but relying on others isn't always going to work and not much has to go wrong for the house of cards to collapse. I like to have practical skills and I believe, should the worst happen and society as we know it now was to break down I feel that I'd be well-placed to sustain myself and those around me. I think people should put more effort into learning to be more self reliant.
I agree that we are at the end of a cycle for humanity, and I take note of what you say. Best regards
I suppose if I needed to hunt and go through that process I would do it, it is necessary for survival. In another time I would have told you that I wouldn't do it, but today I think differently. I think the way the world is going it will be necessary.
It's also interesting what you mention about people buying meat in supermarkets without suspecting or wanting to know how it arrives, how it is processed, and I particularly liked knowing that.
At the moment I only know how to fish... but who knows, life is full of twists and turns.
It's convenient that people can simply drive down to the supermarket and get their meat, or any product really, but because of that people have allowed their own skills to decline to the point where particular abilities are simply none-existent. It happens with other things too...the ability to use correct grammer and punctuation for instance because of the reliance on AI and spell checkers or the ability to communicate effectively in person due t social media and text messaging and dating apps.
It's the way things have moved and I don't see it as a good thing.
I don't see it as a good thing either, too much has been lost in recent times. As if it were the decline of the human race .... where are we going?
A decline for sure and where it goes...who really knows, but nowhere good is my bet.
Mine either .... do you think the human race will split?
I have friends who could teach me if I ever got to that point. I'd probably throw up the whole time I was doing it, but I would manage. I don't really mind blood so much, but certain smells trigger my gag reflex pretty hard. I trim chicken for my wife all the time though. Some of those breasts you buy from the store still have a lot of skin and fat on them and need to be cleaned. My friend has a place that does his pigs for him every now and then. They have a huge facility in the middle of the state. He took a tour one day, he said it wasn't for the faint of heart, but it was fascinating.
Meat processing facilities are certainly not for the faint of heart and I think theres'd be a lot more vegetarians if people toured them and truly understood what goes on to get an animal from the meadow to the supermarket; most people prefer to ignore the process though.
Yeah, that is a good point. I am probably one of those people. I mean I know in the back of my head what goes on, but they are just so dang delicious!
Most probably have a little of that in them from some perspective or another. It's just how life has moved us all I guess.
Man you have a strong stomach! I don't think I would be able to do this. Happy new yeah G dawg! Hope you having an awesome holiday!
It's not something I enjoy doing to be honest, but the skill is something I enjoy having and is one that may come in very helpful in a tough situation. When I shoot a deer it happens, venison is too tasty to leave laying in the field.
Happy new year Smarty, I hope it's a good one...don't be a stranger, stop by anytime.
Skills a skill - kind of like a needs must.
Happy New Year to you, too! I'm in and out but not much; school holidays and the boss is home. So you know. But we have been having fun, now i gotta catch up with work! I will pop in fo sho! You feel free to do the same!
One must have the skill of knowing one's skills - it's an important skill.
Well, I know how to fish, so I've done my fair share of dressing the fish or how we refer to it around here "fixing it". I have eaten venison before and it was a very interesting flavor. The process of dressing it looks interesting. Do you keep the antlers? I know for a fact people who carve brittle stuff life obsidian and other stones and glasses use them for tools.
I'm not into keeping antlers, I don't seek trophies, or need them.
Fishing is a good skill, I can do it too, although I'm better at hunting than fishing. I'm supposed to be going to the river for some fishing with a friend in a few weeks, I may do a post on it.
So do you throw them away?
Fishing is an interesting skill. I have never done it in a river since ours is polluted. I guess it's interesting to be able to watch what kind of fish you could get.
Yeah, the head gets left intact in the field generally. The rodents, ants and birds clean it up. Sometimes a friend wants it and in that case I hand it over and that's that.
I see. Well, it's the cycle of life 😂
I don't think I can do this, since I am not that good with blood. That is also one of the reasons why I didn't go to a medical field. I understand its importance, and I find the steps interesting. I'm not vegan, and have no intention of being one, but if they are able to perfect lab grown meat, I think I would prefer that.
Lab grown meat? Hmm, ok well I hope that never happens.
I like having the skill and ability to provide for myself and I actively work towards improving them. I don't know if my life will ever depend on it, but in a situation in which it does I feel confident that I'll be thankful I made the effort to learn.
Haha. I don't partake of them yet, since it still isn't comparable to the real thing. I support it because there are a lot of upsides to it. The meat industry is one of the biggest contributors to greenhouse gas emissions. If lab grown meat is also cheaper, then it can help solve a lot of food problems around the world.
When you think about all that has to be done to put a piece of meat on the table, it certainly makes even the high prices of today not seem so exorbitant.
Of course I'll pay for someone else to do it. Yes.. .I will.
Doing this process myself means I know what all's going on and how it's being done...who knows how it transpires in a processing plant. Still, there's laws and regulations and let's hope they're followed huh?
As I said, I don't love doing it but it's required when I shoot something I'm going to consume and it's a nifty skill to have for when things go badly.
This is a good to know skill. I appreciate what you did for the lad. Also, I agree with you in that no matter how things have been made convenient for us through the advancement of technology, we shouldn't fall prey to the over-relliance on them, but learn to do as much as we can the things that are basic for survival and good living. Thank you for sharing, let me go prepare myself a good pot of soup. 🍲
Losing one's ability to do things for oneself is fraught with danger however that's what society has done; people are more reliant on others than ever before and important skills are lost, it being lost, and that's not a good situation. Relying on AI will do the same thing at accelerated rates also...not good.
I am a meat eater, I was a vegetarian for five years back in my early 20s, but I tell you for sure if I had to butcher the damn animals to eat them, I'd probably still be a vegetarian. Hunting em? Maybe, but butchering is something I would not do...
Grandpa was into hunting and same as you he'd do the butchering too. I guess once you become a hunter butchering somehow comes naturally. I guess...
It's something that one gets used to; it wasn't long ago when there was little choice in it if one wanted to eat and provide for oneself, and people had much better skills in respect of self reliance. I think it's sad those skills are being lost and I wonder if they'll come back; doubtful I guess.
I'm glad I've got skills like this, it leaves me a solid level of confidence in my own ability.
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