12 replies to this topic

[rude robert]

Hi I seen the list just now, I am going off the i 8 near Alpine. Is there any butcher that is close by in San Diego. Hoping to fill my tag with a doe next week, If God so Blesses me thx Robert Oh i don't show one but in san marcos which is a bit far. I will have to take the deer in, then drive back to camp which will be probably too far thxs again

[DirtyDave]

You can wait a couple days before taking it to the butcher, as long as you have a big cooler to transport/keep the deer in. Dont know any butchers in SD, but if you do use a butcher down there, you will have to go back down there to pick it up. I would suggest taking the deer home and dropping it off at Hottingers in Chino. Hottingers is closer to Corona.

I've never used a butcher, I do it all myself, but I have a fridge in the garage that I take all the shelves out so I can stick the whole deer or pig in there. I keep it in the fridge for up to a week or til I have time to butcher it.

[rude robert]

I have a up right deep freezer, i wonder if it will go down low enough not to freeze it? the problem i see, if by chance i get one, id have to brake camp, pack up everything and leave it is a 2.5 hr drive. trying to get some kind of plan in effect, just in case... thx

[DirtyDave]

You sound like you are in a big hurry to get to the butcher. Aren't you going to break camp to go home anyways? As long as you have a way to keep it cool and clean, there is no need to rush to the butcher. You are making it sound like you are going to take the deer to the butcher while its still kicking.

Depending on locality of the kill you can either 1/4 it, Bone it, or carry it whole back to camp. This will vary depending on circumstances. When back at camp, hang it up and skin it if you have it still whole. Put it in the cooler on ice and RELAX. Heck you dont have to leave til the next day if you dont want to. You dont have to drop everything just cuz you killed a deer.

Butchers wont take a deer with the hide on it or if the meat is dirty in any way (hair, leaves, etc)

[Loopdog]

When hauling game back to town don’t put it directly over where the muffler or exhaust pipe is in the bed of a truck….not a good thing.. if we have a long way to go we always (after it is cooled out) wrap it in a tarp with bags of ice up in the cavity….

[rude robert]

Lack of experience i guess. I don't want to kill it and meat go to waste. Just tryiing to prepare in my mind what will need to be done. I will be hot i am assuming just trying to get some ideas in my mind on what do in each possible situation lol

[DirtyDave]

More important to get the deer back to camp and get it on ice, than to rush it to the butcher. Worry about proper field dressing, Quartering, Skinning, Packing, Carrying, etc whichever method you may use to get it back to camp will be your 1st step. Butcher is the least of your worries.
Like I said, you probably want a butcher closer to your HOUSE than closer to where you are hunting. Closer to go and pick up after it's processed.

If you shoot a Doe, you can just gut it in the field and carry the whole thing back to camp like a firemans carry. Then work on skinning etc at camp with a beer

[KNOCKED UP]

Like D Dave said,
Get it cool asap,
When you put it on ice, make sure you keep it out of the ice water,
That will destroy your meat as fast as heat.
Good luck.
Tom

[rude robert]

Ice water? why would that damage it

[turkeyman85]

Sogs up the meat.

[DirtyDave]

Ice water? why would that damage it

Keep the ice in bags or lay the meat on a trash bag on top of the ice. Clean, Cold water is not going to kill your meat. It will take some color out of it though. Some guys soak their hogs in ice water and change it out a few times when it gets bloody to take out some of the Gamey flavor.
You can actually save the blood-shot portions by soaking them in water or washing with a hose and working the blood out.

Warm water or moisture in the air will kill your meat though.

[GLP]

What I found works well is to get a large ice chest (120-150 qt), get a few Hefty Jumbo 2.5 gallon plastic zip lock bags, fill them with ice (make sure they are zipped tight) and place them in the bottom of the ice chest, then put the deer in the ice chest, maybe with another bag of ice in the deer's body cavity. If it's a doe you can probably fit it in the ice chest whole after field dressing and skinning. I did this once when up at Fort Hunter Liggett, drove home 6 hours, took it straight to the butcher, and the meat tasted great. If it's a buck you'll probably have to quarter it, bring along a second smaller chest just in case it's a big one.

You can get the Coleman Xtreme 120 qt at Walmart online for $52, or the Igloo 150 qt for $80.

[Baja_Traveler]

Your closest guy for processing will be Jims Country Smokehouse in Lakeside. 619 249 9631

The best deal in the San Diego area is Red & White Market in Oceanside.

Of course the cheapest way is to just do it yourself...